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Letter from
Jerusalem
_________________By Ira Sharkansky
Azmi Beshara, where are you?
Azmi Beshara is the best example of an Israeli Arab (or
Israeli Palestinian) who is leading his people to nowhere. He also
demonstrates that higher education, native intelligence, and affiliation
with the Christian community does not assure moderation. Beshara has a
PhD in political science, and is among the most articulate of Knesset
members.
He is also the most outspoken Knesset member in support
of an expansive conception of Palestinian rights. He has traveled to
Syria and Lebanon, appeared along with Hassan Nasrallah and Bashar
al-Assad, and endorsed, by hint or explicitly, the right of Palestinians
and Hezbollah to pursue their claims against Israel with all means,
including violence.
Since his first election to the Knesset in 1996 Beshara
has been a concern of Israeli security and legal authorities. So far the
courts have protected him on the basis of freedom of speech, and the
immunity accorded to Knesset members to express themselves with the
utmost freedom, even on sensitive issues that provoke widespread public
opposition.
Currently Beshara is somewhere, most likely outside of
Israel. There is some kind of legal process in the works, but media
personnel are kept from disclosing its nature on account of a court
order banning publication. Hints and rumors deal with a violation of
security provisions that may entail his arrest, or preventing his
leaving the country, if he returns to Israel. We have heard that he has
sought political refuge in Qatar and has been offered a position as
political commentator on the al-Jazeera network. Some say he intends to
resign from the Knesset, while others deny that report. He may be in
Jordan along with his family, with plans to travel to Europe and India.
Jordan may not be entirely happy with its role in the affair, partly to
avoid friction with Israel, and partly because Beshara has identified
with the Syrian camp in Arab politics. We have also heard that Beshara
has served as a double agent, reporting to Israeli authorities what
transpires in the region, as well as reporting to Syria and Hezbollah on
Israel.
One of the things we argue about is the freedom that
should be allowed to Azmi Beshara and other Israeli Arabs. Authorities,
and especially the courts, are reluctant to curtail their freedom of
speech. Especially sensitive are those who have been elected to the
Knesset, and those who claim to be religious leaders. Along with Beshara
on the borders between the tolerable and the abominable is Raed Salah,
head of the northern branch of Israel's Islamic Movement. In connection
with the recent commotion about the repair of an entrance to the Temple
Mount/Haram esh-Sharif, Salah said, "it is now the duty of every Arab
and Muslim to start an uprising to save Jerusalem and the al-Aqsa
Mosque," and that Israel's Jews "want to build their temple while our
blood is on their clothes, on their doors, in their food and drinks."
Salah does not enjoy a Knesset member's immunity from
prosecution, and he has served time in Israeli prison. Recently a
Jerusalem court ordered his release after the police had arrested him
for incitement to violence. The court refused the police request to
forbid him from entering Jerusalem, but did restrict his public
appearances in the city.
Critics argue that the courts have been more tolerant of
Arab than Jewish extremists. Meir Kahane was forbidden to campaign for
re-election to the Knesset under the law that forbid racist incitement,
while Beshara and Salah have been free to express views no less
inflammatory.
Currently we do not know where Beshara is, whether he is
hiding, seeking refuge from Israeli authorities, inclined to resign from
the Knesset, or to continue his struggle. We also do not know the nature
of the charges against him, but the order forbidding publication is
unlikely to survive the porous nature of Israeli media for much longer.
More important is the problem facing Israel. How much
latitude to allow prominent Israeli Arabs who preach violence, or
endorse those who do? It is the classic question of how should a
democratic society defend itself against those who would use their
freedom of expression to encourage violent change in the regime?
The most complete picture of relations between Israeli
Arabs and Jews appears
in a report by Professor Sammy Smooha, a sociologist and currently
Dean of Social Sciences at the University of Haifa. It portrays a
complex picture that includes distrust, and contrasting assignments of
responsibility between Arabs and Jews. Yet it also shows substantial
sentiment among both populations to support a society that is
integrated, and committed to a peaceful resolution of disputes. Among
its findings is a greater inclination toward comity with Israeli Jews
among Arab citizens than among those in positions of leadership.
