FISHING FOR A CHRISTMAS FEAST

Celebrated by Italian-American families across the U.S., the Feast of Seven Fishes recognizes the wait for the midnight birth of Jesus, also known as the Vigilia di Natale. It is typical for the family to gather around a feast of seven different seafood dishes a few different types of fish prepared in seven different ways.

Each of about 20 regions in Italy have their own culinary tradition for the cena della Vigilia, or Christmas Eve dinner. For example, families in Piemonte celebrate with agnolotti, fresh pasta filled with meat; in Sardegna, you can expect malloreddus, small semolina gnocchi usually served in a sauce with tuna and fresh cherry tomatoes and in Roma, the tradition calls for minestra di pesce, fish-based soup.

How did this all come about?  The ancient tradition of eating fish on Christmas Eve seems to date from a Roman Catholic custom of abstaining from meat and dairy products on the eve of certain holidays that include Christmas.  The number seven,  can be connected to multiple Catholic symbols such as that seven seems be repeated more than 700 times in the Bible. In addition, according to the Roman Catholic Church, seven are the sacraments, the deadly sins, and the days of the Creation. 

 

Enough with the history.  Let’s get to the fish.  People tend to confuse the word “seafood” and “fish.”  When I ask someone if they like “fish” and they say that they don’t will give a positive response to seafood such as shrimp and lobster, which are shellfish.   Seafood is all that comes from the sea. 

There has been a recent findings by the New York State Attorney General in which fish are being mislabeled.  For instance, there a difference between wild-caught salmon and farm raised salmon.  Farm-raised salmon is generally fatty, mild in flavor, and a soft pink-orange hue.  

Wild salmon will give you a stronger salmon-y flavor and color, more red-orange than pink producing one that more savory. Why mislabel it? The price of wild-caught is much higher than farm-raised.  

Red Snapper is another fraud.  There are many fish that look it but not the real thing and the mislabeling seems to be happening in supermarkets.  The third one is swai sold as lemon sole.  

Fish markets that sell only seafood and not groceries, and produce, are your best bet especially ones that have a long reputation for being true and being fresh.  Who better to get information about the fish and the feast but from Vincent Marinello the co-owner owner of Crossbay Seashell Fish Market, located at 161-14 Crossbay Blvd. in Howard Beach.  “My family comes from a small fishing village in Sicily called Sciacca,” said Vinny. “As a teen my dad (Luigi) would work on a fishing boat along with his brothers. He would be out at sea for days and at times for weeks. My uncle retired around 10 years ago, and sold his share of the business to Pat Marotta, who is currently my partner.”

Walk into the market and you’ll view dozens of fish filet under the glass case.  Up front is where the whole fish, and much of the shellfish is resting on ice. “We purchase the majority of our fish at the Hunts Point Market in the Bronx. The whole fish that we carry is Florida red snapper, bronzino, porgies, brook trout, whiting, flounder, mackerel, salmon, sea bass, and others that are seasonal. Pat normally goes to the market 2 to 3 times per week”

One other thing to take not of is when you buy fish that is labeled “frozen and thawed.”  You should never refreeze it and that includes shrimp. Other than items shown in the freezer section, all of the fish is fresh. 

Let’s get to some thoughts on the Feast.  Lobster fra diavolo (spicy lobster with pasta in tomato sauce) is a very popular dish that adds sole (vs soul) topped with olives, shrimps, scallops and mussels. You will have to go elsewhere for the pastas and Italian bread.   

Beat whole fish idea is to roast a whole branzino with fennel, onions white wine, thyme and zest of an orange. Vinny or Pat will clean the branzino for you.

How about Stuffed Calamari with claw Crab meat?  The high quality meat is sold in a can.  Just talk to the guys and they will take care of what you need as well as telling you how to cook it. You can set up a cocktail appetizer using a cluster of snow crab.   

If you’re looking for a one dish inclusive, head to Mama’s of Corona as Irene is preparing a great cold seafood salad that will most likely take care of seven fishes.  The deli is located at 46-02 104^th  Street.  What is a feast without dessert?  Head for Mama’s Backyard Café, located at 46-10 104^th St., for all you pastries and breads.  With Irene cooking her heart out at their deli she also prepares her delicious marinara sauce and that’s one less thing for you to do.  HAPPY HOLIDAYS!

