Hanukkah Candle Lighting & Holiday Gathering 2024
After a bustling holiday season, please join us on New Year’s Day for an intimate and relaxed gathering to celebrate the final night of Hanukkah. Enjoy a traditional Sephardic candle lighting, followed by mingling over Middle Eastern Hanukkah delicacies from the Sephardic and Mizrahi world.
Wednesday, January 1, 5:00pm - 7:00pm
Private Residence in the Village
Shabbat Dinner Under the Stars
Please join us for Shabbat services and a multi-community dinner as we celebrate Sukkot al fresco in Prospect Heights. We are thrilled to be partnering with The Neighborhood Brooklyn, Romemu Brooklyn, and the Prospect Heights Shul for this event!
This program is a part of The Neighborhood: An Urban Center for Jewish Life’s Sukkot in The Neighborhood festival–a week of spiritual, artistic, and community programming, in a Sukkah art installation created by Ye’ela Wilschanski. Sukkot in The Neighborhood is hosted at the Ring Community Center at Luria Academy of Brooklyn.
Multicultural Yom Kippur Services 2024/5785
Due to the incredible growth of our community, this year’s Yom Kippur Services will be held in a new and larger location (details below)! We’re thrilled to have services led by our stellar returning cantorial team: Galeet Dardashti, who will be leading us in the Persian tradition, and Abe Safdie, who will be leading us in the Syrian tradition. Services will also be livestreamed for those joining us at a distance. At the conclusion of Yom Kippur, a break-fast of Middle Eastern delicacies will be served.
Sefer Torah Welcoming Ceremony & Celebration
Shavuot is approaching, and as we prepare for this festival that commemorates the giving of the Torah at Sinai, we are thrilled to announce another Torah granting within our community. Kanisse is proud to be loaning our Sefer Torah to Luria Academy of Brooklyn, a pioneering partner in cultivating Sephardic & Mizrahi egalitarian and inclusive education for the next generation!
Please join us as we mark the occasion with a Hakhnasat Sefer Torah welcoming ceremony and celebration! The program will include dancing, a message from Luria and its students, and coming together in community over Middle Eastern confections.
Sephardic Ḥazzanut Course for Qabbalat Shabbat
Many community members have asked about learning how to lead services in a Sephardic tradition. Others have expressed interest in having community-led Shabbat services. We’ve heard you and are thrilled to announce that our veteran cantor Abe Safdie has offered to teach a series of classes on Syrian ḥazzanut (prayer chanting and leading) focusing on Shabbat prayers!
The classes will use the Friday evening service of Qabbalat Shabbat and ‘Arvit as a lens to explore the conceptual and practical elements of Sephardic prayer. Topics will include Sephardic pronunciation, prayer structure, traditional melody instruction, and approaches to chanting for unsung portions of the prayer. Students will actively participate in learning and reciting prayer, and resource materials will be shared for review and practice after each session. At the conclusion of the 4-week course, you will have all the tools needed to lead a Friday night Shabbat service, as well as a greater understanding of the Syrian liturgical tradition.
This is an opportunity to not only broaden your Sephardic knowledge on an individual level, but for our community as a whole to develop the capabilities and expertise needed to expand and sustain egalitarian, inclusive Sephardic and Mizrahi offerings for all!
The Details
The class will meet virtually on zoom for the first 3 weeks, and in-person (for those local in New York City) for the 4th and final week, as follows:
Monday, May 6th, 6:15pm-7:15pm (zoom)
Monday, May 13th, 6:15pm-7:15pm (zoom)
Monday, May 20th, 6:15pm-7:15pm (zoom)
Thursday, May 30th, 6:15pm-7:15pm (in-person TBD in NYC)
*The only prerequisite is the ability to read Hebrew.*
This course is FREE but we ask that those who register commit to trying to attend all 4 sessions.
Registration is extremely limited and on a first-come, first-served basis.
Mimouna 2024
At the conclusion of Passover, Moroccan and other North African communities traditionally host a Mimouna, a celebratory dinner marking the return to eating leavened products while eating symbolic foods to bring good luck in the coming year. This celebration was often an interfaith affair, where Jews would welcome their Muslim neighbors to partake in the festivity.
Please join us at Kanisse’s Mimouna! Reconnect after the holiday with old friends and new, reclaim or explore traditions of the Moroccan Jewish community, and enjoy moufleta (Moroccan dessert crepes) along with other holiday delicacies and North African music.
