You're shielded, glassy, unreadable, undetectable

[sovay]

I couldn't have gone to see it and there's no suggestion its premiere was available to watch streaming, but I can't believe I didn't hear until now about Evan Rapport and Daniel London's A Dying Person (A Goyses) (2023) because it is a chamber opera based on the Jewish Ethnographic Program conducted by An-sky in the Pale of Settlement between 1912–14. Thanks to the zeitgeist, I wondered what London had been doing with himself lately, because while I never watched Manhattan (2014–16), I did feel that as Oppenheimer he had a good face for it. Apparently the answer is writing a libretto for a language tsvishn tsvey veltn. It had better get a wider reception, or at least a recording. I keep wondering if An-sky who asked so many questions about Jewish magic knew when he was writing The Dybbuk that he was making a spell.

Comments

[asakiyume]

Wow! I only found out about An-sky's ethnography in the past couple of years (during the pandemic), and it blew me away. This seems like it could be a very cool movie.

I keep wondering if An-sky who asked so many questions about Jewish magic knew when he was writing The Dybbuk that he was making a spell. --I wonder if people can have inchoate wishes, and if that leads to the casting of spells unawares.

[selkie]

I just finished reading the write-up you sent and SURELY they archived it some way. I will have to find out. HOW DID WE MISS IT. WHY DID THE ETHER NOT TWANG.

Also, I feel a little badly for poor An-sky. I have this strange intuition he must not have slept very well.

[oracne]

WOW.

[skygiants]

I also can't believe I haven't heard about this!