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Delhi to host maiden Hebrew play

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Press Trust of India New Delhi
Last Updated : Jan 21 2013 | 5:46 PM IST

The Israeli embassy along with the Cameri Theatre will present the musical romantic comedy at Siri Fort auditorium here.

"Stempenyu" is a story of a gifted musician, who leads a band of klezmers that performs at weddings. People come from all over Poland and Russia to hear him and his band.

Apart from being an admired musician, Stempenyu has a reputation of being a Casanova, with women falling prey to his charms. The twist in the tale occurs when Stempenyu, a married man falls in love with a beautiful married woman, Rochele.

The play is written by Shalom Aleichem, one of the greatest Jewish writers, best known for his masterpiece 'Fiddler on the Roof.' The play was originally written in Yiddish, a language spoken by Jews of the central and eastern region of Europe, but now rarely heard of.

Similar to the other works of Aleichem, Stempenyu is also a heart-rending story of missed opportunities, a touching and humorous human story, with its abundance of colourful characters.

DIAF is turning out to be an oasis of cultural harmony for various mid-eastern countries.

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"Yesterday we had Moroccans performing, today Algerians, and on Sunday we have an Israeli play," said Pratibha Pralhad, director of 6th DIAF.

"We grew up watching lots of Bollywood movies. Back in the 60's and 70's, we watched more of Indian movies than Hollywood movies, along with some European ones," said Naom Semel, director general of Cameri Theatre.

The Cameri, Tel Aviv's Municipal Theatre was founded in 1944, is the biggest theatres in Israel, and coincidently it is situated right next to the Rabindranath Tagore Avenue of Tel Aviv.

So far, The Cameri has produced some 500 productions on its various stages. The theatre's company includes 80 of Israel's finest actors, and its plays are directed by celebrated directors from Israel as well as abroad.

"India touches every Israelis life either through yoga, movies or art and culture," said Yahel Vilan of the Israeli Embassy. Thousands of young Israelis come in flocks to visit India each year, fascinated by its ancient history and culture.

"People say Israel is the 'promise land', but I think for young Israelis India is the 'promise land'," said Semel.

  

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First Published: Nov 02 2012 | 8:25 PM IST

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