‘The Jester’

How about something different, really different? How about a 1937 Yiddish-language film called “The Jester”? A newly restored version makes its first Los Angeles appearance at 7:30 tonight at the Skirball Center just off the San Diego Freeway. Directed by Joseph Green and Jan Nowina-Przybylski, the team behind the classic “Yiddle With His Fiddle,” “The Jester,” like its predecessor, is a musical drama that gives us a glimpse into a world that is no more. But if that sounds somber, it shouldn’t, because what sets “The Jester” apart is both a raucous Purim play and a glimpse into the lively Yiddish-language circus and cabaret worlds of the time. So live a little and enjoy.

-- Kenneth Turan