Kazablan
Encyclopedia
Kazablan is an early Israel
i Hebrew language
play, staged first as a 1954 drama followed by a 1964 screen adaptation, later as a 1966 musical comedy, and still later produced as a 1974 musical comedy film. The name "Kazablan" comes from Casablanca
, the birth-place of the main character.
The musical's huge success made "young Jerusalem-born singer" Yehoram Gaon
"not only...an overnight singing star, but also a figure of solidarity and pride for people of Sephardic origin, many of whom were entering a theatre for the first time." Gaon later reprised his role in the film version.
." The plot involves a man and woman who fall in love across different cultures: here, Kazablan is a Sephardic Jew from Morocco
in love with Rachel, an Ashkenazic Jew from Europe. "While the two leaders share religion, their contrasting cultures and ethnicities fuel community scandal and a bitter family feud."
(sometimes spelled "Igal Mossinsohn") was performed on stage by the Cameri Theater
. "The melodramatic piece was highly successful when first presented, since it gave voice to the feelings of discrimination acquired during the first years of statehood by Moroccans and other new immigrants, many of whom were residents of the temporary camps called ma'abarot." Mossinsohn was awarded the David's Violin Prize for the play.
The play was written as a "detective play," focusing on the accusation that Kazablan was guilty of an attempted murder by stabbing. It is eventually revealed that the actual stabber was an Ashkenazic Jew, but audience members realize how easy it was to assume that Kazablan was guilty, revealing their deep-seated prejudices. While the love interest between Kazablan and Rachel is part of the story, it is depicted as "impossible and hopeless" in the play. According to the Columbia Encyclopedia of Modern Drama, the work was written as a "Zionist play," to try to show how the rifts between cultures was an obstacle to creating a unified Israeli society.
Frisch, the director, was forced to film the movie in Greece because at that time "the State of Israel was so inhospitable to [its]...subject matter" -- which included a serious look at the cultural divide between Sephardic and Ashkenazic Jews. Later, the musical version of the play would deal with the subject matter in a much less serious and more "whimsical" way, managing "to make the Israeli ethnic divide seem like fun." As Israeli historian Tom Segev
put it, “Much like “West Side Story
,” which producer Giora Godik had imported a few years previously, “Kazablan” obliquely hinted at social distress and, as on Broadway, turned it into an entertaining spectacle that angered no one and, consequently, worried no one. Minister Haim Gvati was impressed: “A dynamic play, very impressive,” he wrote in his diary. “No wonder it has been running for several months.”
The film was released overseas in January 1964 with a New York City premiere of December 12, 1964.
who specialized in lavish production of [Hebrew language productions] of international musicals," such as "My Fair Lady
," "The King and I
," and "Man of La Mancha
". After enormous success with his production of "Fiddler on the Roof
," Godik "was looking for more musical material," but "After having difficulty finding an American or British musical which would arouse as much interest as 'Fiddler,'" he decided to stage "an original Israeli musical," and decided on a musical version of the Mossinsohn play, "Casablan."
The musical version of that play, starring Yehoram Gaon, opened on December 10, 1966 on the Alhambra Stage in Tel Aviv
.
The production ran for 620 performances, even continuing during the 1967 Six day war. In addition to Gaon, other performers included Ady Etzion, Esther Greenberg, Shlomo Bar-Shavit, and Arie Elias. Directed by Yoel Silberg, the choreographer was Crandal Diehl, arranger/orchestrator was Arthur Harris, and the conductor was Dov Seltzer(Zeltzer). The cast album lists lyrics by Amos Ettinger and Hayim Hefer, book by Yoram Kaniuk, Igal Mossinsohn, and Yoel Silberg.
Israeli theater scholar Yehuda Moraly, head of the Department of Theater Studies at Jerusalem's Hebrew University, has noted that "West Side Story" took the "Romeo and Juliet" idea, but ended the story "with a glimmer of hope." "Kazablan," he continues, adds an additional level of optimism: "The Israeli musical Kazablan, based in turn on West Side Story, ends even more optimistically with the brit milah (ritual circumcision ceremony) and resolution of the communal conflict.
When the production proved so successful in Israel, there was some early talk about a Broadway
version, with Columbia Records
and CBS International
"expressing some interest in the financing of the Broadway version." According to a 1968 issue of Billboard magazine, Tommy Valando
, owner of the Valando Music Firm, had "extended his action into Israel to bolster his music publishing company's writing stable, which he's gearing for the Broadway musical market." The Broadway version of Kazablan was to have been "the first product on Valando's agenda."