FIDLER AFN DAKHWAS IS THE TRUE FIDDLER ON THE ROOF by Merle Exit

A Fiddler on the Roof. Sounds meshuga, no?  National Yiddish Theatre Folksbiene is presenting a fresh Yiddish version of one of the most famous Broadway shows with both Yiddish and Russian translations at the Museum of Jewish Heritage.  This is the first time that this production has been staged in the US and who more perfect to direct it than Joel Grey. The title of the production appears as “Fidler Afn Dakhwas.”

Having been seated I viewed the stage to see: a small pile of tables on the left and three hanging curtains that gave an appearance that they were made of a light brown cloth. The middle one had large letters written in Yiddish.  I have learned that the difference in lettering from Hebrew is that Yiddish lettering does not have the Hebrew vowels.  It spelled out the word “Torah,” the five books of Hebrew scripture, or more widely known as the Five Books of Moses.  An orchestra sat directly behind the curtains. 

It was at this point that I checked out the program first noticing an important message. “Sheldon Harnick’s lyrics and Joseph Stein’s book for Fiddler On The Roof were translated into Yiddish by Shraga Friedman, a native of Warsaw who emigrated to the Land of Israel at the outbreak of World War II. Friedman became a well-known director, actor and translator who appeared in many films and on the stage of Habima, the national theater of Israel.”

“Fidler Afn Dakhwas first performed in Israel in 1965. This production marks the premiere in the United States. The translation directly quotes Sholom Aleichem’s original stories of “Tevye the Dairy Man”’ most notably during Tevye’s quotations (and misquotations) of the scriptures. Occasionally you will note slight departures from the familiar words of the English language text. Translating is an art form in and of itself. In order to match Harnick’s brilliant rhyme scheme, the meter of Jerry Bock’s unforgettable tunes and Joseph Stein’s rich idioms, Friedman sometimes needed to alter the literal meaning of a line, in order to preserve the emotional spirit.”

“For example, the beloved song ‘If I Were a Rich Man’ is translated by Shraga Friedman as ‘Ven Ikh Bin a Rotshild’ (If I Were a Rothschild). This not only fits in perfectly with the meter of the song, but also invokes the title of another well-known Sholom Aleichem story and employs a commonly used Yiddish expression which indeed means ‘If I were a rich man.’”

“The artistic team has decided to share these variances with you in the supertitle translations in order to maintain consistency between what you are hearing in Yiddish and how it is translated back into English and Russian.”

Translations in both Yiddish and Russian appeared on the left and right sides at the top of the stage.  Each of the musical numbers gives the title in Yiddish along with the English title in parenthesis.  In case you never saw the production or movie, the play is set in Russia, 1905 and based on tales from the author Sholem Aleichhem.  

The show begins as Der Fidler appears and perks herself atop the tables.  This is the first time I have seen a woman cast as the Fiddler. She actually comes onto the stage and plays the fiddle several times during the performance, which kind of makes more sense to the title.  

Out comes Tevye to perform Traditsye (Tradition) as we meet the entire cast.  Tevye is portrayed by a quite talented Steven Skybell who captures the character perfectly being “larger than life” but without overdoing it playing the role more intense and solemn in both acting and singing.  Skybell is not new to Broadway or Fiddler as he had the role of Lazar Wolf in the 2015 revival. My guess is that he will be well-known for this role. 

Golde (Jennifer Babiak) was well cast. Although she gave an excellent performance, I couldn’t help but notice that her costume seemed to make her appear as if she escaped from the Sound of Music, looking like a nun. 

While Emmy-nominated stage veteran Jackie Hoffman does not work with the Yiddish Theater, she was the feature performer playing the role of Yenta, one which requires both humor and great facial expressions. 

As for the rest of the cast, it’s just easy enough to say that the caliber was as if you had seen it on Broadway. Singing, dancing, acting…all great.  What I particularly noticed is that this production is not played for laughs but is certainly not void of humor. Kudos to Joel Grey.  

My favorite production in Fidler is Der Kholem (The Dream) of which Tevye concocts in order to tell Golde that their daughter, Hodl, is going to marry Motl Kamzoyl (Ben Liebert) rather than the verbally agreed upon butcher Leyzer-Wolf. 

