AUTHOR’S AGENT Susan Schulman A Literary Agency 454 W.44^th Street New York, New York 10036 Tel 212 713-1633 Fax 212 581-8830 Schulman@aol.com A JEW ON ETHIOPIA STREET by Allan Havis Copyright, Allan Havis, 2000 Allan Havis Commissioned by: 531 Palomar Ave. Jack Reuler La Jolla, CA 92037 Artistic Director Tel: 858 456-8032 Mixed Blood Theatre 1501 S. Fourth Street Minneapolis, MN 55454 Tel: 612 338-0937 DRAFT - APRIL 1, 2001 CHARACTERS EZRA SHLOMO . . . Ethiiopian born, 40s, Israeli Absorption Center Official SONYA GELMAN . Russian born, 40s, Israeli Absorption Center Official ETI SHLOMO . . . Ethiopian born, 18, athlete, in Israel 4 years. HESHI LEBOWITZ . Ashkanazie Jew, 60s, diamond cutter and merchant. FISHMAN . . . . . .American sports czar, 50s, with Israeli residency. RONIT MELKAV . . .Israeli university official, 40s, friendly with Fishman. DELAL SHLOMO . . .Eti’s mother, Ethiopian, 40s, not assimilated to Israel. SHEVA ADDA . . . Eti’s girlfriend, Ethiopian, 17, still in high school THE PLAY IS SET IN JERUSALEM, FROM JANUARY TO MARCH 1996. THERE ARE 20 SCENES. FOLK AND CONTEMPORARY ETHIOPIAN MUSIC IS HEARD BETWEEN SCENES, FEATURING SOME MUSIC SUNG BY SHEVA IN DESIGNATED SCENES AND AS SEGUE-WAYS. SCENE ONE: (SHEVA, IN A SIMPLE RED DRESS AND MICROPHONE IN HAND, FINISHES A ROMANTIC SONG. THERE IS WARM APPLAUSE. MID-JANUARY 1996) SHEVA That song is dedicated to my lovely angel, Eti. (SPOT FADES AS SHE BLOWS A KISS OUT TO THE AUDIENCE) SCENE TWO (A GOVERNMENT SPONSORED PARTY IN JERUSALEM AT THE HOTEL KING DAVID. APPLAUSE FROM SCENE ONE DOVE-TAILS INTO THIS SCENE. SHEVA’S SINGING IS HEARD EVER SO FAINTLY.) EZRA I’m working on my English. SONYA Be my guest. EZRA This is a banquet that spares no expense. SONYA It most certainly is. EZRA And so many well dressed Americans here. The food is very good. SONYA But of course. EZRA Except for the egg rolls. Nearly fossilized. Who the hell ordered egg rolls? (SONYA LAUGHS) What’s the occasion? SONYA A circumcision for a late arrival? EZRA Circumcision, yes. Your English is far better than your Hebrew. SONYA Bullshit. EZRA I adore you, dear Sonya Gelman. Russia’s foremost linguist. You link the great incontinents together. SONYA Continents. EZRA These strange words simply fall off your beautiful tongue. SONYA An adopted language has profound . . . EZRA/SONYA Misery. Mystery SONYA Your English is as bad as . . . EZRA My Hebrew? (PAUSE) Look at the beautiful flowers. SONYA Colors of the rainbow. EZRA You can smell air conditioned Paradise. Shut your pretty eyes please. SONYA I never shut my eyes, Ezra, in the company of unmarried men. I am not a fool. EZRA (SHUTS HIS EYES) I am. My heart is full. SONYA And my stomach is empty. EZRA The Jerusalem cooks put hummus into nearly every dish. What is the meaning of this? SONYA An absurd abundance of Garbanzo beans. Wretched gas for the Greenhouse Effect. You’ll find half the new buildings use hummus due to the cement shortage. Will these buildings stand after thirty years? EZRA Undoubtedly, I won’t. Weak prostate. SONYA Quit drinking before noon. (HE WINCES) Did you give blood this week? EZRA I didn’t. SONYA The country’s seriously low. EZRA Well, I have a low platelet count. SONYA I gave two pints. A successful blood drive. EZRA Mazel tov. I drink two pints. SONYA You’re putting on weight, my old man. EZRA Yes, well, martinis with lunch improves my memory. Are you expecting the filthy rich American talent scout? SONYA Which filthy rich American scout? EZRA Fishman, the sports czar. Sharansky’s pal. He’s recruiting for his spanking new soccer team. SONYA Don’t screw with me, darling. Americans don’t play soccer. EZRA Now they do. Don’t you read Newsweek? (PAUSE) You just won’t tell me, Sonya. We are terrible friends. SONYA We are not terrible friends. EZRA What the hell are we then? SONYA Political refugees that shared a corner hotel room once. (EZRA LAUGHS DESPITE HIMSELF) I was too clumsy, yes? EZRA Where is your charismatic husband? SONYA I don’t know. EZRA Still married to this jerk? SONYA No. Yes. Somewhere in between. EZRA You know I’m working on another project. SONYA I know. EZRA You don’t approve? SONYA The next group flying in is not Jewish, Ezra. I read the e-mail. EZRA Whose e-mail? SONYA I can’t say. EZRA It’s true, yes. This is a humanitarian effort. SONYA This is crap. EZRA Well . . . SONYA Something you want? EZRA Are you asking or telling me? SONYA I’m asking you. EZRA You know my answer. SONYA You’re a very complex person. EZRA Is it my cologne? SONYA No. EZRA My loud reputation? SONYA What reputation? EZRA A desert Ethiopian from my ass to my elbows. The Jewish Lawrence of Arabia with fallen arches. SONYA And I’m the incomparable Queen of Sheba who can kill you with two fingers. EZRA Kill me in bed, cupcake. (PAUSE) Who is this singer? SONYA Isn’t she one of your girls? (EZRA NODS HIS HEAD, FEIGNING BEWILDERMENT) This crop of African immigrants is wildly evangelistic. EZRA They’re persecuted Jews with crosses stamped on their foreheads. SONYA So much for The Law of Return for real Jews. EZRA Who the hell is real these days? Madonna studying Jewish Kabbalah? SONYA I like Madonna. EZRA And for years Sammy Davis thought he was a New York Jew trapped in Las Vegas. SONYA The Falas Mura have no intention of converting. EZRA Open your heart. Give them time in Absorption. They are my cousins. SONYA Darling, your “cousins” love Jesus and will go around knocking on everyone’s damn door. EZRA (DISTRACTED) Oh Christ, Ariel Sharon is walking in. Fat as ever. Atilla the Jew. SONYA Where is your new money coming from? EZRA (ATTENTION RETURNS) What? SONYA The new, clean money. The countable money. Your LEGAL money. EZRA United Jewish Appeal and the arrogant Canadian Jew who runs the Seagram Corporation. SONYA (SWEETLY) I don’t believe you. EZRA What? You think the government is throwing shekels at us? SONYA When you lie, Ezra, you’re eyebrows knit a little twisted X right here. (TOUCHES HIM) I need your full support with the Knesset vote. EZRA Your happy Russians have enough duty-free vodka until the Messiah, Sonya. One third of the men are drunk and another third are in an illegal racket. Our problems are not equal. SONYA Government funds were earmarked for Russian Jews. EZRA Where’s Sharansky? I want to talk to Sharansky, damnit. SONYA (PERSISTENT) And you have Barbara Steisand performing a Tel Aviv benefit for the Falasha. EZRA We don’t call ourselves Falasha, Sonya. SONYA Who will sing for the cold refugees from Minsk? EZRA Neil Diamond. SONYA What are you going to say to Sharansky? EZRA I’ll ask the Minister if he’s been to Ethiopia’s capital - Addis Ababa. But we know the answer - TENASTYLLIN. SALAM. INDEMINA? DANA. (SARDONIC) “Hello. Shalom. How are you? I’m just wonderful, thanks.” SONYA He’ll say, “Falas Mura. Christian inside and out”. EZRA What makes this wounded Ethiopian tribe the enemy of Israel? SONYA For one, you can’t have a nation of false Jews. EZRA Some would say we already have that. SONYA This is too small a country and every immigrant Jew is struggling. (PAUSE) Ezra, there can be