Juliano Mer-Khamis: Actor, Director, Peacemaker

"When I'm onstage, I feel like I'm throwing stones. We won't let the occupation keep us in the gutter. To me, acting is like throwing a molotov cocktail. Onstage, I feel strong, alive and proud." - Ashraf Abu Al Hayja, former student student of Juliano Mer-Khamis, killed in 2002 during the Battle of Jenin.

Photo Courtesy of Wikimedia Commons

The next time a politician, pundit, or man on the street tries telling you the arts don't matter, please tell them about the life of Juliano Mer-Khamis, Founder of The Freedom Theatre, actor and "100% Jew and 100% Arab".

Jule, as he was known to his friends and colleagues, was born in Nazareth, Israel to a Jewish mother and Arab father. His Mother, Arna, was a member of the Palmach, an elite unit of the pre-Israel Jewish paramilitary armed forces. At the start of the Israeli War of Independence, Arna enthusiastically took arms for the establishment of a Jewish state. By the close of the conflict, she became disillusioned by political Zionism after helping to drive out Arabs from their homes.

Decades later, Arna founded a community center for children in Jenin, a city in the occupied West Bank. Initially viewed with suspicion, she slowly won over the trust of the Palestinians and provided a refuge for refugee children to paint, dance and play.

In the late 1980's and early 90's, during the first "Intifada" (One of two acknowledged major Palestinian uprisings. Literally, "shaking off".) Juliano, a popular actor of the Israeli stage and screen, came to Jenin to help his mother run the theatre on the top floor of a space donated by the mother of a young boy named Zachariah Zubeidi. During these years, Juliano filmed the work of his mother with the young boys of Jenin as she offered them an alternative outlet for their rage. In words of one of Juliano's students, Yousef:



"I can tell people how I feel. What I want and what I don't want. Whether I love life or not."

Some of the other boys discussed their own prejudices:

"We thought, he's jewish, he's come to spy on us... We thought you were spying for the occupation, but then we got to know you..."

"I thought: Why isn't there an Arab who would do this for us? Why would the jews who are the enemies of the arabs, why would they do this for us? I really wondered."

A few years after Arna's death, Juliano left Jenin to continue his career as an actor. During these years, the theatre went defunct and the boys grew up in the refugee camp as their Israeli and European friends moved on with life outside of the occupied territories. Juliano would not return to Jenin for nearly 7 years.

In 2001, Juliano received a call from a friend who had taken footage of the aftermath of a suicide attack in Hadera that killed four Israeli women. They decided to review the footage to see if they could trace the perpetrators and do something about the tragedy.



In the video above, Juliano describes his pain what he discovered (7:10):

"I discovered that it's my... It's my Yousef... He's the most talented, charming boy... "

Juliano returned to Jenin in 2002 with a camera crew, and discovered that most of the boys he taught as children had taken arms and been killed in the previous weeks. He meets up with one of the survivors, Zacariah Zubeidi, now amongst the IDF's most wanted terrorists and covers the seige of Jenin from the perspective of the Palestinians. The result of this work was the heartbreaking and emotionally honest documentary Arna's Children.



The documentary caused a major controversy, but also attracted worldwide attention and praise. Using the visibility and financial success of the documentary, Juliano made a permanent return to Jenin and opened The Freedom Theatre, a continuation of his mother's work, in the hopes that a permanent arts community in Jenin would provide an alternative to the culture of violence and martyrdom that had plagued the Palestinian liberation movement.

In 2007, a film crew came to Jenin to visit the Freedom Theatre and interview one of Juliano's former students, the sole surviving boy from the original theatre troupe in the 1980's: Zachariah Zubeidi, whose mother donated the first space where Arna would produce her children's plays. Zachariah was now one of the most highly wanted terrorists in the occupied territories and a major figure in Al-Aqsa Martyr Brigades.



After the interview, Zachariah made a last minute decision to visit the Freedom Theatre. He had not set foot on a stage in nearly 16 years. At first he came to watch, but by the end of the rehearsal he had been invited onstage to work with the new generation of Palestinian actors. Performing in scenes depicting the occupation, these young artists once again channeled their anger and aggression through the medium of theatre as the original troupe of boys did years before.

