About the Shtetl
Yidishe Kultur in der Hoyptshtot
Founded in 2016 as a natural evolution from the world-famous Neukölln Klezmer Sessions, Shtetl Berlin is a grassroots organization dedicated to celebrating and promoting the rich vibrancy and diverse tapestry of contemporary Yiddish culture. We organize diverse events and serve as a hub to ensure and increase Berlin’s role as a hotspot for Yiddish creativity and community.
We invite you to join us our diverse array of events, including open and inclusive jam sessions that feature a pre-jam mini tune-learning session, workshops, dance-balls, concerts and other community gatherings such as our famous klez-nick summer picnics. Of course the heart of our annual programming is the Shtetl Berlin festival which takes place in early summer and also our annual ‘Nisht Keyn Festival’ each winter, usually during Khanike time. Together with local partners such as Yiddish Berlin and Yiddish Summer Weimar we present myriad opportunities to learn, perform, share and experience Yiddish culture and nurture a community that is welcoming to everyone regardless of identity, gender, religion age, ethnicity or anything else.
Through these activities, we affirm and celebrate the ongoing relevance of contemporary Yiddish culture within the fascinating, multicultural fabric of life in Berlin. Our primary way of staying in contact is our newsletter (along with Facebook and Instagram) so make sure to subscribe and stay informed.
What we do
Berlin is not a shtetl, it’s a groyser shtot (big city), but by hosting regular events we create the feeling of living in a shtetl; running into your friends at interesting events; a community where diverse interests together create a familiar and inspiring atmosphere; events you love and others where you wouldn’t be caught dead!
From jam sessions to poetry readings and open mics, workshops, concerts, meet-ups and more follow this link to read about everything happening in our shtetl, whether you play, sing, dance, read, cook or just enjoy a good Yiddish joke, there’s something for you.
Our Team
Shtetl is a large grassroots organization and over the years many people have built it into what it is today. We currently have a core management team:
As well as several auxiliary managers:
And a number of team members who support, contribute and consult in diverse ways:
Emil Goldshmidt
Daniel Kahn
Laurel Kratchovilla
Yeva Lapsker
Ilya Shneyveys
Our success depends on the active participation and engagement by the larger community, please join us and help create the community you desire, as a volunteer or more - email us to find out how!