Arts and Culture

Members of the Holocaust Survivors group that meets at Jewish Family & Children's Services of Southern Arizona got a preview of the new JFCS mural on Sept. 22. (L-R:) Severin Szperling, Theresa Dulgov, mural artist Pen Macias, Sara Lichter (wife of survivor Pawel Lichter, of blessed memory), Sidney Finkel and his partner, Barbara Agee. (Photo courtesy JFCS)

Jewish Family & Children’s Services (JFCS) is commemorating its 85th year of delivering essential social services to individuals and families of all backgrounds with the gift of a large-scale mural to the Southern Arizona community. The artwork by local muralist Pen Macias, painted on an exterior wall of… Read more »

It’s not uncommon to set about our day and experience a barrier. Often, we can remove the obstacles ourselves, but sometimes we need help. Recently, I got a call from a buddy who needed his car jumped. I immediately stopped what I was working on and was there in… Read more »

For years, Evelyn Damashek Varady meticulously researched the lives of her parents, Hela and Janek Damashek, with particular emphasis on how they survived the Holocaust. She combed documents, letters, photos, and interviews with family members to fill in the gaps left by her parents’ reticence and their early deaths:… Read more »

Handmaker's season of lectures and talks covers birding, minerals, Judaica and classical music.… Read more »

German loot stored in a church at Ellingen, Germany, found by troops of the U.S. Third Army, April 24, 1945. (Photo: National Archives RG 111-SC-204899)

Emily Hager of the Tucson Jewish Museum & Holocaust Center leads a gallery chat on Nazi looting of art.… Read more »

Tucsonan Seth Schindler is featured in the collection Manna Songs: Stories of Jewish Culture and Heritage.… Read more »

Leora Freedman's novel Cherry Baum follows a Jewish holy woman in modern Toronto; Freedman is a UA creative writing graduate.… Read more »

On June 12-13, Tucson will welcome a unique blend of music, spirituality, and Israeli creativity as the Fuchsberg Jerusalem Center’s Zamru Ensemble arrives for a musicians-in-residence Shabbat. The weekend promises an immersive experience of prayer, learning, and musical connection, rooted in a program that has become a powerful source… Read more »

Ariel Burger with his book, "Witness: Lessons from Elie Wiesel's Classroom"

Every student who tours Tucson Jewish Museum & Holocaust Center will hear the words of Elie Wiesel, “When you listen to a witness, you become a witness.” On Thursday, May 7 at 6:00 p.m. in the Paul & Alice Baker Ballroom at the Tucson Jewish Community Center, the Lakin… Read more »

The Shul of Rock band, part of the Shirei Simcha project started by Kol Ami Cantor Jen Benrey, rehearses on Feb. 12, 2026, led by Benrey (standing, with guitar) and Chris Tackett (seated, in red shirt). (Photo courtesy Kol Ami)

Cantor Jen Benrey of Kol Ami Synagogue has started a teen band, the “Shul of Rock,” for students in grades 7-12, and a junior youth choir, “Sabra Singers,” for students in grades 2-6. Both are open to Jewish kids from across Southern Arizona. The band and choir are the… Read more »

A chance encounter with Tucsonans Dana Narter and Ed Baruch inspired bestselling author Lisa Gardner’s latest book, “Kiss Her Goodbye,” which is set mainly in Tucson. Gardner met the couple in 2023 on a whale-watching trip in California. They told her about serving as companions to a family of… Read more »

The Tucson Jewish Museum & Holocaust Center (TJMHC) will host the grand opening of its newest exhibition, ”Media Matters: Cutting Through the Noise,” on Thursday, March 12, at 6 p.m. This year’s installment of the Allen & Marianne Langer Contemporary Human Rights Exhibit explores the evolution of media literacy and… Read more »

Gustav Mahler, left, and Ernest Bloch

The Arizona Center for Judaic Studies at the University of Arizona will present “An Evening of Jewish Chamber Music: Mahler and Bloch” as part of the Shaol & Louis Pozez Memorial Lectureship Lecture Series. The concert will be held on Sunday, Feb. 22 at 7 p.m. in… Read more »

Antonia Lassar

Antonia Lassar, the Jewish comedian behind viral TikTok clips and the Yenta! podcast, performs live in Tucson in 2026.… Read more »

For more than a decade, the Mitch Dorson Scholar-in-Residence Fund has stood as a living expression of the belief that Jewish learning should be engaging, accessible, and meaningful. Established in 2012, the fund brings a visiting scholar or artist to Tucson to offer a popular exploration of Jewish life… Read more »

The Tucson J International Film Festival began in 1991, making it one of the longest-running Jewish film festivals in the country. Celebrating Jewish history, culture, storytelling, and humor, the 2026 festival will kick off on January 8 with a glamorous, Hollywood-inspired screening of The Property, a dramedy that… Read more »

Last month, the Tucson Jewish History Museum & Holocaust Center unveiled a new way for visitors to hear from Holocaust survivors: “Intimate Histories in 3D.” The project uses volumetric capture technology to create three-dimensional recordings of survivors that can be viewed on tablets and personal devices.TJMHC created the project… Read more »

Tucson Jewish Museum & Holocaust Center kicks off the 2026 Lakin Lecture Series on Antisemitism on Tuesday, Jan. 6, 2026. The series, now in its third year, is dedicated to exploring the nature of antisemitism, fostering dialogue, and promoting social justice and human rights. The series educates both Jewish and non-Jewish communities… Read more »

Maternal mental health matters. That’s the main message of “You’ve Got This: A Pocket Guide for Maternal Mental Health,” a slim, easy-to-read volume by two local Jewish health care professionals, Robin Giles, a nurse practitioner, and Joy Subrin, a doctor of behavioral health. “During your… Read more »

Julian Schwarz

Cellist Julian Schwarz, who first played Bruch's Kol Nidrei at nine in his Seattle synagogue, performs it with the Tucson Symphony Orchestra.… Read more »