This is the best indication that Arab leaders, and most
prominently Azmi Beshara and Raed Salah, have been trying to lead their
people to a place where they have not chosen to go. Those who suffer
most from this road to nowhere are those who follow them, and those
who endure a shortfall in public services because of them.
Arab leaders who would fight the lost battles of 1948
have not
learned the cardinal rules of politics: Get what you can. Cooperation
with the dominant parties can achieve benefits for one's voters.
Persistent frontal assaults on the regime may serve one's sense of
ideological righteousness, but are not likely to increase the food on
the table, the quality of education, roads, or health care.
.Advertisement:.J
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'Friends of IDF' urges San Diegans to attend
April 25 concert by visiting Israeli soldiers
SAN DIEGO (Publicity
Release) The IDF Musical Ensemble, the highly talented soldiers that
travel throughout Israel helping to raise the spirit and morale of the
brave young men and women in uniform, are coming to San Diego April 25
to perform one inspiring Yom Ha'Atzmaut Concert! We promise you an
amazing and exciting evening of entertainment at 7:15 p.m. at
Congregation Beth Am, 5050 Del Mar Heights Road.
Israel needs support
for recovering wounded soldiers, the widows and orphans of fallen
soldiers, scholarships, impoverished families, and much more. The first
event of the San Diego Chapter, 3 years ago, was a spectacular show with
the Ensemble that was a sellout with over 600 people. We are lucky to
have them again.
Although tickets will be
available at the door, we highly recommend that you send in your checks
early, and your tickets will be immediately mailed out. (A
self-addressed envelope is appreciated.)
Please call if you have
any questions.
Daniel Brodsky, President
San Diego Chapter,
Friends of the IDF
(858) 794-7018
* *
Ayn Rand Institute calls for rejection of U.N.
resolution to prohibit speech criticizing religion
IRVINE, Ca. (Publicity Release)—The U.N. Human Rights
Council recently passed a resolution urging nations to pass laws prohibiting
the dissemination of ideas that "defame religion." It appears that the
resolution was partly a response to last year's Danish cartoon crisis, where
hordes of angry Muslims rioted in violent protest of cartoons depicting the
Prophet Muhammad.
"The advocates of this resolution perversely equate those
who drew the Danish cartoons with those who rioted and threatened to murder
the cartoonists," said Dr. Yaron Brook, executive director of the Ayn Rand
Institute. "Both, they say, are guilty of a crime and should be restrained
and punished by the government--with the unstated caveat that the
cartoonists are guiltier, since they allegedly incited the violent mobs by
defaming Islam.
"To morally equate the Danish cartoonists with the Muslim
rioters is to wipe out the distinction between speech and force. It is to
declare there is no essential difference between the filmmaker Theo van
Gogh,and the Muslim who murdered him for producing a film that 'defamed
Islam.'
"Freedom of speech means that individuals have the right
to advocate any idea, without the threat of government censorship,
regardless of how many people that idea may offend. To silence individuals
in order to protect the sensibilities of mullahs and mobs is to wipe out
this crucial right--and it is to whitewash the blood-stained hands of
killers by declaring that they are no worse than those who peacefully
criticize them.
"Yet this disgraceful moral equivalence is a symptom of
the larger moral equivalence that pervades the U.N. Human Rights Council,
which is based on the gross pretense that its members--including belligerent
regimes such as Iran and Syria, and oppressive dictatorships such as China
and Cuba--are champions of peace and individual rights. As a result, its
main function is to provide a forum for thugs and dictators to criticize
free nations such as the United States and Israel, while pushing their
anti-freedom agendas.
"The United States should condemn this resolution--and the
morally corrupt organization that produced it.
_____________________________________________________
Why jewishsightseeing.com inserts the words "Publicity Release"—I
strongly believe that you, as readers, have the right to know where stories
come from, whether they are staff-produced, or whether the subject of the
stories are the same people who wrote them. If it were up to me, so as to
avoid confusion, political organizations simply would . send signed
commentaries instead of pseudo news stories. But I believe that in
whatever form these releases come, you are interested in news and commentary
on issues of direct importance to the Jewish community.—Donald H. Harrison,
editor
_______________________________________________________
National Jewish Democratic Council chides
Rudy Giuliani on his nuclear knowledge gap
WASHINGTON (Publicity Release) – Today,
the National Jewish Democratic Council (NJDC) called on Republican
presidential candidate Rudolph Giuliani to spend more time educating himself
on Iran and Middle East politics. NJDC’s rebuke of the former Mayor comes
in light of Giuliani’s comments to a New Hampshire audience that he is
unaware whether North Korea or Iran is further along in the development of
nuclear weapons. This after boasting about his foreign policy credentials.
