De weigering van Israëlische acteurs om op te treden in de joodse nederzetting Ariel, werd zowaar verslagen door Trouw, de Volkskrant en de NOS, maar dat 150 Amerikaanse acteurs daarvoor hun steun uitspraken was blijkbaar teveel van het goede. Alleen Trouw wijdt er een 5 regels aan. Dat Ariel tevens een geliefde vakantiebestemming is van Joël Voordewind en zijn collega's van de Christenunie, lezen we natuurlijk helemaal niet in onze zogenoemde "kwaliteitskranten".
Making history: support for Israeli artists who say NO to normalizing settlementsWhen some 60 leading Israeli actors and playwrights signed a letter stating they would refuse to play in the new theatre in Ariel, one of Israel's largest settlements, the attacks from Prime Minister Netanyahu, Israel's Minister of Culture and Sport and many others were swift and intense. Over 150 leading Israeli academics and writers-including Amos Oz and David Grossman- came to their defense. It was the first time such mainstream figures had drawn a line around normalizing settlements which are illegal according to international law, and which constitute one of the main impediments to a lasting peace between Israelis and Palestinians.
Inspired by their courage, and responding to a call for international support, Jewish Voice for Peace has developed a statement that has been signed by over 150 theater and film professionals representing some of the most respected and renowned artists in theater, film and television – including Four Pulitzer Prize winners, several recipients of Guggenheim Fellowships, a MacArthur Fellowship, a National Medal of Honor,and scores of recipients of the highest U.S. acting honors, including Tony Awards, Emmy Awards, Grammy Awards, Obie Awards, Drama Desk Awards, and the Oscar.
Rebecca Vilkomerson, Executive Director of Jewish Voice for Peace: "
The response of American and UK artists to the courageous actions of their Israeli counterparts is just phenomenal. It is especially notable that so many of the signatories are Jewish with long-standing connections to Israel. We hope that the strong show of solidarity by Americans and UK actors in response to these brave Israelis will help spark a new conversation in both countries, one that acknowledges that the Jewish settlements in the occupied territories are illegal by every measure of international law, contribute to the daily violation of human rights of Palestinians, and are a major obstacle to a just peace in the region."To sign the petition, click
here.For further background and frequently asked questions, click
here.
Coverage of original Israeli artists protest:
Ynet: Artists to refuse to perform in Ariel culture hallNew York Times: Boycott of Theater in Israeli Settlement GrowsUK Guardian: Actors boycott West Bank TheaterGideon Levy, Ha'aretz : Puppet Theater
Ha'aretz Editorial: Stalin's Commissar in the PMOCoverage of our support campaign:
MJ Rosenberg on Huffington Post: Hollywood joins Israeli artists in boycotting West BankJTA: US television, film artists join West Bank boycottJewish Chronicle: Hollywood joins West Bank protestForward: Cynthia Nixon, Mandy Patinkin Among Artists Backing Boycott of West Bank TheaterAP: US artists support Israelis' settlement protest.Ha'aretz article with quotes from Wallace Shawn: US actors back boycott of Ariel theaterYnet: Artists' boycott of Ariel goes internationalMa'an News: US actors back boycott of West Bank theaterArutz Sheva: US actors support Israeli Ariel protestMondoweiss: Groundbreaking LetterTikkun Olam: Hollywood, Broadway stars support Israeli cutlural boycottText of the statement:
On August 27
th, dozens of Israeli actors, directors, and playwrights made the brave decision not to perform in Ariel, one of the largest of the West Bank settlements, which by all standards of international law are clearly illegal. As American actors, directors, critics and playwrights, we salute our Israeli counterparts for their courageous decision.
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.
It's thrilling to think that these Israeli theatre artists have refused to allow their work to be used to normalize a cruel occupation which they know to be wrong, which violates international law and which is impeding the hope for a just and lasting peace for Israelis an Palestinians alike. They've made a wonderful decision, and they deserve the respect of people everywhere who dream of justice. We stand with them.
*Statement organizers and signatories represent a wide range of political opinions and perspectives, but have come together for the sole purpose of making a joint statement on this one critical issue.