no more airlifts. Wake up! You’re monopolizing all the vacant shelters. EZRA Last month you said you would lend support. Are these mood swings? SONYA (DEMURELY) I changed my mind after a talk with the Prime Minister. If you engineer an airlift without his blessings, you embarrass everyone and I’ll catch hell from my Russian refugees. EZRA Your people can’t blame you. SONYA My job will be a thousand times harder. Work with these limitations. Just like sweet Moses. EZRA Moses was black. SONYA You have a photograph maybe? EZRA Yes, in my wallet. You never know. SONYA Spectacular. EZRA The color of a Jew’s skin is that of God’s heart. (FAINT APPLAUSE AFTER A SONG) But unfortunately God has no color. SONYA Or no heart? END OF SCENE SCENE THREE (JERUSALEM DIAMOND CUTTING STORE, BACK ROOM. MID- JANUARY) HESHI Wash your hands. ETI I did. HESHI Show me. (ETI DOES) Sit down. Not there, over here. (ETI FINDS THE SECOND CHAIR AND SITS). We have two hours. OK? ETI (RESPECTFUL AND PLAYFUL) OK, boss. HESHI Don’t call me that. ETI (SMILING GENEROUSLY) Mr. Heshi? Hello, Mr. Heshi? (SINGS A LITTLE DITTY) “He gives me diamonds, he gives me pearls. He gives me felafel, he likes my curls. Mister mister mister mister mister Heshi!” HESHI No singing. (ETI CONTINUES HUMMING) And don’t call me Heshi. Mr. Lebowitz. Say it, Eti. ETI Mr. Heshi is sweeter. HESHI I make you my student. ETI It is my honor. HESHI I know you have brains and some gifts. ETI (WITH WARM MISCHIEF) I’m a singer. I’m a lover. That you know. HESHI (LAUGHS IN SPITE OF HIMSELF) I’ll bet. Time will tell. And comes to you. All in good time. And so will the young girls. You have good looks, boychik. Clean ebony skin, sharp eyes and graceful hands. ETI Thank you. I like your beard. So teach me. HESHI A diamond will always seek a Jew. And a Jew will always find a diamond. The first law of science. When a Jew is forced from a country, he takes what he can carry. A fistful of diamonds. For he cannot take his house, his cattle, his furniture or even his bank account. A fistful of diamonds, Eti. Nothing more. ETI My brothers and I came with a bag of clothes. We left a wood hut and five goats. HESHI I’m sorry for you and your family. (SOFTLY) Are you a pious Jew like me? ETI I am, sir. And I fear God like you. HESHI You pray in the morning and in the evening? ETI I do. In my own way. (HUMS A MELODY AGAIN) HESHI Maybe you are more pious than me? ETI Only God knows such things. HESHI (DRYLY AMUSED) God knows us better than we know ourselves. You make me laugh inside. (PAUSE) There are the four “C’s to each diamond. Clarity. Color. Cut. ETI Coupon? HESHI And Carat. There is a rating system. Color can go from “D” to “G, H, I, J” all the way to “Z”. Most appraisers will agree on set principles. And, of course, most jewelers are shrewd to sell diamonds which fool the public. I am not one of them. I am Mr. Honesty. Do you understand that? ETI Yes, I do, Mr. Honesty Lebowitz. HESHI I’m not a crazy man. ETI No, sir, not crazy at all. HESHI We live to make some profit, or we drop dead. You would die in Ethiopia. You will thrive in Jerusalem. (PAUSE) This is why you must know your alphabet. What town are you from? ETI Addis Ababa. The capital. HESHI Your sponsor told me it was Quara. ETI Yes, Quara is the outskirts of the Addis Ababa. HESHI Five hundred miles on the outskirts? You still have family there? ETI (FLUSTERED) No. HESHI I know more than you think I know. ETI People in Quara are very unlucky. Many never made it on the list to go. HESHI How did you get on the list? ETI I don’t know, sir. HESHI Your father paid someone. ETI No. HESHI That’s how it goes, Eti. ETI Sir. HESHI Someone got paid. ETI Maybe. I was younger then. It wasn’t easy to leave the land. HESHI But you’ll never return to Ethiopia. ETI I don’t want my family to suffer. HESHI I understand. ETI I don’t know if God hears my prayers. HESHI God does. My brother’s wife is from Yemen. ETI Yemen is not Ethiopia. HESHI Shaaa! She’s not as dark as you. But your smile is nicer. I don’t know why he married her. I don’t know why she married him. A rocky marriage. She will never return to Yemen. Her life hangs on a thread. Those are her words. (PAUSE) You will learn how to polish my cheaper diamonds, Eti. That is all you will do. Along the way, maybe in a year I will give you other tasks. We’ll see. Cutting diamonds is a master art. I am a master. It could make you rich or make you a soul of greed. I fight my own greed. I am not a perfect man. ( PAUSE) And you are not perfect. I’ll watch you like a hawk. I can see with an eye behind my head. That’s right. I have a small insurance policy and two hand guns. I carry one. I hide the other. And I can be more avenging than the Almighty. No matter what favor I owe you. (PAUSE) When my wife comes to the store, you must ignore her. I do. Make no exceptions. ETI Yes, Mr. Lebowitz. HESHI When she offers you her rancid food or some deadly bricks that she baked, just smile and say “no thank you, Mrs. Lebowitz.”. Hunger has its limits. Eat your meals at home. My wife has other virtues. (PAUSE) And when you marry, pick a woman who complains less than her mother and who will not imitate your own mother. I say this to be charitable. OK? ETI OK. HESHI You have a girlfriend? ETI I did. HESHI Oh? ETI She trashed me. She’s a club singer. HESHI A club singer? Who needs aggravation? Better to be free, boychik. You can dance with another pretty girl now. (PAUSE) The phone machine is on. We won’t be disturbed. Why do you blink so much? ETI An illness five years ago. HESHI Close your eye. Now look at my finger. (PAUSE) That eye is a lazy eye. ETI I know, sir. HESHI (FLASHING A FINGER IN FRONT OF THAT EYE) Not blind in that eye? ETI I can see everything from both eyes in good light.. HESHI (SENSING THE LIE, UNDER HIS BREATH) Oy . . . vey iz meir! I know about the Falas Mura. ETI I’m not Falas Mura. I am all Jewish, only Jewish. Not one finger is Jesus. HESHI Never say that name inside my shop. OK? ETI OK. HESHI Kiss the Mezuzah on the door when you enter and when you leave. (PAUSE. PRONOUNCING ‘POLISH’ LIKE THE NATION) It’s time to polish. ETI (ECHOING HESHI) Polish. HESHI (NO REAL DISTINCTION AS HESHI SAYS THE WORD) Not Pole-ish. Poll-ish. ETI (ECHOING AGAIN) Polish. Thank you. HESHI For what? ETI For helping. HESHI I’m a businessman. I’ll profit by your labor. ETI Before my father died, he told me what he wanted. A fair chance at success. HESHI I see. ETI And my mother echoed my father. HESHI Where is she? ETI (LYING) In Quara. But the Jewish Agency has her file. That will take forever. HESHI Still, you don’t want to be an orphan in Jerusalem. (ETI SHAKES HIS HEAD YES) God willing. ETI I need to find a living angel. This is a fact, Mr. Lebowitz. I want success denied to my father. If not in the sports stadium, then in the diamond district. I will pole-ish your stones. END OF SCENE SCENE FOUR (RESTAURANT. JANUARY) EZRA A lovely meal. FISHMAN (PICKS UP THE CHECK) No, I insist. It was my invitation. EZRA Thank you. FISHMAN Can I drive you somewhere? EZRA Paris? (SMILES) FISHMAN If your