SANTA MONICA─This soulful musical tells the story of the descendants of King David and The Queen of Sheba, who after centuries of persecution and isolation, find their way to the city of their prayers and dreams--Jerusalem. This fairytale sounding plot of the Ethiopian Jewish Community is playing now at the Edgemar Center for the Arts in Santa Monica in 'Return,' based on the award winning book by the same name by Sonia Levitin.
Donald McKayle directs and choreographs the stellar Broadway caliber cast, that chronicles the story of teenage Desta, who sets out with her older brother and little sister, risking everything for a better life. Not unlike Levitin's story.
I had the pleasure of meeting with Levitan for coffee near the theater before the Sunday Matinee on June 15, where she shared her compelling journey that led to her fascination with the plight of Ethiopian Jewry, and later the vision for this show.
Escaping Germany in 1939, because of the foresight and determination of her mother, who Levitin likens to the matriarch in the play, Weizero Chana, saw danger pending, despite her family's belief that she was overreacting. Later, the extended family all perished at the hands of the Nazis as Levitin, just a toddler then, and her two older siblings, immigrated to the US.
It was in those formative years growing up in a racially diverse neighborhood, and her best friend in Kindergarten, an African American girl, that laid the foundation for her life's work and passion, "I always had a tremendous passion to bridge the gaps between cultures and people."
It was in early 1980's after Levitin had established herself as an award winning author that the story for 'Return' began to reveal itself. It was at this time that that information about Ethiopian Jews had come to the public's attention, as people like Rabbi Riskon of the Lincoln Square Synagogue, began rallying save these terribly oppressed people to Israel, which is now known as "operation Moses,' a secret mission that airlifted 8000 Ethiopian Jews, rescuing them from possible extinction.
"I got chills down my spine," recalls Levitin, as she followed the story closely, reading everything she could. She immediately called her travel agent, feeling that she needed to meet these people, "I wanted to embrace them, if only metaphorically."
After much persuasion, she was allowed entrance to the Hotel where the new immigrants were housed where she saw a young mother in the nursery reaching for her tattoos around her neck and a cross burned into her forehead as a way to protect herself from being beaten up on the roads in Ethiopia. Levitan knew then that this would be the subject of her next book.
The book was completed, after thorough research and interviews. And what inspired Levitan to embark on something she had never done before, creating a musical? She had a recurring vision of the scene in the book where Almaz, a young girl is attacked with sticks. Sticks are a prominent symbol of manhood in Africa, explains, Levitin, who was fascinated by the image of the same object which is used for good can be used for evil.
"I saw the scene of the stick a metaphor for all wars, all mistakes," she said, "We are all like that, we all have a dual potential."
The 'Stick scene' in the show is one example of the mix of African rhythms and percussion instruments with modern hip-hop and rap styles and classical Broadway show numbers which, along with its message of tolerance and hope, makes this play a must for school age children.
'Return' plays June 5 through July 20, 2008 at Edgemar Center for The Arts, 2437 Main Street, Santa Monica, 90405.
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