Critic’s notebook: ‘A warm and special evening’

Critic’s notebook: ‘A warm and special evening’

Eric Goldman writes and teaches about Jewish cinema. He is president of Ergo Media, a distributor of Jewish, Yiddish and Israeli film.

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Jake Ehrenreich in a scene from Jake Ehrenreich’s “A Jew Grows in Brooklyn.” Carol Rosegg

I had a chance to see Jake Ehrenreich in “A Jew Grows in Brooklyn” at the Queens Theatre in the Park and was pleasantly surprised by a delightfully entertaining evening. Ehrenreich, in his one-man show, tells his life story of growing up as the first American-born child of Holocaust survivors. He recounts stories of vacationing with other “griner” families, working the Catskill resorts, and trying his talents in the world of rock. Ehrenreich feels comfortable singing pop songs of the ’50s and rock ‘n’ roll and he even belts out a medley of classic Yiddish tunes. He is an incredible talent, and whether he is telling jokes from the golden days of the Borscht Belt, playing his saxophone, or simply sharing what it was to be a Jew growing up in Brooklyn after World War II, this is a warm and special evening. I highly recommend it.

It can be seen through Aug. 21. For information, call the box office, (718) 760-0064, or go to www.queenstheatre.org

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