nephew is all that you say he is, I’ll owe you big time. EZRA He’s a bolt of lightning, as fast as Ethiopia’s Olympic Deratu Tulu. FISHMAN Ezra, you must be very proud of him. EZRA (NODDING) I must thank Ronit Melkav at the university for arranging this. FISHMAN I’ve been on the prowl for some time. Israelis love to cash in on professional sports. Why is he so hard to find? EZRA Eti’s restless. After army service, college didn’t agree with him. Some days he loves to play sports. Other days he’s depressed. Ongoing struggles with his mother. As I said over the phone, I’ll help recruit him every step to a secure contract. FISHMAN And, of course, you’ll earn a nice bonus once he signs. EZRA Skip that, Mr. Fishman, and do something special. FISHMAN I give every year to the Jewish Agency. EZRA Splendid. But I’m involved in a dear mission involving the last airlifts. FISHMAN I know. EZRA (INSISTENT) No, you don’t know. There are thousands of bereft Ethiopians with Jewish blood in their veins. FISHMAN I see. EZRA You don’t have to pay me a thing and you don’t need to overpay my nephew. Instead, direct your generosity towards the last Ethiopians - the Falas Mura. FISHMAN How much? EZRA As much as you can afford and I want you to use your good graces with the Prime Minister’s cabinet. FISHMAN Ezra . . . EZRA I know how influential you are. You helped pay the way for Minister Sharansky to leave Russia. FISHMAN You’re way off base. Besides, I can only support bona fide Jews. Not the bottom of the barrel. You know there can be no more airlifts. The last official migration ended with Operation Solomon. EZRA Many of Israel’s renowned operations were unofficial. FISHMAN (SARCASTIC) Really? EZRA Let me relate a story about Solomon and the Queen of Sheba. FISHMAN (GLANCES AT WATCH) I’m running late. EZRA Sit, my friend. (REACHES FOR FISHMAN’S ARM) King Solomon needed Sheba’s trade routes while she craved his Mediterranean seaports. He fell deeply in love and agreed to give her a child. That child became . . . FISHMAN (IMPATIENT) Your blessed Falasha. EZRA The celebrated lost tribe of Israel. FISHMAN The black Jew on Ethiopia Street. EZRA And Solomon heard a bird say that Sheba worshiped the sun. So he sent a message: “There is but one God invisible.” Sheba came to his court to argue but the King’s angels warned him that the Queen had animal legs under her gown. FISHMAN I’ve known many women with such legs. (RISING) EZRA Solomon’s engineers built a glass floor, but he was reluctant to look up. FISHMAN Just find me your nephew, OK? EZRA In this instance, don’t be like Solomon, Mr. Fishman. (REACHES TO SHAKE FISHMAN’S HAND) FISHMAN I respect you Ezra. We worship the same God, but you’re gambling heavily on these Ethiopians who don’t even know three things about Judaism. I’ll try to do what I can when the time arrives. EZRA Thank you. FISHMAN (BREAKING FROM HIS GRASP) I really have to be going. END OF SCENE SCENE FIVE (ETHIOPIAN APARTMENT COMPLEX JUST OUTSIDE OF JERUSALEM. MID-JANUARY. RONIT TRANSLATES SEVERAL HEBREW PHRASES) RONIT Ish hasakim hashir mamerica (yes, this is the wealthy business man from America). DELAL (BLUNTLY) Hanaliem shalo mahoarot. Haim hoo sohan mmshlti? RONIT She says your shoes are ugly. FISHMAN I like my shoes. RONIT She thinks you’re a government agent. FISHMAN (LAUGHING) No, I’m not a government spy. DELAL You are. RONIT You don’t need me. Delal can speak to you directly. FISHMAN My dear woman . . . I make too much money to be a spy. Tell her, Ronit. RONIT Mr. Fishman is a private citizen from the United States. FISHMAN I also have a delightful home in Tel Aviv. RONIT Homes in several countries. DELAL What do you want? FISHMAN To make your family happy and wealthy. RONIT You look ill, Delal. Are you all right? Atha margish tov? DELAL I have a fever. RONIT Mr. Fishman, another time would be better. FISHMAN I’ll miss my plane. Ezra promised. DELAL What do you want? My husband’s dead. FISHMAN Delal, I love the old Ethiopia Street. No place like it in all of Jerusalem. That beautiful Coptic church. So much history. I believe in the expanding Ethiopian Jewish community. And I am absolutely stunned by the physical talents of Ethiopia’s golden children. Israel is stronger because you are here. RONIT Hoo maariss at hakehila hatiopit vomer Israel hazaka ki atem kan (he admires the Ethiopian community and says Israel is stronger because you are here). FISHMAN I’m also a good friend of your brother-in-law Ezra. RONIT Hoo haver tov shel hagiss shelha (he is a good friend of your brother-in-law). DELAL Ezra has too many friends. FISHMAN Yes, well, he told me to seek out your extremely gifted young son. DELAL Which one? FISHMAN Your youngest and brightest. The runner. The amazing athlete. RONIT Delal, he wants your Eti - for professional sports in America. DELAL Eti? RONIT Ze hakasef bbank. This is money in the bank. FISHMAN A lot of money, Delal, and a world of prestige. Where is your boy? DELAL He left the army. FISHMAN I know that, dear. That was many many months ago. DELAL He hates the army. He cannot kill. He is pious Jew. RONIT Do you want him to go back to college? DELAL Yes. And married. RONIT Mr. Fishman respects a college education. DELAL Where is my brother-in-law? FISHMAN Ezra left the country for a few days. He went to Ethiopia. Addis Ababa. DELAL I want my son to marry. All my children are married. RONIT Where is Eti? DELAL With his wild girl friend. FISHMAN (TO RONIT) I spoke with the girl. She sings in small night clubs. They had a fight. RONIT A bad fight? FISHMAN The police came. (BOTH THREW A LOOK AT DELAL) DELAL Rak lo meshtara (God forbid not the police). The police don’t want Eti. No, no, he is good son. Will visit before Passover. RONIT She doesn’t know his whereabouts. FISHMAN I see. (DELAL WANDERS OFF) Thank you, Delal. (QIUIET, WRY VOICE TO RONIT) Do we wait until Passover for him? RONIT He’ll turn up in the neighborhood. Give it a week. I’ll get this all arranged. FISHMAN I like your motivation, Ronit. RONIT My brother runs an absorption center. It’s abysmal. No hot water. Holes in the roof. FISHMAN A shame. I’m good for a big pledge. I’ll call your brother. RONIT We’ll probably find the boy as soon as you write the check. FISHMAN Everyone along this chain wants a check. RONIT That’s the definition of Jewish enterprise, Mr. Fishman. We’ll find him before Sunday. FISHMAN Do you feel that lucky? RONIT I had a good dialogue with Eti while he was on my campus. FISHMAN Do you always court wealthy Americans for your campus fund drive? (FISHMAN EXAGGERATES A SMILE. PAUSE) Is he an observant Jew? RONIT You saw the Star of David on Delal’s bureau. Is it an issue? FISHMAN The press calls Falas Mura many awful names. He might be here illegally. RONIT Falasha and Falas Mura are equally misunderstood. If you’re persecuted by gentiles in the Diaspora, you might as well be a Jew. FISHMAN My cousin works under the Prime Minister. In unofficial cabinet meetings some call them - Sheba’s little bastards. RONIT Name calling is a modern evil FISHMAN Indeed. (PAUSE) I’ll give you three days to find