Festival Week | Overview
Saturday, August 1st - Saturday, August 8th, 2026

Yiddish Wo:men – Another Story of Modernity

Come celebrate with us the talented, inspiring, visionary, unconventional and provocative women of Yiddish culture! Immerse yourselves in a week full of life and creativity!  

Meet the most prolific Yiddish performers and cultural activists in a breathtaking week that includes the premiere of three new projects, double-bill concerts, a slew of free mini-workshops, jam sessions and good company, laughter and energy all around!

What is this year’s topic all about? Since the beginning of Yiddish in the Middle Ages, women shaped Yiddish culture. Throughout the centuries their tastes, interests and needs were constant motors of development. Change did not just happen to women, they were driving forces leading Yiddish expression into modernity. But, as we all know, their achievements and talents were often neither valued nor validated. Rather, they found themselves being written out of the story. 

During the Festival Week we will present world-premieres and projects that connect the world of Yiddish-speaking women from the medieval period to the 21st century. 

This year’s Yiddish Summer Weimar festival projects are made possible with the generous support of the Federal Cultural Foundation of Germany and are conceived and curated by guest curator Dr. Diana Matut.

The Projects

Togbukh
Rose Shoshana Kahan – A Yiddish Story of Shanghai
A one-woman musical theater piece.

Libretto by Dr. Diana Matut
Music by Dr. Alan Bern
Starring Leila Schütz as Rose Shoshana

Performances:
Sat, Aug 1, 2026: Premiere
Thu, Aug 6, 2026: 2nd performance

more

Her:Kol – Yiddish Women’s Song Cultures
New musical settings of Yiddish women’s poetry by contemporary women composer/performers of Yiddish music

Concerts:
Sat, Aug 8, 2026: Premiere

more

Yiddish Wo:men and the Story of the Book:
A Different Path to Modernity
An online exhibition exploring the history of Jewish wo:men’s engagement with literature and the medium of the book from the medieval period to the 21st century.
Curated by Alma Roggenbuck & Dr. Diana Matut
Design by Eyal Davidovitch
Yiddish calligraphy by Ella Ponizovsky Bergelson

Events:
Sat, Aug 1, 2026: Project presentation and exhibition opening at OMA

more

All three projects will debut during the Festival Week.

Daily Program

Read all about this year's mini-workshops, Meet the Artist, evening events and Late Night Cabaret

here

The Topic

Read even more about this year's topic

here