After the rehearsal, Zachariah disappeared promptly, returning to his clandestine underground life. Juliano shared these words:

He never was a child... As human beings, if you give them meaning, something to live for, they're not going to become terrorists, they're not going to become violent, they're not genetically violent, they don't look for virgins in the sky...

As Zachariah says, 'I don't believe in guns. I don't believe the gun can free Palestine'. But I believe that culture, poems, songs, books can free Palestine. It's already freeing a lot of people.

Within the year, Zachariah publicaly renounced violence, gave up arms and accepted amnesty from the Israeli government. He became the co-director of the Freedom Theatre and serves in this role to this day. The one surviving son, the last of Arna's children.

Last week, Juliano Mer-Khamis was murdered in front of the Freedom Theatre.

The majority of the media coverage has focused on his death and the speculation regarding the motive for his murder. I have chosen instead to ask the question:

What power does theatre have to heal nations? Is it possible that the arts are worth more than entertainment? If the civil rights movement can look back at baseball and the life of Jackie Robinson as a turning point in the struggle for racial justice, why can't we use the arts in the same way for the causes of the future?

The rejectionists of the world are always attacking the arts. From Oliver Cromwell to Joseph Stalin, repression always starts with the control or destruction of our culture. The arts are vital to the lifeblood of a civilization, just as vital as technology and philosophy.

In the aftermath of the Boston Theatre Conference, we've talked about the need to make the case for the arts in America. The arts are not a frivolous expense that benefits the elite white liberal base, despite what many will say. The arts are an investment opportunity with an incredible potential for return.

Juliano Mer-Khamis saw what happened when the boys of the camp were denied their venue for artistic expression. He founded The Freedom Theatre to make sure the future generation of Palestinians would have a real choice between cultural struggle, and useless martyrdom.

In his own words:

"We believe that the third intifada, the coming intifada, should be cultural, with poetry, music, theatre, cameras and magazines"




The Freedom Theatre has said they will continue their operations in spite of the violence and threats they've received for their activities. I am donating ten dollars a month in solidarity from now on. Please consider making a donation to support this cause. Find out more about The Freedom Theatre.

Juliano's documentary, Arna's Children is available in it's entirety on youtube.



Solidarity and Love to all,

K

Art as a Commodity: The CoLab v. Illiterate Corporate Incompetence

I've been thinking about consumerism and the effect it has on the arts. Originally, I had been pondering nuanced thoughts, with a dash of civil intellectual discourse. However, a few days ago, we here at The CoLab recieved an unexpected e-mail message:

Editor's Note: E-mail edited for satirical purposes. I replaced the actual queries with red stuff. As if you needed to know that, but they seem awfully trigger happy with the legal talk...

I've lost interest in civl discourse. These guys are idiots.

For those of you just joining us, last week Mary-Liz posted a less than stellar review of a new Threepenny translation. Nowhere do we ever so much as imply that we produced anything. Moreover, the first line of the post reads:

"Last weekend I went to see The Threepenny Opera at Boston College."

She goes on with phrases such as "Brecht is rolling over." and "Weill is rolling over."

I would have to agree, but on a different topic. Now, clearly this is a misunderstanding. Someone over this large publishing corporation misinterpreted our post and mistakenly believed that we were producing an unauthorized production. That's, fair right? You respond, you let them know the details, they realize their mistake, go on their merry way.

If only it were that simple. For I pose this question: Did anyone actually read our post? Initially, the prospect of legal action was exciting, as Mary-Liz and I put it:

"Holy Crap. I think the Kurt Weill Estate is reading our blog! Awesome!"

But upon further inspection...all you have to do is read the first sentence to realize we weren't producing anything. Moreover, nowhere in that post even suggests that we lifted any fingers beyond typing a critical review (with concern for the wishes of the departed Brecht and Weill, mind you.) This begs the question: Did anyone even bother reading our post before greenlighting that e-mail? Who exactly is running these corporations and what intellectual power do they actuall possess? Don't you have to be literate to hold these positions?