the boy. END OF SCENE SCENE SIX (A JERUSALEM STREET CAFÉ) MID-JANUARY) SHEVA You’re late. ETI I know. SHEVA But you’re not sorry. ETI I’m sorry, Sheva. SHEVA You could have called. ETI I hate the phone. SHEVA That’s wonderful. ETI You sing here tonight. SHEVA Every Wednesday. With my crazy band. ETI Are you hungry? SHEVA A little. ETI I’m starved. SHEVA Where were you? ETI Kept late at the diamond shop. SHEVA He gave you work? ETI Yeah. SHEVA I don’t believe it. ETI Because he’s Ashkanazim? SHEVA That’s right. ETI I saved his life last month. SHEVA What? ETI I walked into a robbery in Old Jerusalem. Late at night. I chased the thief away. Lebowitz owns my cousins’ building. Charges them like it’s a five star hotel. SHEVA So Lebowitz’s letting you sweep the floor? ETI I’m apprenticing. SHEVA He asked if you were circumcised? ETI Not yet. SHEVA (LAUGHS AND POKES HIM BELOW THE BELT) He will. And then check you with a jeweler’s lens. These puffed up European Jews! (PAUSE) Stupid, Eti. My beautiful, lovely boy. Track star and village idiot. You wear two crowns and you quit school for this honor? ETI I missed too many classes. (PAUSE) Why are you so angry? SHEVA Because I want something. ETI What? SHEVA I want to run away. ETI Where? SHEVA Anywhere from Israel with a resort hotel and dance floor. ETI Inside you’re not Jewish. SHEVA More Jewish than you. And more pious. ETI Prove it. SHEVA I know how to shop for bargains and how to talk to God. (SNEAKS A KISS) ETI I have important things to do. SHEVA So you can’t run away today with me? ETI I have no money. SHEVA You have the fastest feet in Jerusalem. That’s better than gold. ETI And you have the fastest mouth. SHEVA If not the fastest, at least the prettiest. (PAUSE) An American clown was looking for you yesterday. Expensive clothes, gold bracelet. And a red nose. ETI He came to you? SHEVA Everyone comes to me. I’m a lounge act in a skinny dress. Exotic singer for hire. (PAUSE) I said nothing. ETI What did he want? SHEVA Your goddamn legs. His name is Fishman and he wants to sign a contract. ETI You’re lying. SHEVA Why would I lie, Eti? He gave me his business card. (PRODUCING THE CARD) He was with Ronit Melkav, from the university. Is that the woman that kicked you out? ETI No, Ronit helped me with medical excuses. SHEVA Let’s run away. ETI (GRABS THE CARD PLAYFULLY) No, I have to call him! This is my ticket. SHEVA Don’t grab. Bad manners. ETI Thanks, Sheva. SHEVA Say it from your heart. ETI I thank you for everything good. SHEVA Are you tomorrow’s soccer star? ETI I could be. SHEVA Or our next Olympic runner? And so tough on your poor mother. (PAUSE) The Russian boys from the projects are still following me. ETI Don’t walk by their street. SHEVA They know where I live. ETI It’s the way you dress. SHEVA (TEASING) Or the way I walk? Maybe they come to the club to hear me sing. I can’t stop that, but I feel eyes on my back in the alleys. (PAUSE) We both want success yet you’re . . . ETI I’m not afraid of anything. SHEVA You’re afraid of me. (KISSES HIM AS HE FLINCHES) Afraid of army service. Afraid of doctor exams. ETI I gave to the blood drive. SHEVA Did it hurt? ETI No. Two minutes with an ugly nurse. SHEVA I’ll donate this week. At my school you get a free movie pass or pair of sunglasses. ETI (TEASING) So you don’t want to run away today? SHEVA I do with your money. We could get to Greece in a day. ETI Greece? SHEVA You want to fight over Greece? ETI When we fight, you call the police. SHEVA Then we should never fight about Greece. ETI Why do you stay with me, Sheva? I have no money now. SHEVA I like the way you kiss. And you’ll be rich and famous one day. ETI Which reason is more important? (SHEVA SMILES) SHEVA Kissing is always more important. (IN A LOW VOICE, SHE STARTS TO SING A SONG WHILE CARESSING HIS FACE) END OF SCENE SCENE SEVEN (RONIT’S COLLEGE OFFICE. MID-JANUARY) EZRA I was curious about this semester’s testing. RONIT The results look promising. EZRA And the Ethiopian students? RONIT You worry too much. EZRA My only pleasure in life, Ronit. RONIT Funding will continue for each Ethiopian student. EZRA I don’t want to see all these kids turn into farm laborers. RONIT Some will, despite college. EZRA How long have you worked at this college? RONIT (SARCASM) Sixty years. I’ve seen “generations” of Ethiopians. Beginning with Operation Moses ‘84 airlift. EZRA You directed more funds to the Ethiopian students. RONIT Only angels do such stunts. EZRA And you’ve been very good to my nephew. RONIT I like Eti. He has the makings of a great athlete. I have a good hunch about him. And I know Fishman’s money and connections are good. EZRA Let’s hope so. RONIT I heard a rumor about a secret airlift . . . the end of April. EZRA I can’t comment, Ronit. (SHE GLARES AT HIM) Is it a mistake to have 20,000 additional Ethiopians drop out of the sky? RONIT Certainly a remarkable image, Ezra. EZRA Do you know how many Ethiopians are in the Knesset? RONIT One? EZRA While there are three elected Israeli Arabs in the Knesset. RONIT As with anything political, you start with one. EZRA Ronit, what would you do if you sat on the hat of the Chief Rabbinate? RONIT I would die of shame. EZRA And I would laugh. The airlift is scheduled for two weeks. It can’t wait until April. Cargo planes are hard to hijack. No one knows the timetable. Not even the Ministry. I got to get to Sharanksy. RONIT You were one of the first Ethiopian officers in the Air Force. Certainly you have some clout. EZRA An intimate connection is needed. RONIT You’re the mastermind behind this airlift, aren’t you? EZRA (COVERING POORLY) No. RONIT (RONIT SMILES SADLY) If you bring more black Christians, you only hurt black Jews already settled. EZRA They share the same ancestry. We can prove it. RONIT DNA? Photos? Shared memories of massacres? EZRA Rally the college for me. RONIT And then a Nobel Peace Prize? EZRA After this last airlift, I just want to pass a kidney stone. RONIT Passing a kidney stone is easier. Get some sleep, Ezra. You look exhausted. EZRA Do I? (PAUSE) What’s really happening with Eti? RONIT Your nephew had too many absences. He has some eye trouble. It was his decision to leave. EZRA You do keep tabs on him, Ronit? RONIT (HANDS HIS A SCRAP OF PAPER) You might find him with his girlfriend. She’s a handful for the entire Israeli army. END OF SCENE SCENE EIGHT (DELAL’S HOME. FEBRUARY) SHEVA I made him come back. Eti doesn’t trust any woman. Always testing me, Mrs. Shlomo. He wants us to get married but he won’t say when. What’s a girl to do? Wait for Santa Claus? Eti’s working for a fat white diamond merchant? Look at him. Silent like a stone. When he talks to my family, he whispers. From his mouth they can’t understand anything. But they like his smile. Want him to be my husband. I love him. I made him come back to you. Mend his clothes. I cook for him. Sing to him. I understand him in a deep way. I do. DELAL Eti? ETI What? DELAL Look at your hands. ETI What? DELAL Wash. ETI I brought you some money, Ima. DELAL Wash your hands. ETI You look sick. DELAL Wash your hands. (TO