Editor’s note: Due to the ongoing security situation, events listed below may be postponed or canceled. Check before booking, and stay safe.
FRIDAY, AUGUST 22
Take an ice bath and breathing classes with Elisa Joy Kagan at Peace Forest camping in Jerusalem’s Old City. The workshop promises to restore balance and promote health even for those who don’t like to feel cold. This is one way to jolt the senses before Shabbat.
9 a.m. to noon. NIS 220. 68 Derech Gedod St. Call 052-951-4448 to register. Learn more at cityofdavid.org.il/en/?.
SATURDAY, AUGUST 23
Visit the opening of Temporary Flood, a solo exhibition by Shira Kamrad at the Jerusalem Artists’ House. Patrons will also enjoy I Have Come into My Garden, a new series of works by Iris Ahuva Pykovski, and A Universe of Her Own by Vera Gutkina.
A student of Soviet artist Vladimir Shtranikh, Gutkina was a highly respected painter and writer among the wave of idealistic immigrants who came to Jerusalem from the former USSR. Works by Omer Shach, winner of the 2025 Osnat Mozes Painting Prize, will also be on display.
Noon opening. Free. 12 Shmuel Hanagid St. Until Saturday, October 25.
SUNDAY, AUGUST 24
Enjoy Shakespeare Celebration: Monologues and Dialogues by Theater in the Rough, at Bloomfield Gardens. Patrons are invited to bring a folding chair, something warm to wear in the evening, and enjoy the wit of the Bard.
In English. Free; suggested donation of NIS 40. Call 052-559-4257 for more information or email info@theaterintherough.co.il.
MONDAY, AUGUST 25
Visit the Jerusalem Cinematheque and watch the 1995 action film Seven, directed by David Fincher. It is one of the gems selected for the Back in Action anthology of 1990s action movies and is part of the Films for English Speakers series.
Brad Pitt plays a young detective, and Morgan Freeman is a veteran detective about to retire. Together, they try to catch a killer.
8:30 p.m. at 11 Hebron Rd. NIS 43. Call (02) 565-4333 to book.
TUESDAY, AUGUST 26
Take in five short English-language plays at the 9th Annual Young Playwrights and Performers Festival at the Khan Theater. The plays are Acceptance by Zoe Bergman; The King by Yehoshua Levy; When It Moves You by Tehila Ostroff; Strayed from the Path by Amitai Hacohen, Zev Kaufman, and Anaelle Sterne; and Through the Eyes of a Child by Arella Witt.
2 David Remez St. NIS 60 per ticket. Call (02) 630-3600 to book.
WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 27
Climb to the roof of the Sam Spiegel Cinema to enjoy the summer night open-air screening of Dirty Dancing, directed by Emile Ardolino. Jennifer Grey and Patrick Swayze star in this award-winning film about a teenage girl on a family summer break in the Catskills, who meets a handsome dance instructor.
The film is an intelligent coming-of-age movie that blends a vision of American life in the early 1960s – with its class and power distinctions – with a romantic vision of a young woman.
Doors open at 6:30 p.m. At 7 p.m., there will be a DJ set marking the sunset. Screening begins at 8 p.m. English-language film with Hebrew subtitles. NIS 35. 3 Menora St. Visit cinema.jsfs.co.il for more information.
THURSDAY, AUGUST 28
Visit the Bible Lands Museum and explore Totzeret Ha’aretz (Made in Israel), a two-day festival that links 11 current craft distilleries with the ancient world.
See and taste rye whisky made by the Drunken Owl Brewery in Beit Shemesh; and the Arava Distillery’s arak and Eau de Vie (aka Schnapps) by the Hollander Distillery, from the mountains of Jerusalem.
Event co-producer Aryeh Shwartz points out that the fruit used by the various distilleries is gathered from farmers from Israel’s North and South. By using fruit that would otherwise have been discarded because it is not large enough or visually appealing to the supermarket customer, “we create a cycle of dignity and respect to Israeli labor,” he says.
4 p.m. to 11 p.m. Also on Friday, August 29, from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Maor Vahav’s Quintet will perform at 6 p.m. 7:30 p.m. and 9 p.m. on Thursday. NIS 150 entry fee. Each ticket includes the option to try five of the various drinks promoted, with additional five-shot tickets for NIS 50 each. To book, call (02) 561-1066.
Throwing a special event? Opening an art exhibition or a new bar? Bringing in a guest speaker to introduce a fascinating topic? Email hagay_hacohen@yahoo.com and let In Jerusalem know about it. Write “Jerusalem Highlights” in the subject line. Although all information is welcome, we cannot guarantee it will be featured in the column.