Megillah Reading & Purim Party 2024
Please join us for our first ever fully Sephardic/Mizrahi Megillah Reading and Purim Party! A stellar team of our community members will be reading Megillat Esther in the Syrian, Moroccan, and Iraqi traditions. The service will also be live-streamed for those joining us at a distance. Following the reading in the main sanctuary, we’ll continue the celebration in the reception hall with Persian delicacies, fine wines and Shushan-inspired vibes. Costumes are optional but welcome!
Multicultural Yom Kippur Services 2023/5784
Our annual Multicultural Yom Kippur Services are back, this year being led in a variety of traditions including Syrian, Persian and Yerushalmi. Please join us as we return to our sanctuary location on Lower Fifth Avenue, or over livestream for those joining at a distance. We will be using our Zemirot HaMizraḥ maḥzor, which will be provided for those attending in-person (the digital version can also be accessed on our website). At the conclusion of Yom Kippur, a break-fast of Middle Eastern delicacies will be served.
Monajat Seliḥot Experience
Kanisse is honored to co-sponsor Monajat, an evening of Sephardic Seliḥot prayers as we prepare for the High Holidays, spotlighting the illustrious Galeet Dardashti. We are thrilled to welcome Galeet to our cantorial team for this year’s Yom Kippur Services and can’t wait to get a sneak peak of her chanting at this special concert! Don’t miss this unique cultural and experiential event!
Join Galeet to celebrate the release of her multi-sensory project and album Monajat. Inspired by recordings of her late grandfather Younes Dardashti, a master singer of Persian classical music in 1950s/60s Iran, Monajat reinvents the ritual of Selihot–nightly poetry sung in spiritual preparation for the Jewish New Year. On the album Galeet dialogues with her grandfather in song, immersing audiences in Persian melodies, heavy grooves, and sacred Hebrew and Persian poetry.
Multicultural Megillah Reading & Purim Reception
Please join us as we kick off Purim with a multicultural Megillah reading! We are thrilled to collaborate with Kane Street Synagogue in hosting a Megillah reading across the Sephardic/Mizrahi and Ashkenazi world! Come celebrate with ‘Arvit and a Megillah reading in Moroccan, Syrian, and Ashkenazi traditions. A reception will follow the service, with festive snacks and a wine tasting!
Ḥanukah Candle Lighting & Party 2022
Please join us as we bring light and warmth into our community with this intimate holiday gathering. We will begin with a traditional Sephardic candle lighting, followed by mingling over Middle Eastern Ḥanukah delicacies from the Sephardic and Mizrahi world.
Rosh Hashanah Tashlikh on the Hudson
Please join us for a special Rosh Hashanah Tashlikh Service (“casting-off” of sins) on the Hudson. This short program will begin with Dr. Galeet Dardashti leading quintessential holiday piyutim from a variety of Middle Eastern and North African traditions. We will then meditatively sound the shofar and conclude with traditional and alternative Tashlikh readings along the river’s edge.
Spring Community Shabbat Dinner
Please join us as we come together for our first ever community-wide Shabbat dinner! After a long winter and April showers, this gathering will be a great opportunity to reconnect with old friends, meet new ones, and enjoy a Sephardic/Mizrahi Shabbat meal, complete with Middle-Eastern mezze (appetizers) and halwayat (sweets). We look forward to celebrating with you!
Megilah Reading Tutorial
You can find a recorded version of this session here, along with other Megilah resources.
Please join us for this zoom tutorial to learn how to read the Megilah in preparation for Purim! Rabbi Haim Ovadia will guide us in reading the Megilah according to the Iraqi tradition. The tutorial will be geared towards learning to read a portion for our upcoming egalitarian Megilah reading on the evening of Purim, although the session is open to anyone who would like to learn. The class is free but registration is required.
Multicultural Yom Kippur Services
Please join us for our first Kanisse event — a multicultural and egalitarian Yom Kippur service for this year’s High Holidays. Our cantors will be leading prayers in a variety of traditions including those of the Syrian, Moroccan and Iraqi communities. We will be using our newly published Zemirot HaMizraḥ maḥzor, which will be provided for those attending the live event. It is also available for purchase or as a free PDF download. As with all of our offerings, we welcome everyone and invite participation. At the conclusion of Yom Kippur, a break-fast of Sephardic and Mizrahi hors d’oeuvres will be served.