L IFESTYLE /C ULTURE
Jews of Philly Fashion: Joan and Ellen Shepp
It’s the newest edition of Jews
of Philly Fashion, introducing
you to the Chosen few who
dress our city. Th ey might mix
wool and linen, but they’ve got
some strong opinions on mixing
stripes with fl orals. In this space,
we’ll talk to designers, sellers,
buyers, infl uencers, models and
more. Th is week, we spoke to
Joan and Ellen Shepp.
founder’s name is today. Shepp,
who recently celebrated her
80th birthday, runs the store
alongside her daughter, Ellen
Shepp, and the pair have big
plans for their 50th year.
“Th is is a bigger celebration
than we planned because of the
last year that we’ve had,” Ellen
Shepp said. “So we’re celebrating
life. We’re celebrating existence.”
Joan and Ellen Shepp spoke
about keeping up with the kids
and the changing tastes of their
customers. FOR 50 YEARS, Philadelphia
women in search of something
beautiful have gone to Joan
Shepp as their guide.
Through the unceasing
churn of trends, Joan Shepp has
remained a constant, whether
in Lafayette Hill or Center
City, where the store bearing its
With the proliferation of
direct-to-consumer sales and
Instagram clothiers, how do
you keep people coming into
the store?
JS: Th e one thing that girls What’s changed most about
like, women like, is they want customer preferences?
ES: Back in the day, people
to look pretty. Th ey want to look
pretty for their signifi cant other. used to buy full-on wardrobes,
FASHION JESSE BERNSTEIN | JE STAFF
And even now more than ever,
the little black dress talks to you
much more than it did three
years ago. Because you can put
so many diff erent things with it.
Are they going to be short? Are
they going to be long? Are they
going to wear jewelry? Are they
going to wear sunglasses?
I love accessories: You can
change that dress 20 times.
People are waiting to see what
other people are wearing,
unless they come in, and Ellen
shows them, or we show them
something new, and they feel
good about it. Th ey’re not sure.
And so they’re going to look at
the next person that’s getting
undressed and trying things on.
Name: Jewish Fed. of Greater Phila. (
Width: 5.5 in
Depth: 5.5 in
Color: Black plus one
Comment: JE-ROP
Let all who are
hungry come and eat.
Wishing you and your loved ones a meaningful
Passover holiday. Chag Sameach.
Gail Norry and David Adelman
Board Co-Chairs
and the Jewish Federation team
Joan and
Ellen Shepp
Photo by Gina Zo
Photography where everything got mixed and
matched. And now, in the last few
years — not just the pandemic
— it really is more about the
item, and then adding pieces to
a strong item to build. But it’s
more special, it’s more unusual.
Like, when we go buying, we use
the same sentence over and over:
“Is it something that they don’t
already have?”
It is more fun to put outfi ts
together now because people
are more open-minded. And
they are more willing. Th ey see
that as the younger people have
grown up, they’re mixing things
together that it took me a while
to even understand, because it
was way more off the charts,
creative and not matching.
designers come visit us. And
my mother’s always been
excited about what students are
doing and what their vision is.
What’s most exciting to you
about this 50th anniversary
year? JS: For a while, people were
closed down, psychologically.
And they were scared, and they
wanted to stay home. And they
didn’t want to give anybody the
virus. But now they see a way
that they can go out. And they
can go to a restaurant, or they
can do this and that, and their
minds are more open.
ES: We’ve all had a long
moment to reevaluate what’s
important in life. And it’s our
people. And it’s love. And it’s the
things we’re passionate about.
And so, in our little fashion
world, for us, we’re getting
phone calls and text messages
from people that are telling us,
“I’m getting my second vaccine
on Tuesday, I will see you two
weeks aft er!” ●
So how do you keep up with
those changes?
ES: Well, before this past
year, traveling was probably
the best education. I mean,
we were going to Europe six
times a year. We really got to
see a few diff erent countries
and the streets of New York
and the streets of Philly. We’re jbernstein@jewishexponent.com;
really fortunate to have young 215-832-0740
22 MARCH 25, 2021
JEWISH EXPONENT
JEWISHEXPONENT.COM
L ifestyle /C ulture
Israeli TV Show ‘The Attaché’ Misdirects
T E L EVISION
JESSE BERNSTEIN | JE STAFF
CHIEF AMONG THE many
odd choices made by the
creators of “The Attaché,” an
Israeli dramatic series from the
producers of “Shtisel,” is the
show’s title.
“The Attaché,” available now
with English subtitles on Acorn
TV, is not a political drama, nor a
diplomatic farce. The title might
suggest a workplace comedy-
drama or an action-packed spy
show. At the very least, it would
suggest that the attaché herself
would be the main character.
Even the title sequence suggests
a fast-paced thriller.