, who co-wrote the screenplay with Haim Hefer
, and starred Yehoram Gaon
as Kazablan and Efrat Lavi as Rachel. It was shot in Jerusalem and Jaffa
. The movie was filmed in both a Hebrew and English version, and according to press releases, each scene was first filmed in one language and then the other.
Although it was a screen version of an earlier play, the movie has sometimes been cited as an example of the Bourekas film genre in Israel, a "peculiarly Israeli genre of comic melodramas or tearjerkers... based on ethnic stereotypes." The term is said to have been coined by the Israeli film director
Boaz Davidson
, the creator of several such films, as a play-on-words on the "spaghetti western
" genre, since spaghetti (a reference to the fact that these films were produced in Italy) was a type of food and Bourekas is an Israeli food
, or at least a food that is now part of Israeli cuisine, brought in by immigrants from other countries.
A DVD of the film was released on May 6, 2008.
Highly successful with audiences, one website describes it in this way: "West Side Story with a Middle Eastern beat, this fun fantasy features more than 1,000 actors, singers and dancers!," and "Israel's hit musical becomes the film that breaks all box office records!. One review noted that the movie and the recording outsold both "Fiddler on the Roof" and "The Sound of Music" in Israel. Additionally, Yehoram Gaon's recording of "Kol HaKavod" became the best-selling record up till that time in Israel's history.
However, although it was positively received by the public (and continues to be shown as part of Jewish film festivals), and despite its two Golden Globe nominations, not all professional reviews were good. TimeOutChicago described it as "An Israeli musical directed by the dreaded Menahem Golan that manages to come off as an uncomfortable cross between Jesus Christ Superstar, Fiddler on the Roof and West Side Story." Judith Crist
, in her review for New York Magazine, stated that "You don't have to be Jewish to dislike 'Kazablan,' but it helps. At best, it portrays Jews as stereotypes and clowns."
Israel
The State of Israel is a parliamentary republic located in the Middle East, along the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea...
i Hebrew language
Hebrew language
Hebrew is a Semitic language of the Afroasiatic language family. Culturally, is it considered by Jews and other religious groups as the language of the Jewish people, though other Jewish languages had originated among diaspora Jews, and the Hebrew language is also used by non-Jewish groups, such...
play, staged first as a 1954 drama followed by a 1964 screen adaptation, later as a 1966 musical comedy, and still later produced as a 1974 musical comedy film. The name "Kazablan" comes from Casablanca
Casablanca
Casablanca is a city in western Morocco, located on the Atlantic Ocean. It is the capital of the Grand Casablanca region.Casablanca is Morocco's largest city as well as its chief port. It is also the biggest city in the Maghreb. The 2004 census recorded a population of 2,949,805 in the prefecture...
, the birth-place of the main character.
The musical's huge success made "young Jerusalem-born singer" Yehoram Gaon
Yehoram Gaon
Yehoram Gaon is a Jewish Israeli singer, actor, director, producer, TV and radio host, and public figure...
"not only...an overnight singing star, but also a figure of solidarity and pride for people of Sephardic origin, many of whom were entering a theatre for the first time." Gaon later reprised his role in the film version.
Plot
The story has been called a Jewish adaptation of "Romeo and Juliet", and the musical "an Israeli version of "West Side StoryWest Side Story
West Side Story is an American musical with a script by Arthur Laurents, music by Leonard Bernstein, lyrics by Stephen Sondheim, and choreographed by Jerome Robbins...
." The plot involves a man and woman who fall in love across different cultures: here, Kazablan is a Sephardic Jew from Morocco
Morocco
Morocco , officially the Kingdom of Morocco , is a country located in North Africa. It has a population of more than 32 million and an area of 710,850 km², and also primarily administers the disputed region of the Western Sahara...
in love with Rachel, an Ashkenazic Jew from Europe. "While the two leaders share religion, their contrasting cultures and ethnicities fuel community scandal and a bitter family feud."
1954 Play: Drama
In 1954, the play "Casablan," by playwright Yigal MossinsonYigal Mossinson
Yigal Mossinson was an Israeli novelist, playwright, and inventor...
(sometimes spelled "Igal Mossinsohn") was performed on stage by the Cameri Theater
Cameri Theater
The Cameri Theater , established in 1944 in Tel Aviv, is one of the leading theaters in Israel, and is housed at the Tel Aviv Performing Arts Center....
