Jewish communities across the Former Soviet Union were astir with chatter this week following the blowout party run by Hillel Minsk in honor of its 10th birthday. This invitation–only bash turned out to be the sizzling soiree of the season, with over 200 lining up along Vera Khoruzhay street to get into the Reaktor nightclub.
Party master, Ossik Axelrod, Hillel Regional Director of Ukraine, Belarus, Moldova, Georgia, Azerbaijan, and Uzbekistan, traveled all the way from Kiev to attend the gala out of adoration of one of his best regional Hillels. With him, he brought associates Darina Privalko, director of program development in the region, and Yulia Belilovskaya, regional educational director. Other notables who made an appearance at the event include, but are not limited to, Yuri Dorn, director of the Union of Religious Jewish Congregations in Belarus, Yigal Gittelman, Director of JAFI Belarus, Yoni Leifer, Representative of JDC Minsk, and Leonid Levin, Head of the Belarusian Jewish Communities, who was spotted boogying down on the dancefloor with his daughter.
The party at Reaktor also included cameo appearances by eccentric Hillel Minsk ensembles such as Victory Stars' Eastern–style Ashkenazi music trumpet and darbuka duet, and the talented and alluring Divas song–and–dance troupe. Amateur performances by Hillel leadership were barely blundering when they presented their dances and special 10th anniversary song. The Reaktor club stayed open all night to allow Hillel members to express their birthday elation disco–style.
The VIP after–party allowed entry to only the most influential in the Hillel organization and the Belarusian Jewish community. The night that ensued was filled with catered and waited–on guests and dignitaries making toasts to the next successful 10 years of Hillel in Minsk.
