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From the CEO continued from page 6
Fiddler, Then and Now
been to have had both Ellis Island and
Haifa Port in the lives of our people at
such crucial moments in our history.
Many know the English lyrics of
the songs in “Fiddler” by heart. How
many weddings have been graced by
“Sunrise, Sunset” over the years? One
song in particular gets to me. Now that
I have seen it performed in Yiddish,
it speaks to me even more: “Vayt Fun
Mayn Liber Heym” (“Far From the
Home I Love,”) sung by Tevye’s daughter
Hodl to her father as they wait at
the train station, from which she is
leaving to join her husband Perchik,
who has been exiled to Siberia for
political reasons.
I think of my parents leaving the
only homes they knew, for the New
World. Even with the normal feelings
of anticipation, and even with the Czarist
yoke under which they lived, tearing
themselves away from familiar surroundings
to the unknown must have
been wrenching.
For others, the production surely
resonated in other ways. Indeed, when
With the Statue of Liberty silhouetted on the horizon, director and photographer Joel
Grey imagines a sequel to the “Fiddler” story, depicting the ensemble as newly arrived
immigrants in New York.
one enters the theater, on either side of
the lobby there are tall signs with the
word “Tradition!” in many different
languages, a nod to the universal appeal
of this magnificent production.
So thank you, Sholem Aleichem,
Joseph Stein, Harnick and Bock,
Jerome Robbins, and Joel Grey for
enabling me to immerse myself in a
musical that is not only great theater,
but also great history.
My history.
PODCAST HOSTED BY B'NAI B'RITH INTERNATIONAL CEO DANIEL S. MARIASCHIN
B’nai B’rith Podcast with U.S. Anti-Semitism Envoy Elan Carr:
Protecting Jewish Communities Globally Is a Top Priority
The U.S. prioritizes fighting global anti-Semitism through the State Department post
of U.S. Special Envoy to Monitor and Combat anti-Semitism.
Envoy Elan Carr says he sees his first priority as ensuring the day-to-day safety of Jews
around the world. “If a community cannot feel safe, if you can’t leave the house and
know that you’re going to come back in one piece, or send your kids to school and know
that they’re safe, there is no quality of life. It is intolerable to live in such a place,” says
Carr. “So, what we’re looking at is to make sure Jewish assets are protected. In countries
especially where Jews are being attacked on the streets — and there is no shortage of
examples of that — protecting Jewish assets and making sure that Jews are safe and
protected is number one.”
Listen to our podcasts here: https://www.bnaibrith.org/podcast-list-2019.html
B’NAI B’RITH 9