The strains of Ma’or Tzur will once again resound over Pendigo Lake in Birmingham as the Limmud Festival returns on Friday after two years of remote events during the pandemic.

With the organisers having planned for a smaller attendance than the 2,500 the festival attracted pre-lockdown, 1,350 people are expected over the five days of learning and cultural celebration, including more than 200 participants and presenters from overseas.

While the number of sessions will be 600 rather than the 900 that featured on the programme at its zenith, there will still be plenty of choice. And they will take place in a single hotel rather than spread across several, providing a more intimate atmosphere. After the deprivations of lockdown, Adam Rossano, Limmud’s new executive director, places “social gathering at the heart of Limmud Festival 2022. We’re excited to introduce a number of innovations.”

A couple of slots during the day will be reserved exclusively for social interaction without any educational programming.

Space also has been set aside for a fun zone with inflatables and exercise activities such as five-a-side football.

In addition, more opportunities have been scheduled for “thoughtful community building and bonding”, including two round-tables on how to take community life “one step further” in the 21st century.

Another new feature is a young leadership programme that Mr Rossano said “will see a cohort of 70 young adults participate and volunteer while also engaging in a unique leadership development track”.

It is “designed to explore personal leadership, envision their ideal Jewish community and create ideas to make an impact”.

The chavruta programme — offering study of texts with a partner or in a group — is being relaunched as “pair-powered learning”, where participants can swap thoughts over four daily sessions, using the Book of Ruth as a springboard. Friday’s opening events include a conversation between Friday Night Dinner and EastEnders star Tracy-Ann Oberman — who will shortly be playing Shylock on stage in an adaptation of The Merchant of Venice — and the government’s adviser on antisemitism, Lord Mann.

Chief Rabbi Ephraim Mirvis will be contributing two talks, as will the Senior Rabbi of the S & P Sephardi Community, Joseph Dweck.

The line-up includes the return of familiar faces who left the UK for roles abroad: Rabbi Shaul Robinson, now head of the Lincoln Square Synagogue in New York: Rabbi Alex Israel, author of a number of books on the Tanach; and Gilla Rosen, who jointly ran the innovative Yakar Centre in London with her late husband.

There is a contingent of teachers from Yeshivat Maharat in New York, the pioneering academy that ordains Orthodox women.

Also appearing is former Master of the Rolls Lord Dyson, who will speak about his report for the BBC on Martin Bashir’s now notorious Panorama interview with Princess Diana.

At the cutting edge of the programme, presenters will address such subjects as how the laws of family purity apply to a queer couple — and homoeroticism in medieval religious poetry.

There will be an emphasis on Jewish cultural diversity, ranging from Sephardi breakfast traditions and an Andalusian singing workshop to an introduction to Ladino and a session on Judeo-Italian curses.

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