2023-12-15 16:59:00
A play about the life story of Umm Kulthum at the Jaffa Theater in Tel Aviv, in which a Jewish singer embodies the character of the “Star of the East,” constitutes a contradictory image of the current scene, as it gained new connotations with its re-performance after a temporary hiatus following the Hamas attack on Israel.
Oud player Alaa Abu Amara stands on stage amid the decor of the residence of Umm Kulthum (1898-1975), surrounded by a group of theatrical characters in which actress Galit Ghayat takes on the role of the Egyptian singer.
The work provides a journey through the main stations in the life of the “Lady of Arab Singing”, and the meetings that determined the direction of her artistic career and her songs.
Umm Kulthum’s long songs are performed in Arabic, while the dialogues between the actors take place in Hebrew.
On the seats of the Arab-Hebrew Theater in the mixed Jaffa area of Tel Aviv, a diverse audience sits, interacting with the work with laughter at times, and with emotion at other times, and the eldest among its members repeat the words of Umm Kulthum’s songs in Arabic, mixed with nostalgia.
Scenes continue on stage, including, for example, the star’s quarrels, with her dark glasses and luxurious dresses, with her mother, played by Khawla Haj Debsi, while actor George Iskandar, with his vocal performance, brings singer and musician Mohamed Abdel Wahab back to life.
The producer of the work, Yigal Ezrati, explains that “three Jews and three Arabs who speak Hebrew and sing in Arabic” participate in the play. The theater director confirms that the work attempts to show “that Arabic is not the language of the Hamas movement, but rather it is a very beautiful language and a beautiful culture, and for most Israelis it is the language of their fathers and childhood.”
Performances of the play were temporarily halted during the month following the Hamas attack on Israel on October 7 that killed 1,200 people, most of them civilians, according to Israeli authorities.
Since then, the Israeli attack on Gaza, and before the air strikes on the Strip, resulted in the deaths of 18,787 people, 70% of whom were women and children, according to the latest toll from the Hamas Ministry of Health.
Singer Galit Ghayat, who comes from a family of Algerian and Yemeni origins, believes that this play is a “breath of oxygen” for the artists and the audience.
She added, “Umm Kulthum is, to me, synonymous with our home. I remember that in my childhood I used to listen to classical Egyptian music at my grandfather’s house, and I used to ask myself every time, ‘Why can’t you speak Arabic?'”
Today, years later, the Israeli artist herself sings the texts she was listening to. She describes the role of Umm Kulthum, which she plays, as “a very beautiful gift from life. We act together, Christians, Muslims and Jews, and we live together, and together we love each other and hate each other.”
“Condemned to silence”
She bought her ticket from Kfar Sava in northern Tel Aviv long before October 7, but after that date her attendance at the play took on a new dimension: “the feeling of the connection between the two peoples.” She added, “We are neighbors, and I hope that peace will return to us again and that we will not fight after today.”
However, the “messages of peace” expressed by these Jewish artists and part of the audience fall on deaf ears, and are nothing more than a bandage that does not last more than two hours for a wound that is still bleeding, but the road to recovery is still long.
None of the three Israeli Arab artists wanted to make any statement to Agence France-Presse.
Yigal Ezrati notes, “It is difficult for the Palestinians. They were all born here, and as soon as they open their mouths they feel as if they are committing a sin. They are condemned to remain silent,” to the point that they are “afraid to speak Arabic.”
Ezrati, who has been managing the Jaffa Theater for 20 years, points out that “some people posted comments on social media about the victims and about the war, and the army came and arrested some.”
Ezrati’s play is shown twice a month, and he aspires for it to continue and remain on stage for a tenth year.
Before the curtain comes down, scenes from Umm Kulthum’s funeral are shown on the screen. Although Cairo witnessed a huge stream of mourners accompanying the coffin of the great singer, the sea of tears for her extended from Baghdad to Casablanca, passing through Jaffa.
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