SHEVA) You too. ETI Ima. Not enough goods in the kitchen. DELAL I make do. ETI We can’t stay. DELAL Food on the table. Sit and eat. ETI Not hungry. DELAL (LOOKING AT SHEVA) She’s hungry. Sit. And eat. I cooked all day. (BRING A LARGE BOWL OF WATER TO ETI) Where are you living? ETI In town. DELAL With her? SHEVA No. I live with my family. My parents would like to meet you. (PAUSE) Maybe things will change. Yes? DELAL Sheva. SHEVA What? DELAL You talk too much. SHEVA I can sing for you? DELAL Stop talking. (HANDS ETI A TOWEL. ETI PUTS HIS HAND IN THE BOWL SHEVA HUMS A MELODY SOFTLY) ETI She has a voice, Ima. DELAL Why a diamond merchant? ETI I like diamonds. DELAL Diamonds bring misery. (SHEVA WASHES HANDS AND SITS) ETI I’ll get your diamond earrings and rings soon. The food smells good. You should open a restaurant. “DELAL’S ETHIOPIA.” DELAL Your father says don’t work for a diamond merchant.. ETI (SWEETLY) Father is dead. How can he speak? DELAL He speaks to me. ETI I hear him then. DELAL Don’t be a stranger to this house. You could stay in school. ETI Let’s talk about this later. DELAL Sit. (HE SITS) I go to the doctor’s clinic. I learn a little each day. You have to learn very fast here. I can read a face faster than you can a book. (PAUSE) When Eti was a boy, he made us laugh. The youngest child has such talent. Now his talent is running because he is running away. (TO SHEVA) What does he want to say? SHEVA I don’t know. ETI I think Santa Claus is Jewish. When you fly in a bright red suit, you must be Jewish to survive. Santa should visit every black Jewish home. (SHEVA LAUGHS) My mother is not laughing. DELAL (STRAINED SMILE) No. ETI (SWEET TEASING) Why cry? DELAL Your brothers are more sincere. ETI You wouldn’t like me if I were that sincere, Ima. (PUTS NAPKIN OVER HIMSELF LIKE AN ARAB HEADDRESS AND AFFECTS AN ARAB DIALECT) “Now I am very sincere. My name is Omar and you get no oil until you kiss me.” (SHEVA LAUGHS. DELAL PULLS THE NAPKIN FROM ETI’S HEAD) I’m taking all my clothes and things, Ima. DELAL Ask your father. SHEVA Your son will be an Israeli hero. Be rich and smart. The best athlete. DELAL I don’t care. SHEVA Tell him that he can do this. DELAL He does not believe with his heart in God. ETI I believe in God. DELAL God doesn’t believe you, Eti. ETI God was in my dreams. Told me to go for the American offer so I can buy you a house, Ima. DELAL More a boy than a man, Eti. (LONG LOOK AT SHEVA) She wants to say something. ETI Sheva said enough. DELAL (BEHIND ETI, HER HANDS ON HIS SHOULDERS) Speak. SHEVA I’m pregnant. (ETI IS SURPRISED) It’s true, Eti. I saw a doctor yesterday. ETI (TRYING TO PLACATE HIS MOTHER) Ima . . . SHEVA I love your son. Please accept me, Mrs. Shlomo. We have a beautiful future. (DELAL PICKS UP THE WATER BOWL AND WALKS AWAY SLOWLY) END OF SCENE SCENE NINE (DIAMOND SHOP. FEBRUARY. ETI IS SHOWING HESHI PHOTOS FROM HIS COLLEGE ATHLETIC RACES ) ETI I broke the school’s record by ten seconds. HESHI I see. ETI This was in the newspaper last year. HESHI (DISTRACTED) Very nice. ETI My coach said I was the fastest in Jerusalem. HESHI I have something to ask you. (STACKS PHOTOS TOGETHER) This is very awkward, Eti. I’m missing a key to the back room. ETI I don’t have it, Mr. Lebowitz. HESHI You haven’t seen keys at all? ETI No. HESHI Do you think I simply lost it? ETI I don’t know, Mr. Lebowitz. HESHI Do I look like a fool? I like you. You know that. (PAUSE) Empty your pockets, Eti. (SILENCE) You heard me. Please empty them. (ETI OBLIGES. SOME COINS, A POCKET KNIFE, ETI’S KEYS) Put everything on the counter. (HE DOES SO) Those are not my keys? ETI No. HESHI (PICKS UP ETI’S KEYS) These are not my keys. ETI Maybe your wife? I’ve seen her with keys before, sir. HESHI Now I have to change the locks. Eti, there are days when I don’t trust you. I don’t know why that is. Sometimes it’s how fast you move your hands. ETI I’m going to be a father, Mr. Lebowitz. HESHI (HURT) We have to trust each other. You showed me your school awards. ETI Sports can be just a dream. I’ll have a real trade in gems. I don’t want to be naive. HESHI All Ethiopians are. You give blood and the government throws it in the gutter. How naive is that? Are you going to marry her? ETI I have to. It’s what I feel each night. HESHI Have you asked her? She may turn you down. ETI I don’t think so. HESHI I want to meet her. ETI Why? HESHI You need my approval for all the things you do. ETI She thinks your people look down on us. HESHI God knows that’s not true. You bring her here tomorrow, Eti. END OF SCENE SCENE TEN (HOTEL LOBBY. FEBRUARY) EZRA Sometimes I feel very strange here. Do you like this hotel? SONYA The bidets are brand new. EZRA Why did you give up your apartment? SONYA My marriage is failing. But you’re not coming upstairs tonight, even though you’re wearing your lucky jacket. EZRA My district is boiling over. All due to the wasted Ethiopian blood. SONYA The mayor should be shot. EZRA It’s not just this city, Sonya. SONYA There’s fear of an AIDS epidemic. EZRA My people were encouraged to give blood. There were signs everywhere. Radios spots. Leaflets. We feel like a leper colony. SONYA That doesn’t make you want to return to Ethiopia. (PAUSE) Don’t look at me that way. EZRA I found a donor who will finance half of the airlift. SONYA Who? EZRA I can’t say. So now I need a favor from you. SONYA (THESE TWO LINES OVERLAP) You want me to speak to the Ministers. EZRA Sharansky, your old Russian pal. SONYA Don’t press me, Ezra. EZRA This is a perfect time. The Prime Minister has to show leniency after this blood scandal. A half fueled cargo plane will force a landing. SONYA (KNOWING WHERE THIS IS GOING) Ezra! EZRA (NEXT TWO LINES OVERLAP) And it should come from you. SONYA You’re dreaming the impossible. EZRA A tribute to Ethiopia Street of yesteryear. SONYA You’ve lost touch with reality. EZRA Christians Ethiopians believe the Jews among them are sorcerers and transform at night into hyenas. SONYA What if you botch this airlift? EZRA I can’t think like that. SONYA The Cabinet Ministers will ask the same question. Certainly Sharansky will. EZRA I know we have a major conflict between our wards. It comes down to housing allocation. Let my people come, Sonya. SONYA In my“Yud” neighborhood, Zvi Ben-Ari hired a Swiss pilot to smuggle him out of a Zurich prison to come here. The police do nothing. This Russian doesn’t deserve citizenship. EZRA I’m only asking for 2000 housing units from your wards. SONYA You’re really out of your mind! How do you expect me to pacify Russians crowded into two room apartments? EZRA Sonya, you could convince Yasir Arafat to shave. Russians have professional skills to adapt. A quarter of them are not even Jewish. SONYA I need to think it over. EZRA Tell me in the morning. SONYA I promise nothing. EZRA I understand what intimacy is with you. SONYA Ezra. You’re impossible! (PAUSE) I want to leave Israel. I want to live in a place where I can just take care of myself. (SHE RISES AND STARES AT HIM) Are you going to call in the morning? EZRA I’m sorry about your marriage. (HE RISES) SONYA