LABA

LABA – 14^th Street Y

LABA is a Jewish house of study for culture makers located at the 14^th St. Y in New York City. LABA fellows, which include 20 artists, writers, dancers, musicians, actors, and directors, partake in a yearlong study of classical Jewish text, and then interpret them in their work which is featured in the annual festival and monthly online journal.  A central focus of LABA is to present Judaism’s rich literary and intellectual traditions in a non-denominational, non-religious setting, so that these writings may serve as inspiration for the fellow’s art. LABA bases its study around a different theme each year, with this year’s theme being Eros, or love and desire. Last year’s theme was the pardes, or paradise. LABA is a partner of Alma Home for Hebrew Culture in Tel Aviv, where a group of high-caliber artist fellows undertake a parallel study and collaborate with the US fellows throughout the year. Over the course of the year, members of each group travel to either Tel Aviv or New York for an in-person study and artistic exchange.

The LABA Fellows program seeks to transform the cultural landscape of New York and the Jewish world by giving artists and culture-makers an opportunity to engage classical texts and create work in dialogue with ancient wisdom, without compromising contemporary vision. Fellows are given a central role in the community center, and serve as innovators and role models through their creative and honest approach to tradition and identity. LABA enables its fellows to challenge conventional assumptions and advance new paradigms for Jewish life and contemporary culture. The word LABA means “lava” in Hebrew, and reflects the way in which art and culture can bring experiences from deep below the surface into day to day life.

LABA Festival

LABA Festival is a week long celebration of this year's theme Love. Running in April 2011, the festival is the culmination of the 14th Street Y’s innovative year of art programs. Look for more information soon.  

LABA National Model

LABA’s mission is to create meaningful change in the Jewish cultural landscape by combining ancient text and tradition with contemporary innovators. The program, currently in its third and final pilot year, is being developed as a model that can be transplanted to other communities around the US and the world, particularly JCCs. LABA works with a professional staff to evaluate and design the national model, ensuring that the LABA format efficiently meets its goal of cultivating community and building a rich cultural and spiritual legacy. If you are interested in bringing LABA to a JCC near you please contact us at Becky_Skoff@14streety.org. 

The 14th Street Y

The 14th Street Y, a Jewish Community Center in the East Village, is a vital neighborhood resource that welcomes people of all backgrounds. We provide a variety of programs with a distinctive downtown point of view, emphasizing excellence, innovation, creativity, and a questioning spirit. We are inspired by tikkun olam, or repair of the world, in all that we do: a value that represents and renews the vitality of our Jewish heritage and its place in our diverse and vibrant community. The 14th Street Y is a proud part of The Educational Alliance’s network of programs throughout downtown Manhattan.

LABA Staff 

Stephen Hazan Arnoff - Executive Director
Since September 2007, Stephen Hazan Arnoff has been Executive Director of the 14th Street Y. Having served as Managing Editor of the online and print publication, Zeek 2005-2007, from 2002 to 2005 he was Director of Artists Networks and Programming at the Makor/Steinhardt Center of the 92nd Street Y. Stephen writes and lectures on art, religion, culture, education, and Jewish life in academic, communal, and popular venues, and has been awarded the Rockower Jewish Press Award for Jewish Arts & Criticism (American Jewish Press Association, 2006) and the New Voices Prize (Jewish Family and Life, 2005). He has been a Jerusalem Fellow at the Mandel Leadership Institute in Israel and a Wexner Graduate Fellow at the Jewish Theological Seminary, where he earned an MA in Midrash, is currently completing a doctorate, and has served an adjunct lecturer in Talmud and Rabbinics. 

Becky Skoff - LABA Manager 

Becky Deitsch Skoff is the Manager of LABA, The National Laboratory for New Jewish Culture at the 14th Street Y. She is a graduate of the Master's program in Arts Administration at Boston University, and has worked for numerous non-profit performing arts organizations throughout the United States, including the Roundabout Theatre Company, the Citi Performing Arts Center in Boston, the Phillips Center for the Performing Arts in Gainesville, FL, the New Harmony Theatre, and the Lincoln Amphitheatre. She has also coordinated national educational tours with Chamber Theatre Productions. Becky is an alumni of the University of Florida, where she received her undergraduate degree in Public Relations and Theatre. She is an active member of the United Synagogue of Hoboken and is the founder and coordinator of a Torah study program for people in their 20's and 30's. She is an advocate, volunteer, and 60-mile walker for the Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer 3-Day. Becky lives in Hoboken with her husband, playwright and attorney Judah Skoff. 

Basmat Hazan Arnoff- Educator, Program Coordinator
Basmat is a Skirball Faculty Fellow and has widely taught Jewish text, having served on the faculty of institutions such as the Brandeis Collegiate Institute, Kolot, and Elul, the last two based in Israel. She is the author of Mayyim Hafoochim, a novel, and works as a theater director. Her play, LeShem Yichud, won the award for best ensemble at the Akko Theater Festival. She recently adapted David Grossman's See: Under Love for the stage in Tel Aviv and New York.

Ruby Namdar - Educator, Artist-In-Residence
Reuven Namdar (1964) was born and raised in Jerusalem. He completed his BA (Sociology, Philosophy and Iranian Studies) and his Master’s degree (Anthropology) at the Hebrew University in Jerusalem. His first book, Haviv, (a collection of short stories) was published in 2000 and won The Ministry of Culture's award for the best first publication of the year. The manuscript also won The Jerusalem Fiction award for 1998. Reuven also published short stories, book reviews and translations of medieval Persian poetry in different literary periodicals in Israel. He is currently living in New York, is working on a new novel and teaches Jewish and Israeli literature in various Jewish learning centers around the city.

Our Supporters:
The 14th Street Y is deeply grateful for the support of the following foundations, whose generosity and vision has allowed us to launch LABA: The National Laboratory for New Jewish Culture:

The Nathan Cummings Foundation is rooted in the Jewish tradition and committed to democratic values and social justice, including fairness, diversity, and community. We seek to build a socially and economically just society that values and protects the ecological balance for future generations; promotes humane health care, and fosters arts and culture that enriches communities.

The Joseph and Harvey Meyerhoff Family Charitable Funds are a group of Baltimore-based family foundations whose philanthropic contributions have had significant impact not only on the city of Baltimore, but nationally and internationally as well. The Funds support higher education, cultural arts, social services, community redevelopment and various Jewish causes.