The Arts Fuse Newsletter, April 24
Coming Attractions, Spring Has Sprung for Children's Books, Cindy Lee's "Diamond Jubilee," A Trio of Climate Action Plays, and "Sasquatch Sunset"
From The Editor's Desk:
For those overcome by sadness, anger, and helplessness at the genocidal savagery of the war in Gaza, Boston-area theaters, which tout themselves as “adventurous” and “bold,” have offered nothing of dramatic substance, aside from a revival of William Gibson’s Golda’s Balcony, no doubt prized for its serving of heroic uplift. Judging from upcoming season announcements, even anti-war plays are deemed to be too risky for skittish theater patrons. Companies must not take sides, after all. The pro-war crowd buys tickets. This indifference to famine and mass killing makes Bread + Puppet’s spring touring production — which focuses on the plight of the innocent victims of Israel’s siege (over 13,000 children according to UNICEF) — a true outlier. The Hope Principle Show: Citizens’ Shame + Hope in the Time of Genocide, which played in Somerville’s Arts at the Armory last week, was a reminder that theater can be a place for dissent, that it can sound alarms systematically stifled in mainstream debate.
The thrust of the show was to condemn the war and the dehumanization of the Palestinians. Mayhem, indignation, longing for peace, and death were evoked in a succession of monochrome images. Music and readings accompanied the slo-mo procession of various-sized puppets, including elegant white caribou. We heard selections from Palestinian writers, including poet Mahmoud Darwish, and from Tariq M. Haddad’s heartbreaking letter to Secretary of State Antony Blinken. (Haddad has lost nearly 100 relatives in Gaza.) There wasn’t much humor amid the nonstop earnestness, but there were moments of beauty and pity in what was an opportunity for collective lamentation. It was particularly poignant given that the youth of the performers linked them with the students at MIT, Emerson, and Tufts who have set up encampments in solidarity with students at Columbia protesting Israel’s actions in Gaza.
Despite some upbeat imagery, such as flowers blooming out of a skeleton, shame seemed to overwhelm hope. Midway through the Armory presentation an audience member stood up in rage and stomped out of the room. “This is not what I signed up for!” she shouted to us all. That was followed by an obscenity. I am not sure what the woman’s specific objection to the show was, but it could be argued that her agonized exclamation will resonate across the ideological and geopolitical spectrum for years to come. Eventually, this horrific war will end and — as the Greeks knew so well — the time for moral and legal judgments will begin. Theater artists of courage will be part of that reckoning.
—Bill Marx, Editor-in-Chief
Coming Attractions through May 6 — What Will Light Your Fire
Our expert critics supply a guide to film, visual art, theater, author readings, and music. More offerings will be added as they come in.
Album Review: Cindy Lee’s “Diamond Jubilee” — A Hidden Jewel
By Matt Hanson
Cindy Lee’s Diamond Jubilee is nothing if not immersed in its own inner world. That’s part of its complexity, its strength, and its beauty.
Film Review: “Sasquatch Sunset” — Creatures of Nature, Walking Proud and Standing Tall
By Tim Jackson
Sasquatch Sunset’s directors claim they were interested in respecting the universal connection between man and nature, albeit with plenty of humor.
Children’s Book Reviews: Gardens Galore!
By Cyrisse Jaffee
Get ready for spring with these children’s picture books.
Jazz Album Review: Chet Baker and Jack Sheldon — “The Lost Album”
By Steve Provizer
The music works. The session is among old friends. The rhythm section cooks and every solo holds one’s attention.
Book Review: “Witness: An Insider’s Narrative of the Carceral State” — A Voice Worth Heeding
By Bill Littlefield
Lyle C. May reminds us that large numbers of men sentenced to death have been exonerated, and that at every level the apparatus of the carceral state is erratic at best and dramatically biased against minorities and the poor.
Theater Interview: GSC’s Rebecca Bradshaw on “Water’s Rising: Festival of New Climate Action Plays”
By Bill Marx
“We need hope in the possibility of change in order to survive what’s coming.”
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Questions, comments, concerns?
Editor-in-Chief
Bill Marx
wmarx103@gmail.com
Good editorial!