NJDC, which is deeply troubled by the
Iranian threat, has serious concerns about Giuliani’s ability to manage U.S.
policy in the region.
“In order to offer intelligent proposals
for addressing Iran, one ought to be able to speak intelligently about the
Iranian threat itself,” said NJDC Executive Director Ira Forman. “With Iran
posing such a grave challenge to American policymakers, we can ill afford to
have a Commander-in-Chief who doesn’t truly understand the threat.”
“At a house party in New Hampshire, Mr.
Giuliani suggested that it was unclear which was further along, Iran
or North Korea, in the development of a nuclear weapons program,” reported
the New York Times. The Times article went on to say that
Giuliani then suggested a link between Iran and the September 11 attacks
with no substantive evidence other than “they have a similar objective … in
their anger at the modern world.” [New York Times, 3/7/07]
The editors of Foreign Policy
offer this rebuttal to Giuliani: “For the record, North Korea tested a
nuclear device on October 9, 2006, while the Iranians have yet to do so. The
U.S. intelligence community believes Iran could have a nuclear weapon as
early as 2010, but most likely in the time frame of 2012-2015.” [Foreign
Policy Blog, 4/9/07]
“In the 1976 election, voters punished
incumbent President Gerald Ford when he claimed in a debate that there was
no Soviet domination of Poland,” continued Forman. “American voters do not
want someone who misunderstands geo-politics with a finger on the button.
Giuliani is apt to learn this the hard way, if he doesn’t move away from
soundbyte politics.”
President Ford’s notorious debate
gaffe on Poland has been described as “One of his most famous verbal gaffes
[which] helped Jimmy Carter win the presidency.” From the Associated
Press: “’There is no Soviet domination of Eastern Europe and there never
will be under a Ford administration,’ Ford said during the second
presidential debate in October 1976, still the height of the Cold War. The
audience gasped, but when the moderator gave Ford the opportunity to clarify
his answer, he went on to say that Poland was ‘independent or autonomous.’”
[AP, 12/28/06]
__
________________________________________________________________
The
Jewish
Citizen
by Donald H. Harrison
________________________________________________________________
Filner, in return to his roots at SDSU,
draws divided reaction from students
Congressman Bob Filner (D-San Diego) returned to
his old haunt—the history department of San Diego State University—to mixed
reviews from students. He spoke this afternoon to a class of about 400
students about the differences between Democrats and Republicans, the war in
Iraq, and some of his concerns as the new chairman of the House Committee on
Veteran Affairs.
Reaction to his speech seemed to run along partisan lines, with some
students saying they would like equal time for a Republican, and some
students praising Filner and lining up after the lecture for his autograph.
The class taught by Professor emeritus Dr. Harry McDean, a former chairman
of the History Department, currently is focusing on the development of the
modern Republican and Democratic parties, as well as on the attitudes of the
two parties toward the military. Invitations to address the class were
conveyed both to Filner and to Republican Rep. Duncan Hunter, former
chairman of the House Armed Services Committee. According to McDean,
Filner accepted but Hunter, busy running for U.S. president, declined,
citing schedule conflicts. (I serve as a teaching assistant in that
class and provided Filner's introduction to the students.)
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Filner and McDean had been junior professors together
in the department back in the late 1970s when Filner began his career in
elective office as a member of the city Board of Education. He
later went on to serve in the City Council before winning election to
Congress. He now is in his eighth term.
|
Harry McDean and Bob Filner share some
memories of their early careers as young SDSU history professors. |
The congressman began his discussion of the
differences between Republicans and Democrats by describing the ethnic
|
makeup of the two parties' representatives in Congress.
He said in the Republican delegation there are no African Americans, no
Mexican-Americans, one Asian-American, three Cuban-Americans and one
Jewish-American. Additionally there are 20 women. "That's it for diversity,"
he said, going on to describe Republicans as members of a party that is
predominantly white, Christian, and wealthy.
