Museum of Jewish Heritage Extends Mah Jongg Through 2/27

This winter the Museum of Jewish Heritage - A Living Memorial to the Holocaust will be offering festive mah jongg related programming in conjunction with the wildly popular exhibit, Project Mah Jongg, now extended through February 27.
 
On Wednesday, December 15, the Museum will once again present The Future Mah Jongg Players of Majestic Isles, an original comedy written for the Museum. Sunday, December 26 will be devoted to Mah Jongg Mania, a day of programming that will include film screenings, mah jongg games, and arts and crafts for children.
 
Tickets to The Future Mah Jongg Players of Majestic Isles are $15, $12 for seniors and students, and $10 for members. Tickets are available online at www.mjhnyc.org or by calling the Museum box office at 646.437.4202.  Tickets for Mah Jongg Mania are free with Museum admission and can be picked up at the admissions desk on the day of the program.
 
About the Programs
Wednesday, December 15, 7 P.M.
The Future Mah Jongg Players of Majestic Isles
Enjoy an evening of comedy and stories about mah jongg and the people who are crazy about it, featuring comedians Cory Kahaney and Eddie Sarfaty, and hosted by self-proclaimed "Oriental Yenta" Esther Goodhart. This original comedy, created for the Museum, is back by popular demand.
 
Cory Kahaney is best known from the first season of Last Comic Standing (NBC). She has been seen as the comedy coach on Nick at Nite, the Funniest Mom in America series, and her own standup special on Comedy Central Presents. Cory's most recent success was her critically acclaimed off-Broadway production, The J.A.P Show: The Princesses of Comedy. Kahaney performed at the Museum of Jewish Heritage last year in a collaborative comedic theater work called Pastrami on Rye...With Mayo, which was selected for the opening night gala of the 2009 Chutzpah! Festival.
 
Esther Goodhart is a comedian. She is a host of the syndicated program Asian America and is known as the Oriental Yenta.  She teaches Hebrew at three temples, and she ran unsuccessfully for the Demarest (NJ) Town Council as a Republican.
 
Comedian and writer Eddie Sarfaty has appeared on The Today Show, Nightline, and on Comedy Central's Premium Blend. He is a regular at Caroline's and Gotham Comedy Club in New York and has performed at Montreal's Just for Laughs Comedy Festival, New York's Toyota Comedy Festival and at festivals in Columbus, Detroit, Miami, Phoenix, and Washington, D.C. In addition he has been a featured performer for Atlantis Cruises, Aquafest Cruises, Romance Voyages, and RSVP Vacations. Recently Eddie's short story, "Second Guessing Grandma," received critical acclaim when it appeared in the bestselling anthology When I Knew by Regan Books, a division of Harper Collins. Since 2003 he has been on the faculty of The Theatre Lab in Washington, D.C., where he teaches workshops on comedy writing and performing. Eddie recently signed a book deal with Kensington Press and is also working on several projects as a writer/performer for Logo.
Join us in the gallery for mah jongg pick-up games starting at 5 P.M.
$15, $12 students/seniors, $10 members
 
Sunday, December 26
Mah Jongg Mania
Bring friends and family for a day of festivities including mah jongg games, craft activities, film screenings of The Joy Luck Club and Mah-Jongg: The Tiles that Bind, exhibition tours, and more.
 
Film screenings
 
11 a.m. and 2:30 p.m. Mah-Jongg: The Tiles that Bind (1998, 32 min.). This film is a light-hearted yet deeply moving portrait of the Asian- and Jewish-American women who play this centuries-old game. It explores the shared experiences of The Players and their families, and chronicles the very social aspect of the game - food, camaraderie, gossip, and most importantly, the life-long bonds that form between its players.
 
11:45 a.m. and 3 p.m. The Joy Luck Club (1993, 139 min.). Based on the best-selling book by Amy Tan, this emotional film follows four Chinese women born in the United States who struggle to understand their Chinese-born mothers.
 
1 P.M.-3 P.M. Mah jongg games
Co-sponsored by the National Mah Jongg League
 
11 P.M. -1 P.M. and 2 P.M. -4 P.M. Craft activities 
 
For kids ages 3 to 10.
 
For complete details and a schedule of the day's events, visit www.projectmahjongg.com.
All activities are free with purchase of Museum admission