Holocaust in the Balkans: “A Question of Survival” Screening and Discussion

A Question of Survival (55 minutes, English, subtitles available) is an eye-opening portrait of three Bulgarian Jews—Chaim Zemach, a cellist; Robert Bakish, an engineer; and Misha Avramoff, a social worker on Manhattan’s Lower East Side—as they struggle to place their unusual experiences during World War II into the more common narrative of the Holocaust.

Chaim, Robert, and Misha were children and young adults when Bulgaria’s pro-Nazi regime planned, and then cancelled, the deportation of the country’s 48,000 Jews. The film explores the complex legacy of the Holocaust in the Balkans through their eyes and through their questions about the term “survivor.”

Join the Museum of Jewish Heritage for a special screening of A Question of Survival followed by a live discussion with the film’s director Elka Nikolova.

To attend the program from home by watching the live stream, register here.

Live closed captions will not be available during this program, but closed captions will be available afterwards on the program recording that will be found on the Museum of Jewish Heritage’s YouTube channel.

A $10 suggested donation helps us to present programs like this one. The Museum of Jewish Heritage thanks you for your support.

Public programming at the Museum of Jewish Heritage – A Living Memorial to the Holocaust is made possible, in part, by public funds from the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs, in partnership with the City Council; the New York State Council on the Arts with the support of Governor Andrew M. Cuomo and the New York State Legislature; a Humanities New York CARES Grant with support from the National Endowment for the Humanities and the federal CARES Act; and other generous donors.