No, you’re not. It’s the furthest thing from your mind. EZRA He’s a putz. You married a shit. I feel for you. Have dinner with me tonight. SONYA Nothing more than dinner. EZRA A beautiful smile, Sonya. May I say that? (SHE SMILES WEAKLY AND HE SQUEEZES HER CHIN) May I, Sonya, may I? END OF SCENE SCENE ELEVEN (DELAL’S HOME. FEBRUARY) ETI What happens when his doctors examine me?. DELAL Trust your uncle. ETI But it’s my eyes, Ima. The army doctor said things to me. DELAL What did he say? ETI Retinis pigmentosa. Surgery can’t fix everything. When I’m tired I see shadows and color. Close up I see a better. Something could happen to the good eye. DELAL I’m sorry, Eti. ETI If I lie to others about this, God will know. DELAL I will make your decisions for you. ETI If I get paid big money to play soccer, demons may come for my eyes. DELAL These demons are not from Quara. ETI It doesn’t matter where they are from. DELAL If you ask God to help . . . ETI How if I cheat others? DELAL Is this why you got this girl pregnant? ETI The army doctor said that my eyes are like father’s. And his eyes failed after the famine. DELAL Yes, Eti. ETI You insulted God, didn’t you Ima? DELAL Don’t talk like that. ETI You blamed God for our misery before we came to Jerusalem. Here our family is not Jewish enough. You think that annoys God. You can’t speak Hebrew like the chosen. DELAL No. ETI And you think God hates that I run faster than the white boys. DELAL No. ETI Then why do you blame God every time I see you? DELAL I do not. ETI You blame me for being an athlete. DELAL Why fool around with Sheva girl? ETI She’s no girl. DELAL I see no modesty. ETI You dropped father in Quara like old luggage. DELAL (SLAPS HIM) How dare you . . . ETI It’s true. DELAL He was too sick to travel, Eti. ETI I don’t believe that. DELAL Your brothers know its true. Ask your uncle. ETI I will. I’m sorry for saying ugly things. DELAL You were my favorite son. When you hurt me, you hurt yourself. (ETI NODS HUMBLY) ETI I sign this contract and our lives will change. DELAL We will see. You work with diamonds now. That has some future, even if you have to wear thick glasses. ETI You are a diamond, Ima. (Pause) I have to marry Sheva. DELAL She is less Jewish than this family. Don’t lie. ETI So? DELAL Does she have Israeli papers? ETI Her grandparents were Jewish. Sometimes she wears a Jewish star. DELAL Kosher food? Do they work on Saturday? Is there a cross in her home? ETI No. (SHE THROWS HIM A LOOK) Maybe one or two. DELAL You’re an observing Jew. ETI They know. DELAL Your father would stop dead in his tracks. ETI We will never know. That makes me very sad. (A KNOCK AT THE DOOR) DELAL Sit down, Eti. Put on a strong face. (SHE OPENS DOOR) Ezra. (EZRA KISSES DELAL TWICE ON THE CHEEK. FISHMAN IS WITH HIM) EZRA Shalom, Delal. I think you met Mr. Fishman. FISHMAN Hello, Delal. DELAL Hello. (PAUSE) Come in. (THEY ENTER) EZRA Shalom, Eti. ETI Shalom, Uncle. EZRA You’re very hard to find, nephew. ETI I like it that way. EZRA I brought you a gift. (TAKES OUT A BAG AND HANDS IT TO ETI) A book on Olympic runners. I think I missed your birthday. ETI Thank you. DELAL Coffee? EZRA Please. FISHMAN Thank you. (DELAL LEAVES THE ROOM) EZRA Mr. Fishman has heard a lot about you, Eti. He talked to your coaches and saw the videos of your events. FISHMAN Very impressive, young man. EZRA I wish Eti’s father were here to see this. (PAUSE) Mr. Fishman wants to offer you a generous soccer contract. I brought your name to Mr. Fishman. A very big opportunity for our family. You can travel around the world and make a prosperous income. The sort of thing that young men dream about. Be a very prominent Ethiopian in Israel and America. This is important, Eti, to black Jews worldwide. FISHMAN Well, to the matter at hand. Would you like to play for the United States? ETI Yes. FISHMAN Soccer will soon be a very big thing in America. And you’ve the ability to become the next Brazilian Pele with a million beautiful girlfriends. ETI Believe me, one is enough. EZRA (TO ETI) Send the girls to me, nephew. FISHMAN (CHEERFUL) Your uncle told me about your eyesight. ETI It’s just one eye as the day goes into night. FISHMAN Surgeons can do miracles. We can pay for the operation and you’ll be healthy. A group of American doctors visit with you soon. EZRA (TO ETI) The army doctors don’t know what the hell they were talking about. FISHMAN Why don’t we go out to dinner and talk about what this all could mean for your family? DELAL We don’t like to go out to dinner. FISHMAN Well, we could talk here then. I’ve a photo album you might like to see. DELAL We are superstitious, Mr. Fishman. FISHMAN Really? ETI A modern world does not matter. EZRA (DISAPPROVINGLY) Delal . . . ETI I don’t trust any doctors. EZRA These won’t be like the army doctors. I thought this is what you always wanted? ETI I don’t know. DELAL Leaving his family. FISHMAN You’ll have enough money to come back all the time. EZRA Are you afraid of success? (TO DELAL) He is free to choose his life at his age. ETI Maybe I am afraid. FISHMAN That’s foolish, Eti. EZRA You had courage to come to Jerusalem. This contract is a blessing to your family and to Israel. (SHEVA ENTERS WITHOUT KNOCKING) SHEVA I came to get you. Oh . . . you’re doing business. ETI We’re done. FISHMAN I’ll leave the contract with you, Eti. Take your time and think about the beautiful things. We’re talking two hundred thousand shekel signing bonus. SHEVA (HALF-DISCREET) Two hundred thousand shekels . . . FISHMAN (WINKS) Beautiful, beautiful dreams, Eti. EZRA You look sad, nephew. ETI I hope not. SHEVA We’re going to marry. FISHMAN Mazel tov. SHEVA Now Eti can buy a pretty ring. EZRA (TO SHEVA) I’ve seen you before. SHEVA Sheva. EZRA Hello, Sheva. ETI She’s a singer in a club. EZRA I’ve seen you sing before. FISHMAN When is the wedding? SHEVA Tell them Eti. ETI I don’t know. (DELAL ENTERS WITH COFFEE) DELAL She knows what she wants. SHEVA (EVER SO SWEETLY) I come from a good family. I’m carrying his child. FISHMAN Perhaps it’s time I go. DELAL His father wants no part of this. ETI (CLEAR REBUKE) Did father just talk to you, Ima? DELAL Without my husband, I fail. SHEVA I will convert, but my blood is already Jewish. A mikvah bath too. I will light candles each Friday night before I sing with my band. All grandparents Jewish. EZRA (TO DELAL) I know a very nice rabbi who will work with her. You don’t have to worry. DELAL (GESTURING) She’s good. She’s bad. Can’t see it. It’s in the air. Feel it with your fingers. ETI (MOCKING WITH AFFECTION) Yes, I feel it. Incredible. EZRA (TAKING ALBUM AND CONTRACTS FROM FISHMAN) Here, nephew. I’ll read this with you. Important decisions for you and your mother. And, if you’re about to become a father, even more important. SHEVA Thank your uncle, Eti. Our world is about to change. (ETI TAKES THE ALBUM AND CONTRACTS FROM EZRA) END OF SCENE SCENE TWELVE (A CLUB NEAR ETHIOPIA STREET, SHEVA ENDS HER SONG AFTER A FEW BARS. EASY APPLAUSE, SPOT LIGHT FADES OUT. ETI, SITTING NEAR THE STAGE, LIGHTS A CIGARETTE. MID- FEBRUARY) SHEVA You don’t