Jewish Culture Days are taking place in Žagarė, Lithuania, which was selected the Lithuanian capital of culture this year. Jews with roots in Žagarė have arrived from all over the world and are visiting Jewish architectural heritage sites, attending concerts and watching films.

The first Jewish community was established in Žagarė in the early 18th century and mainly Jewish craftsmen and merchants lived in the town. Many Jews were shot during World War II at the Žagarė park. The last Jewish resident of Žagarė died several years ago.

Leonora Vasiliauskienė, a former Žagarė resident, said: “Žagarė is my childhood, my youth, and there were sad chapters, such as when I learned my grandmother, two aunts and uncle were murdered here. They were transported from Tryškiai and shot.”

“My grandfather was born in Žagarė. In 1901 he left because he didn’t want to be conscripted into the Tsar’s army for 25 years, and Jews were usually sent to the front lines. That would have been a death sentence for my grandfather. Later we lived in America. I’m visiting Žagarė again for the third time,” city planning specialist from the USA Cliff Marks said.

The three-day program includes a conference, films, book presentations, exhibitions and concerts, one of which is National Culture and Art Prize winner Anatolijus Šenderovas’s concert called “Giesmė ir šokis” [“Hymn and Dance”].

Jewish Culture Days participants had the opportunity to watch the film Uncle Hatzkel about former Žagarė resident Lemchen, and films about Jewish history by Saulius Beržinis, Lilija Kopač, Leonora Vasiliauskienė and Danutė Selčinskaja were shown continuously throughout the day.