Becoming a theatre producer

Earlier this month we were working around the clock on the campaign FREE GAZA: 10 Action Days Against the Siege. It was organized by us at the Coalition of Women for Peace in cooperation with the American organization CODEPINK: Women for Peace and the wide Coalition Against the Siege comprised of diverse peace and human rights groups in Israel.

This intensive campaign included daily protest actions at the Gaza border, in Tel Aviv, Jerusalem and the West bank, lectures and workshops on aspects of the Israeli occupation, the blockade of Gaza, and radical feminist action for peace.

But perhaps the most unique activity of this campaign was a 10 minutes theatre play "Seven Jewish Children: A Play for Gaza" by Caryl Churchill, staged in the Rabin Square in the heart of Tel Aviv. The play was directed by Samieh Jabbarin, a Palestinian theatre director, actor and activist from Jaffa, who is currently held under house arrest in his parents' house in Um El Fahem ever since his participation in non-violent protests against marches of extremist right-wing groups in Um El Fahem – Arab-Palestinian city in Israel. He directed the play from his home, creatively using phone, skype and web-camera - an original way to stage a play. Everyone contributed their time, energies and passion in this hectic 4-day production: director and his assistant, well known actresses, a design artist, a musician, logistics assistants, etc. More than 200 people came to see the play, and a good article in the Guardian appeared as well: http://www.guardian.co.uk/stage/2009/jun/12/caryl-churchill-seven-jewish...

So for a few days, from an activist and a fundraiser I became a theatre producer. In an ocean of despair, lack of energies, increasing attacks on activists and legislative attempts of political silencing, this explosion of creativity reminded us that there is always something to do, some way to disrupt the social order of complicity.

In the script of the play, these were the words meant to be told to a girl in a family that immigrated to Israel, which touched me the most. This is my story too.

Don’t tell her we’re going for ever

Tell her she can write to her friends, tell her her friends can maybe

come and visit

Tell her it’s sunny there

Tell her we’re going home

Tell her it’s the land God gave us

Don’t tell her religion

Tell her her great great great great lots of greats grandad lived

there

Here's a link to the play: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eoyDYJIz-tI&feature=related

And here's the full script in English: http://www.royalcourttheatre.com/files/downloads/SevenJewishChildren.pdf