The fact of the matter is, they don't care about us. They don't care about you as an individual and they don't care about the artists. They are looking to protect their investement and secure their monopoly on intellectual property. For all their billions of dollars in revenue, they feel threatened by a small, grassroots theatre company's blog so much that they feel the need to shove legal speak into our faces to get the point across. Don't mess with us. We're bigger than you and have more money than you. And we will not have our profits cut into. But we won't read what you have to say, because we don't even care to use our energy on anything that doesn't make us more money.

A few weeks back, I attended the Quiet Desperation WBCN Rock n'Roll Rumble. This event was organized in commemoration of the now defunct rock and roll institution that was overrun with corruption, legalized payola and corporate control during it's final ten years. Rob Potylo, as well as countless other DJs, witnessed the decline of the once glorious WBCN from the inside:

The people who run BCN beyond the DJs are businessmen. They look
at Nirvana and Pearl Jam no different than they look at oil and gold, they are commodities. They do not know you, they will not be at these shows...

Know that when you’re listening to these f***** stations, there is no such thing as a request. A computer picks it out at the beginning of the day, I’ve seen it. When you call up for a request, if doesn’t f*****' exist. If we happen to be playing Nine Inch Nails, we will play your phone call and
make it look like [we took your request]...

But most of the time, what we are authorized to tell you, because I worked there for three years: “Sure dude, it’s coming up!” So if we f****’ picked up the phone and you were like:

“Hey dude, can I hear a little Darkbuster?”

“Sure dude, it’s coming up!”

But of course, it never did.

So what am I advocating exactly? I'm not entirely sure. I do my part by producing independently, and working with non-profit and start up theatrical ventures. I support my local artists, I go to Broadway to see Broadway, and Boston to see Boston. I try to create new venues for Boston theatrical risk taking.

But that's just me. There's no one path. Go ahead and see Young Frankenstein and other touring Broadway shows. That's your perogative, and I probably will at some point choose to invest my money in those shows. It's all up to you how to make your impact and stand up to these leeches who would take the legacy of Bertolt Brecht and Kurt Weill, and transform them into commodities.

I refuse to look at Kurt Weill with the same eyes as I look at oil.

I leave you with Rob's words:

The problem with this generation is you guys are cynics and they
want you to be cynics . It’s taken over past comedians. They will tell you that it can’t be done!

But the fact of it is, if you want support the bands you see
tonight ,the people you see here then f*****’ do it!

Because we give a s*** about you, we come from the same neck of
the woods, we’re not doing country clubs and cuttin’ up this country a little bit smaller for each other.

Be well,

Kenny

Rob's Speech at the Quiet Desperation Rumble can be found at:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RRGtLfpzEBQ

South Park and The Freedom To Choose

SouthParkStudios.com

I don't know if any of you have been keeping up with the South Park controversy, but I had some thoughts on this particular issue, as it pertains to the question of an artist's responsibility.

To bring you up to speed: In 2006, South Park aired a two part episode in which the depiction of the Prophet Muhammed was debated. A show within the show was censored out of fear that the citizens of south park would be targeted for violence by outraged fundamentalists. In the end, the characters decide to allow the program to be aired, and nothing of consequence ends up happening. This episode was written in response to the Danish cartoon crisis in Europe and attempted to open a dialogue on the double standard of satire. Trey Parker and Matt Stone had animated the conclusion to depict Muhammed innocously, but Comedy Central blocked the image. This, despite the fact that Muhammed has been depicted on South Park in a 2001 episode without incident.

Earlier this week, they revisited this theme and were censored once again by Comedy Central, who aired the episode with edits and bleeps not approved by the Parker or Stone. Subsequently, the previous episodes, which had been available to stream, were taken down and replaced with apology messages. Comedy Central made this decision following not so thinly veiled death threats and anger directed towards the creators from a fringe group of archaic dinosaurs claiming to represent true Islam.