Musical Numbers:  Act I: Traditsye (Tradition); Shadkhnte, Shadkhnte, (Matchmaker, Matchmaker); Ven Ikhbein a Rotshild; Shabes Brokhe (Sabbath Prayer); Lekhayim (To Life, Lekhayim); Es Kumt a Tog (Any Day Now); Zey Hobn Zikh Gegebn Dos Vort (They Made Each Other a Pledge); Nisimlikh-Veniflo’oys (Miracle of Miracles); Der Kholem (The Dream); Tog-ayn, Tog-oys; (Sunrise, Sunset).  

Act II: Itst Hob Ikh Di Gantse Velt (Now I Have Everything); Tevyes Entfer (Tevye’s Rebuttal); Libst Mikh, Sertse? (Do You Love Me?); Der Klang (The Rumor); Vayt Fun Mayn Liber Heym (Far From the Home I Love); Khavele (Khavele); Anatevke (Anatevke).  

Even though this production is more intimate than its Broadway version, none of the characters are missing and each of the dance numbers did not lack due to size.  Most impressive are Lekhayim (To Life, Lekhavyim) and the Bottle Dance performed during the wedding. We have to thank Stas Kmiec who both choreographed and staged the musical numbers.  It is also apparent that not having a celebrity “Broadway name” detracts from the shear talent that goes into this awesome presentation.  

The orchestra, conducted by Zalmen Mlotek, consisted of: trumpets, bass, flute, alto flute, trombone, cello, guitar/mandolin, drums/percussion, accordion, and violin along with the clarinet Klezmer soloist, D. Zisl Slepovitch, who made a few appearances on the stage. Costumes are most authentic wearing “shtetl” clothing. 

 

I have seen Fiddler on the Roof on Broadway as well as the movie version.  I have even acted the part of Yenta in Community Theater and as Golde in a Dinner Theatre production.  Fidler Afn Dakhwas has been the best I’ve experienced and from the sound of the audience, they too agree.

With so much anti-semitism presently existing, expect many tears to shed, especially towards the end. “Our forefathers have been forced out of many, many places at a moment’s notice.” Tevye responds: “Maybe that’s why we always wear our hats.”

Museum of Jewish Heritage, located in Battery Park City is the present venue, running until December 30. It will transfer uptown to off-Broadway’s Stage 42 (422 W 42nd St.) where it will begin previews on Monday, February 11, 2019 and open officially on Thursday, February 21, 2019.  Some of the cast members will change. 

FORMER STUDENTS HOLD PARTY AT RAINFOREST ART FOUNDATION

Dr. JC Fann is the Chairman and President of the United States Alumni Association of Taiwan National Normal University.  Celebrating their 45 th Anniversary Celebration at the Rainforest Art Foundation in Long Island City, special guests included the President and Vice President of the University along with seven high ranking professors all who flew in from Taiwan. 

They were: Professor Frank Yung-Hsiang Ying -  Executive Vice President of National Taiwan Normal University; Professor  Greg Chung-Mou Lee - Executive Vice President of National Taiwan Normal University; Professor  Chiou-Lan Chern - Dean, College of Liberal Art; Professor  Kwun-Min Chen - Dean, College of Science; Professor  Tian-Ming She - Previous Dean, Department of Education, College of Education: and Professor  Hsiang-Lin Liu - Vice President, Office of International Affair. 

Fann is also the President of Hakka Association of New York. Hakka is a Chinese cultural of people who tended to move about China and living in different areas. There are a large number that moved to Taiwan and tend to speak in their own dialect. 

Cheng –Chih Wu is the President of Taiwan National Normal University.  Although Wu has heard of Marlene, it was only 3 years ago that they met when Marlene took a trip to Taiwan.  “It is the first time that I am here at the studio. It is remarkable.  Her paintings are amazing.  We have a Fine Arts Department at the University and I can easily say that she is one of the ‘Masters’.”

An Art Museum has recently been constructed at the University of which several of Marlene’s prints will be part of it.  Wu said that the museum should be open next year at which time he will invite Marlene.  

Along with a sumptuous buffet that Marlene cooked up, raffle tickets gave attendees the opportunity for various prizes including three of Marlene’s signed and framed artwork that she donated.

It certainly was not a surprise that Marlene received an award plaque from the Alumni Association.

Written in Chinese, Fann later gave me the translation. “Good behavior and merit. Well known globally.

It means that she volunteered to do many good things, such as providing free venue and free dinner for 

NTNUAA Anniversary Celebration, and therefore got this merit. Her artistic merits are also well known

globally.”