In comparison, he said, Democratic members of Congress have 35 African
Americans among their ranks, 30 Hispanic Americans (most of them
Mexican-Americans), "four or five Asian-Americans," 25 Jewish Americans
(including Filner himself) and 85 women." Unlike Republicans, he said,
Democrats "look like America."
Most Democrats come from districts within the major urban areas. His
own district which stretches along the Mexican border across the width of
California is 85 percent persons of color, he said. More than 50
percent are Mexican-Americans, with Filipinos making up another large
percentage.
He
characterized Republican districts as being typically in the suburbs, with
constituents largely "people who are doing well" and with a large number of
"homogenous, gated communities."
The constituents in his district and other Democratic districts, who are in
lower economic brackets, tend to think of government as a "good thing"
which can serve as a guarantor of economic opportunity and protection from
environmental degradation, Filner said. On the other hand, people who
live in the wealthier Republican areas don't have to worry about the same
kinds of issues. They don't have industrial pollution in their areas;
"they think that government is bad because it takes their taxes" with
spending chiefly for other people's needs.
The Democratic congressman suggested that many Republicans embrace
a form of social Darwinism, which he paraphrased as saying "if God wanted
them (poor people) rich, he would have made them rich." In contrast,
he said, "Democrats say 'we are all in this together.'" He said if
people in poorer areas are without medical coverage, they will get diseases
that eventually could spread to the rest of the population, so for everyone
concerned it is better to provide medical coverage.
Filner told the students that these highly contrasting attitudes between the
parties tend to shape every debate in Congress. Each side, he
suggested, is attempting to represent its constituents.
Moving to the sources of money Republicans and Democrats draw on, the
congressman said typically Republicans go to corporations, whereas Democrats
go to labor unions. He said he considered the system far from ideal,
with a tendency to foster corruption. He told the students that former
U.S. Rep. Randy "Duke" Cunningham (R-Rancho Santa Fe), who was convicted and
imprisoned on bribery charges, "sold his votes for a Rolls Royce in his
garage" and a fancy mansion.
"Most bribery is less clear than that, legalized in a lot of ways," said
Filner. He said some people contribute money to a congressional
representative not because they agree with his or her ideas but to gain
access to that person and to push their own agenda. He described
himself as a believer in public financing.
Filner, who was among those who voted against sending troops to Iraq in the
first place, described the war there as "very stupid and criminal." He
said it has thus far squandered over 3,300 American lives, and injured 25,000 more troops, while causing even more harm to Iraqis.
Nevertheless, he charged, "the President can't say what we're fighting for."
He said when President George W. Bush's administration told the American
people that there were "weapons of mass destruction" in Iraq, many members
of Congress like himself knew that was not true. He suggested that the
Bush administration thought by fighting the war in Iraq it could improve
America's strategic position versus Iran, but instead the war has put
American troops in the middle of a civil war between Sunni and Shiite
Muslims while "getting shot at by both sides." The cost of the war is $1
billion every 2 1/2 days, Filner said. Such spending diverts funds
from domestic priorities, he added.
"I think the American people are against it," Filner said. "The
President is delusionary...divorced from reality."
The Veteran Affairs Committee chairman said returning soldiers are suffering
from "incredible problems" especially brain injuries caused by the shock
waves from being near Improvised Explosive Devices (IED's). He said
the average combat soldier experiences "five concussions a year."
However, when they return home, often to small towns, they do not receive
the medical attention they need with the result that their medical
conditions regress. Furthermore, he said, many suffer from Post
Traumatic Stress Disorder. "You can't go into a war, see a friend blown up,
or kill kids in the fog of war" without later suffering PTSD, he said.
Nevertheless, America's medical system doesn't give sufficient attention or
credence to mental illness.
The same kind of problems in Vietnam resulted in the 200,000 homeless
veterans now on the streets of our nation's cities, Filner said.
He said not only was the Bush Administration inadequately prepared to
conduct the war—failing to provide the soldiers with proper armor or
vehicles—but also the Bush administration didn't plan for the ongoing
medical treatment of veterans after the war. "Part of the cost of war
is treating the warrior!" he said.
Although he can be combative—and in fact was when a student later asked what
Filner assumed was a hostile question—the Democratic congressman described
himself as a pacifist who literally learned at the feet of the Rev. Dr.
