Melbourne Jewish Book Week 2026 Opening Night: “If you don’t laugh…”

Saturday August 1, 2026 — 7:30 pm

Early bird tickets are on sale now!

Buy a ‘Festival Sunday’ full day pass and get 8 sessions for the price of 5. 

Can’t attend the full day? No worries! Individual ticket sales will be available from July 1st. Subscribe to the newsletter for festival announcements.

The much anticipated Melbourne Jewish Book Week Opening Night Gala is back!

There’s no singular definition for Jewish humour, but we know it when we hear it. It can be acidic, dark and uncomfortably honest. It can be silly or necessarily subtle. Sometimes we choose to laugh because we know that, otherwise, we will cry.

If you don’t laugh… is a gala evening that brings the community together through moments of humour, irony and reflection. Curated and introduced by the amazing Jessica Bellamy, enjoy an evening of unique stories by authors Rachel Cockerell, Yishay Ishi Ron, Ayelet Tsabari, Ali Berg, Danny Ben Moshe, Katia Ariel, Alan Fyfe and Billy Albert, with live music from Galit Klas and Adrian Banner.