**All identifications and affiliations are for identification purposes only and do not imply endorsements by any institutionsEd AsnerActor
8 time Emmy award Winner (more than any other male actor); Former president Screen Actors Guild, lead voice in Pixar's Up, Mary Tyler MooreTheodore BikelActor, Folk Singer, Musician
Co-founder of the Cameri Theatre of Tel Aviv; president of the Associated Actors and Artistes of America; Academy Award nominee; Tony Award nominee; actor in film, TV and theater; vocalist Eve EnslerPlaywright, preformer
The Vagina Monologues; Obie Award winner; Guggenheim FellowshipTony KushnerPlaywright; Screenwriter;
Pulitzer Prize winner for Angels in America; Tony Award winner; Emmy Award winner; Drama Desk Award winner; Was nominated for an Academy Award and a Golden Globe Award; Co-author of MunichMiriam MargolyesActor
Portrayed Professor Sprout in Harry Potter; BAFTA WinnerJulianne MooreActor
Boogie Nights, Magnolia, The Big Lebowski, The Hours, The Kids Are All RightCynthia NixonActress
Portrayed Miranda Hobbes in the HBO series Sex and the City; Emmy, Tony and Grammy Award-winning actressMandy PatinkinActor, Vocalist
Actor in Yentl, the Princess Bride (portrayed Inigo Montoya), Sunday in the Park with George; Vocalist, (Mamaloshen), Tony Award winnerHarold PrinceDirector, Producer,
21 Tony Awards winner (Pajama Game, Cabaret, West Side Story, Sweeney Todd, Evita, Phantom of the Opera), National Medal of the Arts RecipientVanessa Redgraveactress
The only British actress to ever have won the Oscar, Emmy, Tony, Canes, Golden Globe and the Screen Actors Guild awards; Mission: Impossible, Mary Queen of Scots, Atonement.James SchamusProducer, Screenwriter, Film Historian
BAFTA Award Winner; producer of Brokeback Mountain, co-writer and producer of Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon, The Ice Storm, Eat Drink Man Woman, Academy Award nominee, CEO Focus FeaturesWallace ShawnActor, Playwright, Translator
Actor in Princess Bride (portrayed Vizzini) My Dinner With Andre, Vanya on 42nd St; playwright of The Fever, The Designated Mourner; translator of Three Penny Opera by Bertoldt BrechtJennifer TillyActress
Portrayed Olive Neal in Woody Allen's Bullets Over Broadway, Fabulous Baker Boys, Liar Liar, Bound; Academy Award NomineeDavid AdjmiPlaywright
Steinberg Playwright Award, the Bush Artists Fellowship, and the Kesselring Fellowship for Drama, named in the New Yorker as up and coming playwright
Bruce AllardiceManaging Director
Ping Chong & Co.Philip ArnoultDirector, Center for International Theatre Development (CITD)
Anthony ArnoveAuthor and Editor
Co-Directed (with Howard Zinn and Chris Moore) and Executive Produced "The People Speak (film)Caron AtlasCultural Organizer and Consultant
Project Director, Arts and Democracy ProjectArthur AvilesArtistic Director
Artistic Director, The Bronx Academy of Arts and Dance, Arthur Aviles Typical TheatreDavid BarlowActor, Writer, Performance Artist
Laura BarnettTheater Educator, Performance Artist, Director
George BartenieffActor
Obie Award WinnerMark BartonLighting Designer
John BellDirector
Ballard Institute and Museum of Puppetry, Puppeteer, Scholar, Great Small Works.Melia BensussenDirector
Obie Award Winning Director; Chair of Emerson College Department of Performing ArtsEric BentleyTheatre scholar, critic, author, playwright, editor and translator
Theodore S. BergerExecutive Director of the New York Foundation for the Arts for thirty years
Susan BernfieldArtistic Director, New Georges
Philip BitherSenior curator, Walker Arts Center
James BundyDean, Yale School of Drama; Artistic Director, Yale Repertory Theatre
Kathleen ChalfantActor