Martin Luther King. While a college student in the1960s, Filner had been a
"Freedom Rider" and was briefly jailed for his activities in the South.
He said the foot soldiers of terrorism, if not the leaders, are driven by
despair, poverty, hunger and lack of hope. He asked the students to
consider what would have happened if instead of dropping bombs in
Afghanistan, the United States instead had launched a campaign of
humanitarian aid, dropping books, medicines and foods.
"I think it would have changed the history of the world," he said.
However, instead of dropping food, he said, the United States dropped bomb
packages that looked like food, resulting in children being attracted to and
killed by the bombs.
He said he and several other members of Congress would like to see the
United States create a Department of Peace that would explore ways in which
the United States could peacefully interact with the rest of the world.
In the question and answer session, one student asked if Democrats are
opposed to the tax refunds that had been pushed through Congress by the
Republicans, why they don't refuse to accept the refunds, or send them back
to the U.S. Treasury?
Filner appeared to take exception to the question, asking the student, "what
is the point" of the question After the student rephrased the
question, Filner responded that he keeps his entire $165,000 salary as a
congressman and doesn't send any of it back. He likened this to
someone who is for environmental protection yet drives an SUV. But
whatever individual inconsistencies there may be, Filner argued that the
important issue for taxpayers in lower economic brackets is whether the
situation can be changed.
Another student asked Filner if he preferred Hillary Clinton or Barack Obama
for President. Filner responded that he hasn't made up his mind who to
back for the Democratic party nomination, then commended New Mexico
Gov. and former United Nations Ambassador Bill Richardson, whom he noted
also would score a first if he reached the White House. As Senator
Clinton is a woman, Obama an African American, so too is Richardson of
Mexican background. Additionally, Filner said, he likes the
tongue-in-cheek bumper sticker "Reelect Gore in 2008" —a reference to the
disputed election in 2000 in which Bush beat Gore after a contested recount
in Florida.
A student asked what could be done about people who are raised to hate
Israel. Filner responded that as in the case of anyone raised to hate
someone or something else, "education is the best thing."
Another asked Filner what would happen in Iraq if the United States withdrew
its military forces. The congressman said that would be for the Iraqi
people to decide. Whatever happened, he suggested, the situation could
not deteriorate much more than it has already.
Gruss Foundation/CIJE Invests $500,000 in
Academics at San Diego Jewish Day Schools
SAN DIEGO, CA (publicity release) —Children at San Diego’s three Jewish Day
Schools are benefiting from a $500,000 investment to improve academics and
$22,500 in tuition incentives from the Center for Initiatives in Jewish
Education (CIJE) of the Gruss Monument Life Funds. To explain the academic
enhancements and hold the tuition drawing, Chabad Hebrew Academy, San Diego
Jewish Academy, Soille San Diego Hebrew Day School and CIJE invite the
community to a “Celebration of Academic Excellence,” a free kosher gala
dinner reception on Monday, May 14 at 6:00 p.m. at the Lawrence Family
Jewish Community Center at 4126 Executive Drive in La Jolla.
At the event, Jason Cury, President of CIJE
and Karl Gustafson, Senior Vice President of Sales & Marketing of Pearson
Digital Learning will explain the impact of the CIJE education technology
labs they invested in each school as well as E2K, the new math and science
program for motivated middle school students. Families who attend are also
eligible to win $7,500 to $15,000 to be used as tuition over the next three
years at any private Jewish elementary day school. To enter the drawing,
families must enter online at
www.jewishinsandiego.com no later than May 9, 2007 and be present at the
presentation to win.
The May 14 event is free and begins at 6:00
p.m. with registration and hors d'oeuvres followed at 6:30 p.m. with a
gourmet kosher dinner reception. At 7:30 p.m. the presentation and tuition
drawing begins in the main theatre followed at 8:30 p.m. with a decadent
dessert reception to conclude the evening. Free childcare with a kosher
dinner will be available for children ages two to eleven. Pre-registration
is required for the event and childcare. Families must register online at
www.jewishinsandiego.com by Wednesday May 9 or R.S.V.P. to the
San Diego Agency for Jewish Education to Marcia Wollner at (858) 268-9200.
