Out of the ghetto

The inaugural Hullegeb Arts Festival brings Ethiopian music, theater and dance to Jerusalem’s stages.

By BARRY DAVIS
Tehilla Yeshayahu-Adghe_521 (photo credit: (Eyal Landesman))
Tehilla Yeshayahu-Adghe_521
(photo credit: (Eyal Landesman))
It is no secret that the Ethiopians have generally endured a rough ride to acceptance here for the last 30 or so years, and there is a long way to go on that road. Still, increasingly, members of the community are finally coming to prominence in different mainstream walks of life.
But theater director and artist Moshe Malka has a different take on the absorption ethos.
“You hear about the first Ethiopian this and the first Ethiopian that, but I am looking to take Ethiopians out of their ghetto here in Israel,” he says. “I want to show Ethiopians as artists, and not as members of a downtrodden group on the fringes of society.”
Malka is responsible for directing, script-writing and devising the movement elements of the Lovesick dance-theater production that occupies the closing slot (The Lab, December 25, 7 p.m. and 9:30 p.m.) of the inaugural Hullegeb Ethiopian-Israeli Arts Festival. The theater, dance and music celebration, which will take place under the aegis of Confederation House, in cooperation with the Immigrant Absorption Ministry, kicks off in Jerusalem on December 16 and ends on December 25.
Lovesick spins out three urban love stories, through three women and one man, and incorporates texts from the biblical Song of Songs. The contrast between the here-and-now city setting and the biblical textual backdrop could not be greater and, naturally, is premeditated and, Malka believes, oxymoronic.
“Relationships in the city are all about instant love and fantasy, while the Song of Songs is about timeless love,” he says.
And there are more contrasts in the production designed to enhance the final product. The cultural context is also not what one might expect.
“I call this show experimental and, in fact, it has nothing to do with Ethiopia or Ethiopians, other than the fact that two of the actors come from there,” Malka explains. One of the actresses (Tehilla Yeshayahu-Adghe) and the actor (Aymos Aynu) are Ethiopians and the other two actresses (Tamar Elkin and Maya Har- Zion) are Israeli-born.
The extraneous mind-set also applies to the musical accompaniment.
“This is a minimalist production with live music with just one guitarist, who is called Nadav Vikinsky,” Malka continues. “The music is not Ethiopian, and does not even have Ethiopian motifs. It is liturgical music taken from the synagogue, based on texts from the Song of Songs. I wanted to achieve a more universal effect.”
The director says he does not want the audience members to focus on the actors’ ethnic origins, only to immerse themselves in the events unfolding on the stage, sans cultural baggage or preconceptions.
“I would like people to grasp the fact that Ethiopians can talk about normal issues too, like being in love and missing someone. Often people associate the Ethiopian community with the problems of a repressed sector of the public, with social problems and drug-related issues etc. I hope this production can help to change the image of the Ethiopian community, or at least present it in a different light.”
Malka adds that he is not, by any means, trying to wrest from the community its natural cultural milieu. “Ethiopians should be taken more seriously by the world of art. Art helps them keep their identity centered, to be part of Israeli society but to also preserve their cultural baggage. Artists should use their cultural baggage to appeal to the whole world, with a universal approach. That’s what I aim to achieve.”
While Ethiopian artists have plenty of quality to offer the Israeli public, Malka believes they still face many obstacles in bringing their cultural roots to the fore.
There are apparently some objective social factors that get in the way of the Ethiopian artists’ quest for general acceptance.
“Theater is anathema in the traditional Ethiopian way of life,” explains Malka. “Mostly they do not think of going to the theater as a form of entertainment. On the other hand you get lots of Ethiopian standup comedians who just perpetuate the community’s poor image, by making fun of the problems the community faces. That is something I think we should be getting away from.”
In fact Malka believes that Israeli-born artists can learn a thing or two from their Ethiopian counterparts. “Personally, I am attracted to the history of Ethiopia, and the sense of time. The Ethiopians bring something timeless rather than the instant approach of the average of Israeli. They have far more than just their folklore. They have humor, strength, movement and beauty.”
Paradoxically, Malka feels that as the community becomes increasingly integrated into mainstream Israeli society those advantages are liable to fade. “Ethiopians are becoming more Israeli, not the other way around. The question is whether Israeli society is ready to recognize other aspects of Ethiopian culture. We are so busy with our own problems and making judgments.”
Then again the stage offers a level playing field.
“Theater offers a more convenient arena for taking on a different view, and getting away from stereotypes,” he says. “To see more depth, you need the quiet of the theater. Lovesick should provide the requisite oasis of calm. This production mixes an experimental approach with realism, and it is all based on a minimalist concept. Sometimes the movement is so minimalist it is close to simple breathing. I think that space generates the possibility of adopting a different viewpoint.”
Elsewhere in the Hullegeb Ethiopian- Israeli Arts Festival program there is a comeback for a tried-and-tested act, as iconic singer-composer Shlomo Gronich reunites with the Sheba Choir he founded almost 20 years ago. The opening item on the festival agenda (Jerusalem Theater, December 16, 8 p.m.) features works by Gronich designed to fuse Ethiopian and Western themes and sensibilities.
On the second day (Confederation House, 12 noon), acclaimed actress Tehila Yeshayahu-Adghe performs a captivating monologue, written by Yeshayahu-Adghe and Malka, about an Israeli woman of Ethiopian origin, whose search for the man of her dreams puts a comic twist on the reality of her life in Israel, her nostalgia for Ethiopia and the story of her marriage and flight from an abusive husband.
The Lab hosts award-winning play The House of Metuko on December 18 (9 p.m.), a performance based on a physical-surrealistic theme. The following day (Beit Shmuel, 9 p.m.) offers dance entertainment courtesy of both the Beita Dance Ensemble and the Jerusalem Premiers.
There is also plenty of musical entertainment throughout the festival’s duration.
For more information about the Hullegeb Ethiopian-Israeli Arts Festival. visit www.confederationhouse.org/index.php