Obie Award Winner, Drama Desk Winner, Tony Award NomineeLinda ChapmanAssociate Artistic Director, New York Theatre Workshop
Rachel ChavkinDirector; Founder and Artistic director of the TEAM (the Theater of the Emerging American Moment)
Trudi CohenPuppeteer, Theater Artist
Great Small WorksKia CorthronPlaywright
Jorge Ignacio CortiñasPlaywright
Clare CossPlaywright
Alex CourtneyStage, Film and Television Actor
Tim CusackArtistic Director, Theatre Askew
Savitri D.Director
The Church of Life After ShoppingMatthew DellapinaActor
Ivor Dembina Comedian
David J. DiamondTheatre consultant, Producer
Elin DiamondCritic, Scholar
Liz DiamondDirector
Chair, Directing Dept., Yale School of DramaSally EberhardtTheatres Against War (THAW)
Edward EinhornDirector, Playwright, Novelist, Executive Director of the Association of Jewish Theatre
Deborah EisenbergPlaywright, Author, Actor, MacArthur Fellow
John Clinton EisnerArtistic Director, Lark Play Development Center
Oskar EustisArtistic Director, The Public Theater
Bertie Ferdman, Ph.D.Artistic Director, ExPgirl; Theatre Artist, Curator, Producer, Educator
Corey FischerActor, Playwright
Playwright of See Under: Love; co-founder of the Traveling Jewish Theater,(now the Jewish Theater San Francisco)Elinor FuchsCritic; Scholar, Yale School of Drama
Alexandra Gersten-VassilarosPlaywright
2004 finalist, Pulitzer Prize for DramaAdam GreenfieldDirector of New Play Development, Playwright Horizons
David GreenspanActor, Award-Winning Playwright
Andre GregoryActor, Director
My Dinner With AndreKathryn GrodyActor; Writer
Obie Award WinnerJason Grote Playwright, Screenwriter
Del Hamiltonco-Founder and Artistic Director, 7 Stages
Sheldon HarnickLyricist
Pulitzer Prize Winner, Fiddler on the Roof, Tony Award WinnerKaren HartmanPlaywright
David HerskovitsFounder and Artistic Director, Target Margin Theater
Joan HoldenAward-Winning Playwright
Jeffrey HorowitzFounder and Artistic Director, Theater for a New Audience
Advisory Board of The Shakespeare Society and Artistic Directorate of London’s Globe Theatre, Artistic Advisor to the Shakespeare Globe Centre (USA).Holly HughesPerformance Artist, Guggenheim Fellow
One of the "NEA 4", whose funding was vetoed for gay contentBirgit HuppuchActor
Bill IrwinActor, Mime, Choreographer
Winner two Tony Awards ;Winner of the National Endowment for the Arts Choreographer's Fellowship; Guggenheim, Fulbright and MacArthur FellowshipsJulia JarchoPlaywright, Director, Performer
Morgan JennessDramaturg
John Jesurun Writer, Director, Multi-Media Artist
Jeffrey M. JonesPlaywright, Curator -
Little Theatre @ Dixon Place, Pataphysics @ The FleaMelanie JosephArtistic Producer
The Foundry TheatreChris KamIndependent Producer
Stephen KaplinPuppeteer, Theater Designer/Performer
Great Small Works and Chinese Theatre WorksMelissa KievmanDirector
Josh KornbluthMonologist
Aaron LandsmanIndependent Artist
Paul LazarCo-Artistic Director Big Dance Theater
Herbert LeibowitzWriter and Editor
Maxinne Rhea LeightonAuthor
Robert H. LeonardDirector, Professor, Department of Theatre Arts, Virginia Tech
Gideon LesterDramaturg and Curator
Former associate artistic director, American Repertory Theatre; former Acting Artistic Director, American Repertory TheatreRoberta LevitowCo-Founder, Theatre Without Borders
Irene LewisArtistic Director
Center Stage, Baltimore, MarylandEthan LiptonPlaywright
Casey LlewellynTheater Artist
Quincy LongPlaywright
John Carroll LynchActor
Kirk LynnCo-Producing Artistic Director
Rude Mechs, Austin, TXMatthew MaguireCo-Artistic Director, Creation Production Company
Matthew MaherActor
Judith MalinaActor Director
Founder and Artistic Director, The Living TheatreKaren MalpedePlaywright, Theater Three Collaborative
Nina Mankin Dramaturg, Writer
Emily MannArtistic Director/Playwright