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Arts
in Review
by
Carol Davis
___________________
Sailor's Song: An enchanting air
Pulitzer- Prize winning playwright John Patrick Shanley’s Sailor’s Song
is making it’s West Coast premiere at The New Village Arts Theatre in
Carlsbad through April 29th. I want to say “run, don’t walk to see this
beautifully captivating evening of theatre.” I want to say leave your
imaginations open to whatever the creative team of this young theatre
company puts before you because I know you will
leave with a feeling
as light hearted and thoughtful as I, when the magic
ends. In fact I
still feel the magic.
Shanley’s Sailor
pulls you right into its spell from the beginning.
The
play opens on a broad set (Nick Fouch) at Jazzercise, Inc in Carlsbad
(their temporary home). On one end is the siding of a southern Atlantic (the
gals sounded more like Maine to me) coastal town beach cottage
with a porch,
screen door, and a cot resting under On the other side of the stage in
a raised platform are two or three cabaret tables with small lamps on them,
chairs on either side and between the two is a rowboat anchored to a dock.
Rich, (Manny Fernandes)
a seaman who had aspirations beyond being a crane operator on a cargo ship,
never made captain. Now he isn’t sure about anything in his life and comes
to this seacoast town to be with his uncle John (Doren Elias) whose wife is
dying of cancer. John is a crusty old salt who sees life as it is while Rich
sees life through music, waltzing and fantasizing, or as some might say
:through rose colored glasses."
Rich is lonesome. He can’t commit to
relationships. His feelings are buried so deep from years of suppressing
them that even if he wanted to emote he wouldn’t know how. He is, however,
hopeful that one day he will find himself or settle down at something he
really likes. He does, though, know a good time.
The
fun begins when Rich wanders into a bar that first night, and sitting at a
table are two very pretty young women. One of them (Amanda Sutton), Joan,
is writing continuously on a yellow pad
while surveying the comings and goings of the evening. The other (Amanda
Morrow) is Lucy who introduces herself to Rich at first glance and is
smitten with him from the get go.
Eventually we learn from Lucy that the girls are sisters and Joan
is ‘an automatic writer’. In other words, she’s a psychic who
channels, through writing, the thoughts of a Punjabi businessman who died
several years earlier. It is a hoot watching her predict
things at a
flash and really believe them. Lucy, the more down to
earth sister,
works at the local bank. Both women plant strong ‘open
mouthed’
kisses on Rich within minutes of meeting and we’re off to the
races.
Rich can’t decide which of the girls he wants and rather than make a choice,
waltzes them both around the stage before heading for his
uncle’s house.
This sets the mood for what follows and when Rich reaches the house and
tells his uncle of his experiences, John tells him
to pick one or lose both.
He’s a man of decision and frankly, envies his nephew's dilemma. The
contrast in the two men almost makes one think that there must be some
mistake; they couldn’t be related.
After they settle in with a drink or two, their talk centers around
John and his dying wife, Carla (Robin Christ) and how John is
coping. John shares how he met Carla and why he really didn’t have
to marry her (for reasons I’ll save for you to learn when you see the show.)
But he stayed with her over the years and now he’s trying to understand her
death. Rich is stunned by John’s openness and can’t understand how he can
speak so freely about a very personal matter,
let alone allow his feelings
to be worn on his sleeve. He concludes that John is certainly different from
what he expected.
In the meantime, while John faces life squarely in the eye, Rich
avoids all that by taking the girls out on a boating outing the next
day. Again, the magic fills the stage with romance, music, laughs and dance.
It is one exquisite moment .
Shanley’s script calls for dancing and music and while the play seesaws
between frankness and fantasy, life and death, mortality and spirituality,
romance and sex, real things are happening. Back at the cottage, Carla is
nearly close to death and when she awakens from
her coma and she
and John share one last dance together, it’s
heartbreakingly beautiful. There isn’t a dry eye in the house. And,
in her after death ballet with him, everyone just about melts into a puddle
of water. In Shanley’s words, “Sailor’s Song is about the almost
unbearable beauty of choosing to love in the face of death. Love is the most
essential act of courage.”
