Like Poetry without Words: The Galilee Multicultural Theatre
Dr. Lisa Silberman Brenner
...The “text” that the audience reads relies on non-verbal communication; it is as Pablo describes, “poetry without words.” Except for the final moments of the play, Neighbors is told exclusively through visual symbols, manipulation of objects, bodily gestures and sounds, and live, often improvised, music. Interacting with spectators through such non-verbal means allows the GMT to cross national boundaries. More to come
The Canberra Times
February 5th by Philip O'brien
...Together , both performers explore their differences and similarities with a minimum of language, using humor , movement and music, and from their very different backgrounds, these two artists, friends and neighbors, celebrate their common humanity in a manner which encourages us to value and respect other cultures ...
The Canberra Times
February 7th by Helen Musa
...National Multicultural festival director Dominic Mico was close to gloating
"It just shows you how the arts succeed where politics fails"...
The Canberra Times
February 9th by Alanna MacLean
"Neighbors" is a show about the reality of cooperation . It teams Arab musician Waseem Bishara with Jewish Pablo Ariel , actor and gentle manipulator of varied images and puppets. The result is one hour that may very well leave an audience thinking about some of the glimpses of life in Middle Eastern history that it provides.
...you may find by the end that both images and stories have made you think anew about various reconciliations.
The Straits Times, Singapore
February 18th by Clara Chow
The show was performed in the Jerusalem International Puppet festival, in the Philadelphia Fringe Festival , in the Meeting for a Better World in Puerto Rico in the National Multicultural Festival in Canberra Australia …
They may seem like polar opposites, but Israeli artists Pablo Ariel , who is a Jew and Waseem Bishara who is an Arab come together to create theater that celebrates their common humanity.
Today, Singapore
February 20th by Shibu Itty Kuttickal
An odd couple they may be , but on stage the chemistry is evident ...
...Ariel uses " object theater " , the creation of imagery through shadow play and by making objects dance to Bishara's compositions. The two eventually become symbols of hope and co-existence. There is no lofty political discourse here. What comes through is two neighbours enjoying each other's company and celebrating their commonalities in a neighborhood of contradictions and dissension.
The public wrote:
…You presented the attending audience with an enchanting performance.
….The virtuoso ability of the two artists is amazing….
…The performance of the artists, their choice of material, and its presentation – are fascinating.
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This is a combination of two artists expressing through their art, and also through their personalities, the ability of good “neighbors” and cooperation.
This blending of the object and the melody awaken in the heart of each of the spectators his own desire - the dream of good neighborliness, co-existence, and shared creativity.
In the spirit of Shalom,
Gili Shanit Chairman
The Interdisciplinary Arena
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In December members of our staff at the Center of Humanistic Education at the Ghetto Fighters’ Museum attended the performance of “Neighbors”. The three staff were myself - director of the Center, an experienced educator, and a Jew – and two very young staff members – Arabic and at the beginning of their educational careers.
We were greatly impressed by the performance. The encounter is sensitive, creative, delicate, and full of humor. In our view it is appropriate for the young in age and the young in spirit, for those who can enjoy the music, the miniature rhythm and movement, and for those are able to elevate themselves from to another level of thinking in an attempt to connect allusions to a total whole which joins to the reality of the dialogue between two societies – the Jewish and the Arabic - whose home is the Galilee.
At the finish, when Pablo tells the story of the Palestinian Waseem Bashar in Hebrew, and Waseem tells the story of Pablo Ariel’s family in Arabic, the audience is flooded with emotional empathy, love, and hope.
Sincerely,
Raya Kalisman
Director of Humanistic Education
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