McCarter Theatre Center, Princeton, NJDeborah MargolinPlaywright, Actor, Scholar
Vijay MathewCo-Director, American Voices New Play Institute
Marin MazzieActress, Singer
Ellen McLaughlinPlaywright; Actor
Erin MeeDirector, Scholar
Swarthmore theater arts professorGreg MehrtenActor, Director, Writer
David MichalekArtist, Photographer
Visiting Faculty Member - Yale Divinity SchoolTyler MicoleauLighting Designer
Tim MillerPerformance Artist
One of the "NEA 4", whose funding was vetoed for gay contentJennifer MillerPerformance Artist, director
Founder and Artistic Director of Circus AmokSteve MooreArtistic Director
Physical Plant TheaterSusan MosakowskiPlaywright
Co-Artistic Director Creation Production CompanyDavid MoscowActor
Erika MunkCritic, Professor
Formerly at Yale School of DramaTom NelisActor
Jim NicolaArtistic Director
New York Theatre WorkshopLynn NottagePlaywright
Winner of 2009 Pulitzer Prize; winner of 2007 MacArthur Genius Award Annie-B ParsonDirector
Co-Founder, Artistic director Big Dance Theater, NYFA and Guggenheim FellowSally Ann ParsonsCostumer, Craftsman, Designer
Shailja PatelSundance Theatre Fellow 2010
Katie PearlDirector
Sybille PearsonPlaywright
Rockefeller Playwrights Fellowship; founding member of The Playwrights Circle at The New York Theatre Workshop; an Artistic Resident at the Vineyard TheaterRalph PenaArtistic Director, Ma Yi Theater
Carla PetersonDirector
Artistic Director, Dance Theater WorkshopBrian PickettTheater Artist and Educator
Member Steering Committee - Theaters Against War (THAW) Catherine PorterDirector
Co-Artistic Director Peculiar Works Project, Obie Award WinnerRuth Reichlwriter; PBS Television host
former restaurant critic, NYTimes, former editor in chief, Gourmet magazine, PBS television series host, memoiristRenoComedian
Gordon RogoffTheater Critic; Director; Professor of Theater
Yale School of Drama; Obie Award WinnerJenny RomainePuppeteer, Theater Artist
Great Small WorksAvital RonellWriter, Academic, Literary Critic
Najla SaidActor, Playwright
Daughter of Edward Said; “Palestine,” Her one-woman Off Broadway play is a coming-of-age story about Ms. Said’s journey to become an Arab-American on her own terms.Sarah SchulmanNovelist; Playwright
Ken Rus SchmollDirector
Brian H. ScottTheatrical Designer
Regine Anna Seckinger, Ph.D.Advisory Board Member, Rude Mechanicals, Austin, TX
Jamil ShamasdinActor
Peggy Shaw Performance Artist, Actor, Playwright
Christopher ShinnPlaywright,
Obie Award Winner, Guggenheim FellowJeanmarie SimpsonTheatre/Film Artist
Michael SingerTelevision News Producer
Former producer, CBS News Alisa SolomonTheater Critic and Dramaturg
Director of Arts Concentration, School of Journalism, ColumbiaBonnie SteinPerforming Arts Administrator, Manager, Project Producer and Coordinator, Executive Director
GOH ProductionsKris StoneStage Designer
Mark SussmanScholar, Puppeteer Director.
Great Small Works; Concordia UniversityCaridad SvichPlaywright, Songwriter, Translator, Editor
Bill TalenDirector
The Church of Life After ShoppingKathleen TolanPlaywright, Actor
Basil TwistPuppeteer
Obie Award WinnerCharlie VaronPlaywright, Performer
Paula VogelPlaywright, Scholar
Pulitzer Prize Winner, Eugene O'Neill Chair, Playwriting Department -Yale School of DramaNaomi WallacePlaywright, Screenwriter
Anne WashburnPlaywright
Guggenheim FellowDonya K. WashingtonDirector
Stephen WebberActor
Brenda WehleActor
Mac WellmanPlaywright, Author, Poet, Scholar
Donald I. Fine Professor of Play writing at Brooklyn CollegeAnabelle WinogradWriter, Critic, Educator
Eunice WongActor
Kristina WongAward-Wnning Solo Performer and Writer
Susan YankowitzAward-Winning Playwright and Librettist
David ZellnikPlaywright, Screenwriter, Lyricist