Now, some have debated whether or not the depiction of Muhammed was in good taste, and some have debated whether or not it was responsible of Trey and Matt to bring this topic up at all. I don't consider either of these questions relevant at all.

If you are a devout Muslim, and your particular interpretation of your faith prohibits depictions of Muhammed, I respect that and encourage you to practice as you have chosen to practice. However, an artist has absolutely no more moral obligation to you than anyone else. Yes, Hindus have no problem with depictions of Shiva and I have no problem with depictions of Eric Clapton. But those are all individual judgements we have to make. I shall never hold my standards over another individual. I understand that some Muslims honestly and sincerely believe that Muhammed is not to be depicted. However, there's also some family members of mine who probaly think you (or me, for that matter) are going to hell because we haven't accepted Jesus as our "lord and savior."

As artists, we should fight like hell to defend ourselves from the oppression that comes from moralists of all kinds. Freedom is about choice. For better or for worse, Trey Parker and Matt Stone have touched upon an elephant in the room: At which point does cultural sensitivity outweigh our freedom to choose for ourselves? It would be one thing if South Park targeted Muslims alone.

But I ask a question: Have these radicals even seen the show? Latinos, Scientologists, Catholics, The Chinese, Actors, Politicians, Unions... South Park doesn't target demographics. I know that sounds crazy, but hear me out... when did South Park ever make fun of someone or something without a reason? You can debate whether or not their reason was valid or not, but you cannot debate that they discriminate. They attack what they pecieve as hypocrisy or absurdity. Nothing more. Nothing less.

Well... then there's the toilet humor. But I digress.

My point is this. South Park is doing something courageous and Comedy Central has completely folded under the pressure. They are criticized for being gratuitious, and yet they have sparked an important debate that no politician or artist has yet brought to American conciousness so vividly. Who is anyone to tell me or you what we can or can't do regarding creative expression and storytelling? We all have a duty to support these artists, as citizens of a nation built on the principle of choice and egalitarianism. Moreover, as ARTISTS we have a duel role to also preserve the inquisitive and open nature of the American experiment.

The individuals who intimidation to control the people have scored a minor victory. But the creators of South Park will not budge. We, as artists, must join them in solidarity. The question isn't whether or not South Park is offensive or not.

The question is: what are we willing to trade when it comes to struggle to preserve our thirst for freedom?

Be well,

K

NY Times Article on the Controversy:

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/04/23/arts/television/23park.html?src=me

A Reality Sitcom for Boston Artists, by Boston Artists

Aaron The King Wizard and Rob Potylo

If you've been keeping up with music or comedy scene in Boston, you might've come across Quiet Desperation (http://quietd.com/), a "Reality Sitcom" that follows the story of Boston area musicians and artists as they struggle to make their mark, with results equally poignant as they are hilarious. The story primarily follows musicians and comedians, but I think artists of all mediums, especially theatre artists, can learn from their example...

The show was originally conceived by musician Rob Potylo and film maker Joe Madaus as a showcase of local Boston talent, quickly becoming a local favorite and evolving into a mockumentary that walks the perfect balance between real and surreal.

I've kept up with Rob's career since 2004, when I first saw him perform a set at the Comedy Studio under the name of "Robby Roadsteamer." Now, notice I didn't say "comedy set". Rob's work over the years has always, in my opinion, defied categorization. I've always enjoyed the comedians at the Comedy Studio, but this particularly performance was like none other I'd ever witnessed. The comedy didn't stem from the "Jokes" or the "Character", but rather from the freedom with which he performed his set. His movement, his speech and most importantly, his ability to react to his audience, gave his performance an improvisational flavor that I feel is lacking in most comedy.

Moreover, it was an improvisational flavor that is lacking in most theatre...see where I'm getting at there?

Ahem.

Moving on.

I've only caught a few shows over the years, but I've been keeping up regularly with his music, videos and web content leading up to this latest project. He has gone through a transformation over the years, focusing less on character and more on spiritual naturalism. His characters are now himself and the community of artists he loves. The laughs are not about jokes or larger than life personalities, but at the absurdity of reality. The musician runs out of money and refuses to sell his cannabis plant, the hip hop duo loses the token Asian member to "2 Live Crew". The all out drug orgies and quirky social circles... These situations are absurd, but nevertheless the cast responds naturally to their reality. Because, in many ways this IS their reality. The whole project is based on truth.