But “The Attaché” is none of
those things, and the attaché,
Annabelle Cohen (Héloïse
Godet), is the show’s secondary
focus. Eli Ben David, who
created, wrote and directed the
10-episode first season, also
stars as Annabelle’s husband,
Avshalom. It is with Avshalom,
the attaché’s husband, that “The
Attaché” spends most of its time.
“The Attaché” is a show about
a fraying marriage, a fish-out-of-
water tale that builds in suspense
and leaves you concerned with
the fate of its principal charac-
ters. Will they stay in Paris past
Annabelle’s one-year fellowship
as the aliyah attaché in the Israeli
embassy? Can their marriage
survive the decision?
The chemistry between Ben
David and Godet is enough to
sustain everything on its own.
The setting is beautiful, and the
writers tackle vital questions
in Hebrew, French, Arabic and
English. What slows everything
down are the thematic feints,
beginning with that misdi-
rection of a title: half-gestures
toward ideas, plotlines and
people that aren’t fully explored.
“The Attaché” tells the story
of Annabelle and Avshalom,
an Israeli couple that moves to
Paris for one year with their
young son, Uri (Ilay Lax).
Annabelle, a native, is delighted
JEWISHEXPONENT.COM Eli Ben David plays Avshalom in “The Attaché,” the show he created,
wrote and directed.
Photos courtesy of Acorn TV
From left: Uri (Ilay Lax), Avshalom (Eli Ben David) and Annabelle (Héloïse
Godet) star as an Israeli family spending a year in Paris in “The Attaché.”
to be home, nearer to her family
than she’s been in years, and
with an eye toward making the
move permanent. Avshalom,
a successful musician back in
Israel, is sullen and depressed
in his new country, unable to
pick up the language, without
much to do besides dither on
the piano at a synagogue that he
loathes and pine for his old life.
His uncertain place is felt
most acutely in the aftermath
of a terrorist attack, when
his dark skin and inability
to speak French leads to his
violent arrest. While Avshalom
is being thrown in jail, his wife
and family are being protected
by imposing French-Israeli
bodyguards; thus, the tone is
set for their respective relation-
ships to their new home.
The terrorist attack and its
aftermath are based on the
2015 Bataclan killings, and
Ben David has said that the
series is partially based on his
experience living in France
around that time. However, by
the end of the third episode,
Avshalom’s paranoia regarding
the arrest and the attacks are
more or less dropped.
Annabelle is a budding
diplomat of Ashkenazi stock,
the daughter of wealthy, philan-
thropic, etiquette-minded
snobs; Avshalom is a Metallica-
underwear-wearing musician
of Moroccan descent, and his
father displays a coarseness that
his counterparts barely tolerate.
Avshalom can speak Arabic,
attack by a far-right gang and
a bizarre political stunt by a
far-left group. It’s a lot of drama
for 10 30-minute episodes, and
the accumulation of store-
brand narrative tricks blend
some of the episodes together.
But a fine score and
quick-cut editing keeps things
from dragging too much and, in
but not French; vice versa for
Annabelle. They’re able to split the
difference, less push-and-pull
than give-and-take. Avshalom
goes to buy a tuxedo for an
embassy event when Annabelle
asks him to, and he refers to
their be-sandaled wedding. It
works. Still, brazen elders like
Annabelle’s parents (Florence
Bloch and Patrick Braoudé) and
a foul-mouthed Algerian-Jewish
bigot that they invite for dinner
(Jean-Louis Tribes) aren’t shy
about pointing out the possibly
irreconcilable differences that
Annabelle and Avshalom can’t
or won’t acknowledge.
She grows suspicious of
Avshalom’s Arab friend, a cafe
owner named Said (Karim
Saidi), after the terrorist attack,
and Avshalom seems to have it
out for a young refugee brought
to dinner by Annabelle’s
parents. Avshalom is protec-
tive of his even darker-skinned
father, Ovadya (Gabi Amrani),
who himself displays callous
cruelty toward Arabs.
All of this produces knotty
questions of race, ethnicity and
class that give the show some
weight. Avshalom and Annabelle
fight and make up, then
repeat. There’s a heart attack,
a false pregnancy, a hospital-
ized parent, a lost child, two
thefts, strained friendships,
two dramatic firings, near-infi-
delities, tense dinners, a racist
JEWISH EXPONENT
the end, “The Attaché” is worth
the price of admission. It’s a
small, compelling story about
a couple’s struggle to adapt
to their new home, however
saddled with over-the-top
dramatic ballast it may be. l
jbernstein@jewishexponent.com; 215-832-0740
Name: Rothenberg Law Firm
Width: 3.625 in
Depth: 5.5 in
Color: Black plus one
Comment: JE 3/25 Passover
Ad Number: 00093739
§²±²¤ ®
(800) 624-8888
PHILADELPHIA | CHERRY HILL | LAKEWOOD
NEW YORK | HACKENSACK | MONSEY
MARCH 25, 2021
23