smoke. ETI You never see me smoke. SHEVA You’re upset. ETI Yes. This was once the only Ethiopian neighborhood in Jerusalem 100 years ago. Big Ethiopian Church in the center of Ethiopia Street. History laughs at us here. Now all the blacks are scattered in cheap boxes and tents on the city edge. Refugees in the Promised Land. We have a famous street, yet we are phantoms. SHEVA You always feel bad, Eti. ETI HThings are moving too fast. (UNCOMFORTABLE IN THE CLUB. RISES IMPULSIVELY) I got to go. SHEVA Where are you going? ETI Somewhere to think. SHEVA Don’t go. There are Russian boys in the house tonight. Keep me company. ETI Where? (TURNING) SHEVA In back, but don’t be obvious. (REACHES FOR HIS ARM) ETI I’ll talk to them. SHEVA Just stay here. (PAUSE) I have bad dreams too, Eti. Don’t believe you’re the only one. ETI Why did you tell my mother? SHEVA (AWARE OF MAKING A PUBLIC SCENE, LOWERS HER VOICE) When your mother gets to know me, there will be sweetness. That is how my family taught me to be. It is our child. ETI You could have told me first. SHEVA I’m sorry. ETI And I never said a thing about a wedding. SHEVA You did once in bed. Sign the sports contract. Eat in fancy restaurants. Buy a new car. (RISES) Do we have to talk about this here? ETI ( TO THE CLUB’S ONLOOKERS) That’s right. Sheva and I are getting married! I’m the lucky guy this week! (KISSES HER) SHEVA You want to see other girls. No, you are more righteous than a Yiddish rabbi. (PAUSE) You hate me. (HE GRABS HER) Then say you love me in your heart. ETI You know how I feel. I have a demon. SHEVA And what does he want? ETI To pull out my eyes. SHEVA Why? ETI Because I don’t read scriptures and left Ethiopia. Because I can’t visit the graves of grandparents and I beat up a Russian boy on the High Holy Days. Because I quit school and I had sex with you. SHEVA You’re crazy. Don’t say stupid things. I’m happy to be your wife. ETI If you have this baby, a demon might enter you, Sheva. I know demons and Jewish law. SHEVA No you don’t. ETI You might have a miscarriage. SHEVA I don’t believe in a punishing God. You don’t really want this baby. ETI I’m too young to be a father. SHEVA Old enough to go into the army. ETI Any idiot can go into the army. (PAUSE) I’ll be a ghost like my father. If I give you money, would you wait a year? SHEVA Eti, our bodies have touched. You love me? ETI I do. SHEVA This is not our country yet, but you pretend it is. This is a land of white Jews. This government asks for our blood, but in secret it throws it away. Our blood, Eti. (PAUSE) I don’t care about money. I’m a pretty woman, so honor me wherever we go. If you gave blood to Israel, if you can sell a part of yourself to Mr. Fishman, you owe me too. (PAUSE) We are Sheba and Solomon. We are the same flesh. You can’t hate me for carrying your seed. I was a very young girl before we went to bed, Eti (PAUSE) Help your family to like me. And I’ll remove my tattoo. (POINTS TO THE SMALL PRINTED CROSS OVER HER BROW) I want a wedding before the summer. ETI Will you be Jewish for this wedding? (AFFABLE SARCASM) We’ll get more gifts. SHEVA It’s enough that I come from a line of beautiful African Jews? ETI I know all the high laws. SHEVA No, you see me as “dohone” - a cheap pot made of mud and straw. A Jesus Ethiopian. ETI I never said that. SHEVA You think it. ETI “Dohone” is a dirty word. SHEVA (OVERLAPS HIS LINE) “Dohone”. Bad Jew who turns gentile out of fear. (SINCERE EXPRESSION) I love you, Eti. You need to trust me. END OF SCENE SCENE THIRTEEN (HESHI’S DIAMOND SHOP. SHEVA ENTERS ONCE THE SECURITY \ DOOR IS BUZZED OPEN. IT’S RAINING AND HER HAIR AND CLOTHES ARE WET. AFTER A FEW MOMENTS, SHE CATCHES HIS DEFLECTED ATTENTION. MID FEBRUARY) HESHI Are you buying or selling? SHEVA You keep the front door locked all the time - so close to Ethiopia Street? HESHI Yes. SHEVA I’m looking for Eti. HESHI He’s not here. SHEVA He said he was going to work. HESHI Did you see him today? (PAUSE) If you will excuse me . . . SHEVA Do you know where he went? HESHI No. SHEVA Don’t be rude. HESHI I’m rude to everyone, young lady. SHEVA Eti works very hard for you. You think you’re God’s chosen people. HESHI Please, today I have a killer headache. SHEVA Eti is more devout than you. HESHI God knows. SHEVA We’re going to get married. HESHI I know. SHEVA Eti’s a religious boy, but doesn’t show it. He prays. He knows Torah. He said Kaddish for his lost father. God respects him. And Eti can make a million shekels for a soccer team. He is a very special Falasha boy. HESHI Yes, yes, yes. All yesterday’s news to me. SHEVA I am saving money to remove the tattoo. (SHE POINTS TO THE CROSS ON HER FOREHEAD) We had to wear this in my old country to keep the Christians happy. I have other tattoos elsewhere. But I’m taking up your time. (AS SHE IS ABOUT TO LEAVE) HESHI He’s in serious trouble. Your boyfriend. SHEVA Trouble? HESHI He stole from me. I don’t know what to do. SHEVA What? HESHI I treat him like my son. He has been better than my own son. This is killing me. The police will get him before the week’s over. SHEVA Why would he do that? HESHI Maybe you asked Eti to go shopping? He took a few diamond rings from my safe. SHEVA That’s crazy. HESHI Talk to him. He doesn’t need to ruin his life. He should return all the rings immediately and I’ll drop the charges. END OF SCENE SCENE FOURTEEN (ETI SHINING HIS SHOES AT HOME, TALKS TO EZRA MID FEBRUARY) EZRA Are you sure it’s you child? ETI Yes. EZRA Do you love her? ETI I do. EZRA Do you want the child? ETI I guess so. EZRA Do you want to hurt your mother? ETI No. EZRA You know how your mother feels? (HE SHAKES HIS HEAD YES) She loves you dearly. (PAUSE) Eti, you’ve a bright future. I speak for your father. My only brother. Everything we do involves risk. Have courage to take wise risks. It doesn’t really matter if you play sports in Israel or in America. Or if you have a child now or in ten years. What matter is your idea of freedom. ETI I know my freedom. EZRA I don’t think you do. (PAUSE) This girl Sheva means well. She seems devoted to you. Your mother feels differently about Sheva. Maybe Sheva’s trapping you? You’re both very young. She may be confused about her identity. Somewhere in her family tree was a long line of Jewish people. Sheva needs to wake up to her heritage. (PAUSE) Our family tree has Jewish definition. ETI Tattoos can be removed, Uncle. EZRA You’re like your father, Eti. You are gullible to many things. ETI I’m not gullible. EZRA Sometimes we’re all gullible. ETI I’ve signed Fishman’s contract. I want to be a soccer star. EZRA You will. (PAUSE) If you marry, Sheva will stand by you. (PAUSE) The political news is very bad now. We are headlines. Street riots and protests about our discarded blood. I want you to accompany me. ETI Why? EZRA We need to establish calm. You’re a rising star. ETI I can’t. EZRA That’s not an acceptable answer. Why do you look so scared? ETI I don’t know. EZRA Travel with me for ten days. You’ll be connecting to our community. ETI I fear something dropping from the sky. Old superstition, Uncle. EZRA