Peretz Center

About the venue

Peretz Centre for Secular Jewish Culture is a cultural and educational gathering place on Ash Street in Vancouver. Founded in 1945, the organisation is rooted in Jewish cultural education and the preservation of Yiddish language and heritage. Performances and gatherings here take place within that community setting, connecting contemporary audiences with a longstanding cultural tradition.

The centre's longstanding connection with secular Jewish culture gives events a background of language, memory and shared learning. Yiddish heritage forms part of that identity, while contemporary gatherings allow the traditions to be explored through the people participating today. For visitors, a performance or cultural programme is therefore also an encounter with an organisation whose purpose is to keep community knowledge and creative expression in active use.