. "The melodramatic piece was highly successful when first presented, since it gave voice to the feelings of discrimination acquired during the first years of statehood by Moroccans and other new immigrants, many of whom were residents of the temporary camps called ma'abarot." Mossinsohn was awarded the David's Violin Prize for the play.
The play was written as a "detective play," focusing on the accusation that Kazablan was guilty of an attempted murder by stabbing. It is eventually revealed that the actual stabber was an Ashkenazic Jew, but audience members realize how easy it was to assume that Kazablan was guilty, revealing their deep-seated prejudices. While the love interest between Kazablan and Rachel is part of the story, it is depicted as "impossible and hopeless" in the play. According to the Columbia Encyclopedia of Modern Drama, the work was written as a "Zionist play," to try to show how the rifts between cultures was an obstacle to creating a unified Israeli society.
1964 Film:Drama
The play, "Casablan," was the basis for a 1964 black-and-white movie of the same name filmed in Greece, and co-produced as a Greek-Israeli-USA production. Directed by Larry Frisch, it starred Nikos Kourkoulos, Xenia Kalogeropoulou and Lykourgos Kallergis. Mossinsohn was given credit as the playwright, with the screenplay adapted by Alex Maimon.Frisch, the director, was forced to film the movie in Greece because at that time "the State of Israel was so inhospitable to [its]...subject matter" -- which included a serious look at the cultural divide between Sephardic and Ashkenazic Jews. Later, the musical version of the play would deal with the subject matter in a much less serious and more "whimsical" way, managing "to make the Israeli ethnic divide seem like fun." As Israeli historian Tom Segev
Tom Segev
Tom Segev is an Israeli historian, author and journalist. He is associated with Israel's so-called New Historians, a group challenging many of the country's traditional narratives.-Early life:Segev was born in Jerusalem in 1945...
put it, “Much like “West Side Story
West Side Story
West Side Story is an American musical with a script by Arthur Laurents, music by Leonard Bernstein, lyrics by Stephen Sondheim, and choreographed by Jerome Robbins...
,” which producer Giora Godik had imported a few years previously, “Kazablan” obliquely hinted at social distress and, as on Broadway, turned it into an entertaining spectacle that angered no one and, consequently, worried no one. Minister Haim Gvati was impressed: “A dynamic play, very impressive,” he wrote in his diary. “No wonder it has been running for several months.”
The film was released overseas in January 1964 with a New York City premiere of December 12, 1964.
1966 Play: Musical
The 1950s in Israel was a time "typified by the rise of commercial producers of light comedies and of the independent impresario Giora GodikGiora Godik
Giora Godik was a Jewish Israeli theater producer and impresario, famous for bringing musical comedies to Israel. Called the "King of musicals," the 2007 film documentary, "Waiting for Godik", tells the story of his rise and fall from one of the most "legendary" theater figures in Israel --...
who specialized in lavish production of [Hebrew language productions] of international musicals," such as "My Fair Lady
My Fair Lady
My Fair Lady is a musical based upon George Bernard Shaw's Pygmalion and with book and lyrics by Alan Jay Lerner and music by Frederick Loewe...
," "The King and I
The King and I
The King and I is a stage musical, the fifth by the team of Richard Rodgers and Oscar Hammerstein II. The work is based on the 1944 novel Anna and the King of Siam by Margaret Landon and derives from the memoirs of Anna Leonowens, who became governess to the children of King Mongkut of Siam in...
," and "Man of La Mancha
Man of La Mancha
Man of La Mancha is a musical with a book by Dale Wasserman, lyrics by Joe Darion and music by Mitch Leigh. It is adapted from Wasserman's non-musical 1959 teleplay I, Don Quixote, which was in turn inspired by Miguel de Cervantes's seventeenth century masterpiece Don Quixote...
". After enormous success with his production of "Fiddler on the Roof
Fiddler on the Roof
Fiddler on the Roof is a musical with music by Jerry Bock, lyrics by Sheldon Harnick, and book by Joseph Stein, set in Tsarist Russia in 1905. It is based on Tevye and his Daughters by Sholem Aleichem...
," Godik "was looking for more musical material," but "After having difficulty finding an American or British musical which would arouse as much interest as 'Fiddler,'" he decided to stage "an original Israeli musical," and decided on a musical version of the Mossinsohn play, "Casablan."
The musical version of that play, starring Yehoram Gaon, opened on December 10, 1966 on the Alhambra Stage in Tel Aviv
Tel Aviv
Tel Aviv , officially Tel Aviv-Yafo , is the second most populous city in Israel, with a population of 404,400 on a land area of . The city is located on the Israeli Mediterranean coastline in west-central Israel. It is the largest and most populous city in the metropolitan area of Gush Dan, with...