Under the deft direction of Kristianne Kurner with choreography by Robin
Christ and Kathy Meyer, Adam Brick’s sound design, (“Blue Danube Waltz”,
“Try A Little Tenderness”), and Justin Hall’s lighting design, the cast is
able to put their best feet forward. Manny Fernandes, whom I’ve seen dozens
of times, is absolutely amazing
and light footed
as he waltzes the girls around the new dance floor
at the Jazzercise complex. His comfort and ease, twinkle and steadfastness,
lend tremendous credibility to his character. While his physical presence
says strength, he convinces that his character’s
mind vacillates when it comes to exploring his emotions.
The women, both Amandas are exceptionally well suited to their oddball
personalities. With straight faced resolution, each of them in their own way
go after Rich with zest and verve. They are almost like bookends trying to
outdo each other. It’s not only the acting, however, that make this
production so colorful. The dancing of all four, (Fernandes,
Morrow, Sitton,
Elias and particularly Christ) is simply striking. And while they are just
the fantasy in Rich’s world, it’s John who keeps pointing to the reality
door. Doren Elias is at his best with his gruff, raspy voice and raw
emotions pushing John to the edge
while filling in the blanks of his nephew’s emptiness and his wife’s
impending death.
He is, in fact, the center around which this play
revolves.
Shanley’s Doubt and Moonstruck have made believers of many.
His Sailor’s Song will as well. New Village Arts Theatre
is currently renting space at Jazzercise, Inc. at 2787 State Street in
Carlsbad. They can be reached at
www.newvillagearts.org or by phone at: (760) 433-3245.
The night I attended
the show, it was announced by Executive Director Kristainne Kurner that the
very next day, Monday April 9, construction
of their new performance space
in Carlsbad Village would begin. The new space is scheduled to open June 15
with Sam Shepard’s True West. I’ll keep you posted.
See you at the theatre.
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The Jewish Grapevine
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Roz Rothstein, national director of Stand With Us, an Israel advocacy
group, is stepping up a campaign to discourage DePaul University from
retaining
Norman Finkelstein, who, despite being the children of Survivors,
minimizes the Holocaust and has joined ranks with the opponents of Israel.
Here is a link to
a background article by
Rothstein about the controversy
and here is
another link
to a petition
urging DePaul's President Dennis H. Holtschneider and the
faculty to deny tenure to Finkelstein.
Heather
Zeiden, in Israel as an art therapy instructor for a program in Tsfat,
recently had the pleasure of meeting Former Prime Minister Shimon Peres
during a visit to Tel Aviv. Zeiden, who designed the logo of our Louis
Rose Society for the Preservation of Jewish History, was introduced to Peres
by his son, Yonatan Peres, a frequent visitor to San Diego.
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Jews
in the News
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News spotters: Dan Brin in Los Angeles,
Donald H. Harrison in San Diego., Marsha Sutton in North San Diego County. If you'd like to be a spotter in your
California city, please contact Harrison at
sdheritage@cox.net.
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*Talk about a role with a challenge! David Ellenstein, artistic
director of North County Rep, remembers when he was cast to play Jesus in an
Easter production at the Crystal Cathedral. Ruth Marvin Webster told
the story in the North County Times of San Diego County.
*U.S. Sen. Dianne Feinstein says the campaign for increased funding for
stem-cell research will go forward notwithstanding President George Bush's
almost certain veto of such legislation. Associated Press reporter
David Espo has
the story in The San Diego Union-Tribune.
*Choreographer John Malashock
is among members of the San Diego arts community who believes the large
Luce Theatre at the former Naval Training Center should be used to stage
performances by arts groups, rather than as the home for a proposed pirate
theatre tourist attraction. Maureen Magee has
the story in The San Diego Union-Tribune.
*Richard Meier,
architect of the Getty Center, has been engaged to design an
ultra-luxurious condominium complex at the Wilshire Boulevard site of the
former Robinson-May Center. Roger Vincent
reports in the Los Angeles Times.
*Richard Rothschild of the Western Center on Law and Poverty
argued in appeals court that county restrictions deny necessary medical
treatment to the indigent. Cheryl Clark's
story
is in The San Diego
Union-Tribune.
* Record producer Phil Spector suffered a setback in the
pre-trial motions stage of his trail for the murder of actress Lana
Clarkson. A judge permitted the prosecution to schedule as a witness a fifth
woman who says Spector threatened her with a gun. Matt Krasnowski of the
Copley News Service has
the story in The San Diego Union-Tribune.
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