Life
Review: Platinum Celebrating Israel at 70 at the Royal Albert Hall
Thursday night's show aimed to 'reflect the diversity from across the many and varied communities that make up Israel.'
May 25, 2018 07:21
Thursday night's show aimed to 'reflect the diversity from across the many and varied communities that make up Israel.'
May 25, 2018 07:21When guest of honour The Prince of Wales took his seat in the Royal Albert Hall alongside Chief Rabbi Ephraim Mirvis, the 'Israel At 70' celebration had all the signs of being yet another formal and slightly uninspiring night.
But it is to the credit of hosts the Jewish Leadership Council, UJIA and others, that the expected night of predictable Union Jack and Flag of Zion waving and overly nostalgic review of Israel's remarkable history did not materialise.
In their programme notes Jonathan Goldstein, the JLC's chair, and Louise Jacobs, the UJIA chair, wrote of their desire for Thursday night's show to "reflect the diversity from across the many and varied communities that make up Israel."
They should both be commended for their bravery.
Rather than looking backwards and dwelling on the miracle that is the Jewish state, 'Platinum Celebrating Israel At 70' was very much about looking towards the future.
Compère Rob Rinder, who is best known for his ITV Judge Rinder show, seemed slightly unprepared for what would unravel as he walked onto the stage.
He suggested tonight was a night in which we put politics to the back of our mind - (can anything Israeli ever be non-political?) - before introducing the Rt Hon David Lidington MP to make an excellent speech outlining the UK government's continued commitment to the state of Israel.
And then it was time for the Gilad Ephrat Ensemble - an Israeli quartet fusing classical, jazz, world and homegrown musical traditions. They were good, to a point - but their five composition set was slightly too long.
Digestion, a short video-art project courtesy of Meirav Heiman, which used footage of food, plates and cutlery but no humans completing a family meal, was clever and drew plenty of laughs as it was projected onto a screen.
Then to loud applause Natan Sharansky took to the stage to speak, praising the Jewish bond to the land of Israel, while acknowledging the tremendous impact British Jewry had on his courageous struggle to free himself and millions of Soviet Jews from oppression.
The Vertigo Dance Company and Revolution Orchestra then joined forces to present a collaboration of contemporary dance and modern classical music.
Entitled 'White Noise', the 11 dancers and 11 musicians conspired to produce an inspiring performance, which aimed to provide a commentary on the complexities of modern life.
"They were good - but I still prefer watching Spurs," one leading communal figure said to me as the interval was announced.
But the second-half at the Royal Albert Hall was where the best action was to be found.
Judge Rinder managed to forget his earlier no politics pledge to speak passionately about attending Tel Aviv Pride - and of his thoughts of solidarity with "Palestinian brothers and sisters."
Mark Regev, the Israeli Ambassador to the UK, thanked the Prince of Wales for his attendance and then spoke excitedly of the visit "soon" to Israel by his son Prince William.
This left the final half an hour in the capable hands of the Balkan Beat Box Sound System - a hugely talented band mixing jazz, hip hop, world and just about everything in between. They were joined on stage by Gili Yalo, an Ethiopian rooted singer now residing in Tel Aviv.
This combination whipped the younger section of Albert Hall crowd into a frenzy, with many choosing to leave their seats and dance around the stage.
But it would get even better when A-Wa - three sisters singing hugely catchy Yemenite and Arabic songs - took control of proceedings by joining the gang of musicians on stage.
A-Wa's debut single Habib Galbi had topped the charts when it was released in Israel - the first Arabic song to do so.
Performing the song at the Albert Hall, A-Wa were given the loudest cheer of the night, particularly from the young Israelis in the audience.
Quite what the small gaggle of pro-Palestinian demonstrators standing outside the Albert Hall at the beginning of the night must have thought about the sound of Arabic inspired music emerging from a celebration of Israel's 70th birthday is anybody's guess.
When the thoroughly entertained audience left, they were nowhere to be seen.
