Film Screening: Overture to Glory (Der Vilner Shtot Khazn)

Please register to attend this free in-person film screening, followed by a discussion. The Library is located at 1835 Ellis Street in San Francisco, with free garage parking at 1227 Pierce Street between Ellis and Eddy.  

Based on a true story from the nineteenth century, Max Nosseck’s 1940 Yiddish musical drama stars the great Moishe Oysher as a celebrated Vilna cantor who is recruited to sing with the Warsaw Opera, The fame he achieves comes at an enormous cost, as he struggles to balance the appeal of his newfound celebrity with feelings of guilt and responsibility toward the family and community he left behind. While this low budget film is no masterpiece, it is a compelling remnant of a different era, and its synagogue scenes feature Oysher’s extraordinary gifts as a cantor. With the film commencing with the Rosh Hashanah prayer service and ending with Yom Kippur, it is a fitting film to watch during the days between the two holidays.

The film is 77 minutes long, in Yiddish with English subtitles.

Library Director Howard Freedman will introduce the film and lead a discussion after the screening.