Many internet videos come and go. I'll watch one episode of a series and chuckle, and move on. With Quiet D, I came for the laughs. But I stayed because of how DAMN REAL these episodes feel. Moreover, every episode I've watched makes me feel like I'm part of a greater community, that of the Boston arts scene. Now, as a member of the Boston theatre arts scene, I think that's something we can all be on board with. We're all in this together. We can all learn from each other. And we can certainly all laugh with each other.

Rob and other local favorites will be performing and shooting footage for their next episode at Great Scott in Allston:

Quiet Desperation presents the 32nd Annual WBCN Rumble!!

Join Quiet Desperation as we present the 32nd annual WBCN Rumble Finals at Great Scott Thursday April 29th! We will be paying tribute and doing a little filming for the show. It's a wonderful night of great music!

Performing live are...

HUMANWINE

Do Not Forsake Me Oh My Darling

Rob Potylo (Full-band)

And the special guest band.... KING HELL!

Hosted by Shawn Sixx and Niki Luparelli

8pm, 8 bucks, 18+!!!

http://www.greatscottboston.com/

Rob Potylo's music can be found here:

http://robpotylo.com/

Episodes of Quiet Desperation:

http://quietd.com/

A Play! A Play!

Stage plan for Vsevolod Meyerhold's production of The Magnanimous Cuckold (1922)

So Erika, MLM and I have been stewing over our desire to do a show! Thus far in the history of the CoLab, we’ve been focused on producing the Audition Circle as our personalized contribution to the local scene. But at a certain point, you just want to get up and start acting again!

We’re in the early process of deciding what we want to do, but we know we will produce a show by the end of the year. We decided against starting off with a published work, as there will be plenty of time for that later. Moreover, why not start off with something totally wild and chaotic? So far, our ideas have ranged from night of original short plays and sketches, to Viewpoints style composition pieces, to Chuck Mee-esque reworked Shakespeare. Literally, anything can happen at this point. Regardless, I know the focus will be on a project that puts the actor at the center of the creative and decision-making process.

I think actors can afford to take more aggressive reins of a creative process. I don’t know that we have enough opportunities to give artistic input in our work, especially in the context of published work. Personally, I find myself constantly struggling with my creativity as an actor. I think we can all relate to that in some manner. I hold back, I doubt, I ask questions that close doors rather than questions that open them up. As an actor, I do the opposite of what I would ask of myself as a director.

I recently purchased the revised, 2002 edition of “To The Actor” by Michael Chekhov. In the foreword at the start of this edition, Simon Callow discusses this struggle in the context of a larger phenomenon:

“Experiment became centered on design and concept, both under the control of the director. The actor’s creative imagination – his fantasy, his instinct for gesture – was of no interest; all the creative imagining had already been done by the director and the designer… [actors] had lost control of their own performances.” (Callow, pg. xiii)

I haven’t gotten very far in the book, but I feel much of what Callow laments is what The CoLab rallies against. Hopefully, by providing the creative control to actors and encouraging them to take the plunge into the unknown, this first show and others we produce will carry over into other productions by helping to liberate ourselves from doubt and self-awareness. As much as I respect and myself use the Stanislavski “system”, I believe the American interpretation has led many actors to hold back. We are so scared of acting “falsely” that we act safely. We shouldn’t be interested so much in “what my character wouldn’t do” so much as “what my character will do.” To quote a former acting teacher: "I'm not asking you to act falsely. I'm asking you to act truthfully, but expand of the possibility of what truth can mean."

So what does this mean for our little show? Who KNOWS! But it’ll be liberating…

As Sanford Meisner once said: “Play! Play! It’s a play!”

Simon Callow quote from the forward of To The Actor On The Technique of Acting: Revised and Expanded Edition by Michael Chekhov, originally published in 1953 and then republished by Routledge in 2002.