Here is a quote from a letter Lauren wrote to her friends commenting on the Seeds of Peace theatrical performance that we detailed during the podcast.
“When at the end, the actors put their green Seeds of Peace t-shirts over their costumes and turned to the audience to take their bows, the crowd rose in a spontaneous standing ovation. Afterwards, the camp directors spoke to the crowd. This is my proudest moment," said J__, who only a few days earlier had talked of cancelling the production.
Lauren Goldman Marshall
A few photos from the musical
Abraham's Land website:
https://www.abrahamslandmusical.com/
Abraham’s Land was screened in Six Civic Society Institutions in Gaza at different venues in January 2022.
https://www.abrahamslandmusical.com/alingaza
A two-minute video by Palestine Charity Team about the Abraham's Land screenings in Gaza.
“We will feel very happy if we see peace happen through this play, which aims in all its events about peace and coexistence.”
— Remas
“[I] felt a lot about Ismail’s father because [I am] of his age and [have] lived through all the events that Ismail’s father embodies.”
— Al-Mukhtar Mahrous
A message from Lauren after we recorded the podcast.
I want to make a correction to the definition of Yesh Gvul, the Israeli organization of conscientious objectors, that I referred to in the podcast. “Yesh Gvul” means “There’s a limit.”
Also, one thing I forgot to mention in the podcast is that one of the campers from our session, a teenager named Asel Asleh, was murdered just a year later by an IDF soldier, while demonstrating peacefully in Jerusalem. The young man was Palestinian-Israeli and an Israeli citizen. He was not a cast member, but well known and liked by the whole camp. He was wearing his Seeds of Peace T-shirt!
It was incidents such as this, and the start of the Second Intifada in 2000, that led to the loss of hope, but in retrospect, it would seem we’ve been on the current trajectory toward calamity for generations. At this point, I truly believe it will take a miracle to bring peace.
Finally, here are links to a couple of op ed pieces I have had published on Israel and Palestine: HERE and HERE
They express my point of view more directly than the play, which as an artistic work, leaves more for the viewers to decide.
Playwright Lauren Goldman Marshall on the Jenny Hatch Show at the Healthy Families Podcast