Israel Matzav

150 American actors, directors and writers sign petition against Ariel theater

One of the stories I didn't get to last week was the 'boycott' of the new Ariel theater. Last week, about 50 Israeli actors, directors and writers signed a petition saying that they would refuse to perform at the new Ariel theater (pictured above), because the theater is located in Ariel, which is in Samaria. The letter created quite an uproar for many reasons, not the least of which is that theater here in the Holy land is largely paid for by the government, which makes all these high-fallutin' 'moralists' state employees. The government's reaction was - in essence - "we're paying your salaries and you can either perform where we tell you to perform or you can quit."

Over the weekend, a group called "A Jewish Voice for Peace," whose goal is to take any and every action to turn Israel into a pariah state, got together 150 American actors, writers and directors to sign a letter of support for the Israelis. Many of those Americans are not Jewish (in fact, one of them is Vanessa Redgrave who is a known anti-Semite), but some media outlets have given misleading headlines (currently US Jewish artists back Israeli counterparts' Ariel protest) that give the impression that the 'artists' are Jewish, making the scorn being heaped on the State of Israel thicker than it would otherwise be. This is from Arutz Sheva:

Some signatories include actors Cynthia Nixon and Mandy Patinkin, playwright Tony Kushner, producer and 21-time Tony winner Harold Prince, and Theodore Bikel, actor and Cameri Theater co-founder.

"As American actors, directors, critics and playwrights, we salute our Israeli counterparts for their courageous decision,” the show business professionals stated. “Most of us are involved in daily compromises with wrongful acts. When a group of people suddenly have the clarity of mind to see that the next compromise looming up before them is an unbearable one — and when they somehow find the strength to refuse to cross that line — we can’t help but be overjoyed and inspired and grateful.”

I suppose that no one can be surprised that Kushner (see here also), for example, signed. He's known to have anti-Israel views. And I'm sure that if I spent the day searching the other names on the list, I would find many more that also hold views that are hostile to Israel.

Still, one cannot help but wonder whether these self-proclaimed morally superior beings have qualms about performing in repressive countries like Turkey and Egypt and Syria and Iran and Saudi Arabia (I wonder if the latter three allow theaters at all), or whether they would speak up to support an 'artists' boycott in those countries. Somehow, I doubt it. And that shows that the Americans' open condemnation of democratic Israel operates via a double standard that - surprise - reeks of anti-Semitism.

Read the whole thing. There's another report here.

posted by Carl in Jerusalem @ 10:43 AM