.
The production ran for 620 performances, even continuing during the 1967 Six day war. In addition to Gaon, other performers included Ady Etzion, Esther Greenberg, Shlomo Bar-Shavit, and Arie Elias. Directed by Yoel Silberg, the choreographer was Crandal Diehl, arranger/orchestrator was Arthur Harris, and the conductor was Dov Seltzer(Zeltzer). The cast album lists lyrics by Amos Ettinger and Hayim Hefer, book by Yoram Kaniuk, Igal Mossinsohn, and Yoel Silberg.
Israeli theater scholar Yehuda Moraly, head of the Department of Theater Studies at Jerusalem's Hebrew University, has noted that "West Side Story" took the "Romeo and Juliet" idea, but ended the story "with a glimmer of hope." "Kazablan," he continues, adds an additional level of optimism: "The Israeli musical Kazablan, based in turn on West Side Story, ends even more optimistically with the brit milah (ritual circumcision ceremony) and resolution of the communal conflict.
When the production proved so successful in Israel, there was some early talk about a Broadway
Broadway theatre
Broadway theatre, commonly called simply Broadway, refers to theatrical performances presented in one of the 40 professional theatres with 500 or more seats located in the Theatre District centered along Broadway, and in Lincoln Center, in Manhattan in New York City...
version, with Columbia Records
Columbia Records
Columbia Records is an American record label, owned by Japan's Sony Music Entertainment, operating under the Columbia Music Group with Aware Records. It was founded in 1888, evolving from an earlier enterprise, the American Graphophone Company — successor to the Volta Graphophone Company...
and CBS International
CBS
CBS Broadcasting Inc. is a major US commercial broadcasting television network, which started as a radio network. The name is derived from the initials of the network's former name, Columbia Broadcasting System. The network is sometimes referred to as the "Eye Network" in reference to the shape of...
"expressing some interest in the financing of the Broadway version." According to a 1968 issue of Billboard magazine, Tommy Valando
Tommy Valando
Thomas F. Valando was aBroadway producer and owner of an important New York City music publishing company, Tommy Valando Publishing Group, Inc....
, owner of the Valando Music Firm, had "extended his action into Israel to bolster his music publishing company's writing stable, which he's gearing for the Broadway musical market." The Broadway version of Kazablan was to have been "the first product on Valando's agenda."
Musical numbers
Musical numbers included in the Original Cast Album released in 1966 (and re-released in 1974 to coincide with the opening of the film) include:- Overture
- Self-respect
- We are all Jews
- Magic slippers
- Democracy
- Anything happen?
- There's a place
- Jaffa
- Gossip
- I'm so frightened
- Municipality
- Get off my back, Kazablan
- Lullaby
- Brit Mila pageant
1974 Film:Musical
The film was directed by Menahem GolanMenahem Golan
Menahem Golan is an Israeli director and producer. He has produced movies for such stars as Sean Connery, Sylvester Stallone, Chuck Norris, Jean-Claude Van Damme, and Charles Bronson, and was known for a period as a producer of comic book-style movies like Masters of the Universe, Superman IV:...
, who co-wrote the screenplay with Haim Hefer
Haim Hefer
-Biography:Hefer was born in Sosnowiec, Poland in 1925 to Issachar Feiner, a chocolate salesman, and Rivka Herzberg, a housewife. He had a private Hebrew tutor....
, and starred Yehoram Gaon
Yehoram Gaon
Yehoram Gaon is a Jewish Israeli singer, actor, director, producer, TV and radio host, and public figure...
as Kazablan and Efrat Lavi as Rachel. It was shot in Jerusalem and Jaffa
Jaffa
Jaffa is an ancient port city believed to be one of the oldest in the world. Jaffa was incorporated with Tel Aviv creating the city of Tel Aviv-Yafo, Israel. Jaffa is famous for its association with the biblical story of the prophet Jonah.-Etymology:...
. The movie was filmed in both a Hebrew and English version, and according to press releases, each scene was first filmed in one language and then the other.
Although it was a screen version of an earlier play, the movie has sometimes been cited as an example of the Bourekas film genre in Israel, a "peculiarly Israeli genre of comic melodramas or tearjerkers... based on ethnic stereotypes." The term is said to have been coined by the Israeli film director
Film director
A film director is a person who directs the actors and film crew in filmmaking. They control a film's artistic and dramatic nathan roach, while guiding the technical crew and actors.-Responsibilities:...
Boaz Davidson
Boaz Davidson
Boaz Davidson is an Israeli film director, producer and screenwriter. He was born in Tel Aviv, British Mandate of Palestine and studied film in London....
, the creator of several such films, as a play-on-words on the "spaghetti western
Spaghetti Western
Spaghetti Western, also known as Italo-Western, is a nickname for a broad sub-genre of Western films that emerged in the mid-1960s in the wake of Sergio Leone's unique and much copied film-making style and international box-office success, so named by American critics because most were produced and...
" genre, since spaghetti (a reference to the fact that these films were produced in Italy) was a type of food and Bourekas is an Israeli food
Israeli cuisine
Israeli cuisine comprises local dishes by Jews native to Israel and dishes brought to Israel by Jews from the Diaspora. Since before the establishment of the State of Israel in 1948, and particularly since the late 1970s, an Israeli Jewish fusion cuisine has developed.Israeli cuisine has adopted,...
, or at least a food that is now part of Israeli cuisine, brought in by immigrants from other countries.
A DVD of the film was released on May 6, 2008.
Musical numbers
- I'm so frightened ("Ani Kol Kach Pochedet"): Lyrics by Haim Hefer, music by Dov Seltzer, performed by Adi Etzion
- Democracy ("Democratia"): Lyrics by Amos Ettinger, music by Dov Seltzer, performed by Yehoram Gaon
- There is a place ("Yesh Makom"): Lyrics by Amos Ettinger, music by Dov Seltzer, performed by Yehoram Gaon
- Jaffa ("Yafo"): Lyrics by Amos Ettinger, music by Dov Seltzer, performed by Aliza Azikri
- We are all Jews ("Kulano Yehudim"): Lyrics by Haim Hefer, music by Dov Seltzer, performed by Kazablan
- Self-respect ("Kol Ha-Kavod"): Lyrics by Dan Almagor, music by Dov Seltzer, performed by Yehoram Gaon
- Anything happen? ("Ma Kara"): Lyrics by Haim Hefer, music by Dov Seltzer, performed by Yehoram Gaon
- Brit milah (circumcision) pageant ("Mizmorey Brit Mila"): Lyrics by Haim Hefer, music by Dov Seltzer, performed by Yehoram Gaon
- Rosa ("Roza"): Lyrics by Haim Hefer, music by Dov Seltzer, performed by Yehoram Gaon
- Get off my back, Kazablan ("Tered Mimeni, Kazablan"): Lyrics by Dan Almagor, music by Dov Seltzer, performed by Yehoram Gaon
Response and reviews
The film earned two 1974 Golden Globe nominations (Hollywood Foreign Press Association), one for Best Foreign Language Film and one for Best Song.Highly successful with audiences, one website describes it in this way: "West Side Story with a Middle Eastern beat, this fun fantasy features more than 1,000 actors, singers and dancers!," and "Israel's hit musical becomes the film that breaks all box office records!. One review noted that the movie and the recording outsold both "Fiddler on the Roof" and "The Sound of Music" in Israel. Additionally, Yehoram Gaon's recording of "Kol HaKavod" became the best-selling record up till that time in Israel's history.
However, although it was positively received by the public (and continues to be shown as part of Jewish film festivals), and despite its two Golden Globe nominations, not all professional reviews were good. TimeOutChicago described it as "An Israeli musical directed by the dreaded Menahem Golan that manages to come off as an uncomfortable cross between Jesus Christ Superstar, Fiddler on the Roof and West Side Story." Judith Crist
Judith Crist
Judith Crist is an American film critic. She appeared regularly on the Today show from 1964-1973 and has appeared in one film, Woody Allen's Stardust Memories...
, in her review for New York Magazine, stated that "You don't have to be Jewish to dislike 'Kazablan,' but it helps. At best, it portrays Jews as stereotypes and clowns."
External links
- YouTube Video of song (Hebrew), "We are all Jews," from film.
- YouTube Video of song (Hebrew), "Democracy," from film.
- YouTube Video of song (Hebrew), "Mah Kara?," from film.
- Video of song (Hebrew), "There is a place," from film.
- YouTube audio recording of English version of "There is a place," sung by Yehoram Gaon
- Video of song (Hebrew), "Kol haKavod," from film.
- Youtube recording of song, "Kol haKavod," from 1997 Amsterdam performance.
- Youtube video (Hebrew), opening one minute 20 seconds of film.
- Music video by duo, "Rinat and Dor," featuring the music of "Kol Hakavod" to lyrics for a "wedding dance."