You can’t be superstitious in Israel. (ETI LAUGHS) I wish you could talk with your father now. He’d tell you to honor your people. ETI All right. I’ll travel with you on your rounds. EZRA Thank you. ETI The government thinks we’re diseased and backward. EZRA Some people in the government, yes. ETI The land is holy, but most of the men in charge are not, Uncle. EZRA You’re right. ETI You are part of the government. EZRA I am. ETI Don’t you feel shame? EZRA I could get paid a little more for the work I do. ETI Don’t joke. EZRA I believe Ethiopian Jews have a home here with equal rights. ETI And Sheva? EZRA You can help her. ETI Sheva and I’ll will be refugees again. EZRA Fishman can arrange a resident visa for you both in America. ETI And if my eyes turn into stones? I need an operation quick. EZRA They’re getting worse? ETI Yes. EZRA What did the last doctor say? ETI He said maybe I could get better with a laser operation. One eye can be saved. Very expensive. EZRA Can you play sports? ETI One eye works. What can I say? You should tell Fishman everything. EZRA He’ll find out soon enough. There’s a Yiddish word - basheer- “if it’s meant to be.” (PAUSE) We’re pressing our last Ethiopian airlift. You represent our success with Operation Solomon four years ago. (PAUSE) Come on, my boy. It’s time you began to act like a mensch, nephew. END OF SCENE SCENE FIFTEEN (RONIT IS VISITING DELAL. MID FEBRUARY) RONIT Sorry to bother you. DELAL You like to visit our house, Ronit. RONIT I’ve been trying to contact you day and night. DELAL I visit my sister in Haifa. RONIT Delal, I’m not comfortable saying this - the police were looking for your son this yesterday morning and I thought you should know right away. DELAL (SUBDUED) Is he all right? RONIT Yes. DELAL Another fight with his girl? RONIT No. (PAUSE) There was a jewel robbery in the shop where he works. DELAL Oh God . . . RONIT I don’t wish to panic you. DELAL Was he shot? RONIT No one was shot. DELAL What is it? RONIT The shop owner told the police that your boy stole three diamond rings. You know I am his job reference. The police came to my office. I told them about Eti’s sports contract. I had letters from Fishman. It makes no sense for him to steal. This has to be a mistake. DELAL Oh God. RONIT Where is he? DELAL I do not know. Did you call Ezra? RONIT Yes. DELAL Sheva. She is responsible. END OF SCENE SCENE SIXTEEN (EZRA’S OFFICE. MID FEBRUARY) SONYA My husband knows about you, Ezra. He feels humiliated. You met him at a charity function a few years ago. EZRA Yes, he likes to shake hands with a hydraulic grip. SONYA He’s whipping up a ton of animosity toward Ethiopians. EZRA I’ll talk to him. SONYA That would be homicidal. Adultery is one of the ten commandments. EZRA Number seven at last count. SONYA Ezra . . . EZRA Is he a physical threat to you or to me? SONYA He was a bruiser in the army. EZRA Marvelous. (AWKWARD SMILE) Your other news, Sonya? I thought we would see more of each other? SONYA I wanted to. EZRA But? SONYA This is much too fast. EZRA We’re not getting any younger. SONYA I’m past 40. I’ve lost my capacity to dream. (HE APPROACHES HER AND HUGS HER GENTLY) It’s all too confusing, Ezra. (HE NODS) I can provide housing for 1000 Ethiopian arrivals. No more than that. EZRA Thank you, Sonya. SONYA You helped the Russian assembly vote. I’m returning the favor. I’m angry inside for you. 25,000 healthy pints of Ethiopian blood flushed down the toilet. That’s how white Jews accept blacks. You can still eat at the temple’s family table and I’ll whistle Hava Nagila!. EZRA What should I do, throw Molotov cocktails at the Jerusalem Hospital? SONYA I would. EZRA A cargo plane is about to lift off this week from Ethiopia. Several weeks early. That, my dear, gets all my focus. (ETI ENTERS VERY DISTRESSED) ETI Uncle . . . EZRA What? ETI There’s been a horrible accident. Sheva was attacked by some Russians. She’s in critical condition. END OF SCENE SCENE SEVENTEEN (OUTSIDE HOSPITAL ROOM. MID-FEBRUARY) DELAL They don’t look good. Her parents. No sleep in two days. The doctor scared them. Her family went to eat. (PAUSE) Why are you here? ETI She might come out of her coma. DELAL God willing. ETI I’ll wait with you until her family comes back. DELAL The police might find you. ETI I don’t care anymore. DELAL I care. Go. ETI I didn’t steal any goddamn rings, Ima. I have money now. Fishman gave me money in advance. DELAL The police will handcuff you and hurt you. You get sick in jail. ETI You’ll talk to Ezra. He has sense. And Fishman will get me a lawyer. He will, Ima. Before the police get me. A smart lawyer will do things right. Here’s the check. (SHOWS HER IT) DELAL Too many bad things, Eti. The girl is very sick. I feel it in my bones. The police will think you did this. ETI Me? DELAL You and Sheva had fights. ETI Russians in her housing project. They taunt her on her way to school and to the club. DELAL Who told you this? ETI Sonya Gelman at the absorption center. She’ll tell the police the same thing. DELAL Maybe. Your baby’s gone, my son. She had a miscarriage. (PAUSE) Demons come and demons go. ETI I know, Ima. DELAL Blind like your father. You can pray. (PAUSE) Why Eti? Why annoy Ashkanazie Jews and their diamonds? ETI Did I ever steal anything as a boy? I saved Lebowitz’s life from a street robbery. Did the police tell you that? (PAUSE) It’s time you take my side. DELAL I will pray. ETI Sheva will recover. I will run away no more. END OF SCENE SCENE EIGHTEEN (EZRA’S OFFICE. SONYA IS ALREADY SEATED AND EZRA IS STANDING. HIS FACE IS BRUISED. LATE FEBRUARY) SONYA So where is your Mr. Fishman? EZRA He’s late. SONYA You honestly expect him to phone the Minister’s office? EZRA I’m a gifted actor. SONYA What time did my husband come to your home? EZRA Midnight. SONYA And you let him in? EZRA Yes. SONYA So masochistic? EZRA I must be. We talked. I poured us vodka. He blamed me for breaking up your marriage. Suddenly he got violent. SONYA He could have killed you, Ezra. EZRA (UNDERSTATED) I sensed that, yes. SONYA This is not the end of it. EZRA He’s not a handsome man, dear Sonya. Yesterday, I bought a German built gun. SONYA Magnificent. EZRA It was either that or hire a lifeguard. SONYA Bodyguard. You should have gone to the police. EZRA The thought struck me, but I’m uncomfortable with the story. How did you ever marry him? SONYA We met in our 20s. He was so different EZRA Like Jack the Ripper. SONYA So where is Fishman? EZRA Ronit was supposed to bring him here. SONYA You’re banking everything on him? EZRA I have no choice. Everyone said Fishman was my best bet. And I sold him my nephew for a handshake. SONYA There are no more miracles, Ezra. You can’t afford this fantasy. (SILENCE) I’m waiting for a “get” (Jewish bill of divorce) from my husband. I can’t initiate the divorce without his signature. EZRA Why not have a friend cut his car’s brake hose? SONYA Don’t put ideas in my head. EZRA I know a few nice kids you can hire for the job. FISHMAN (ENTERS WITH RONIT) Forgive me, Ronit was driving me to the airport when we got your phone call. EZRA We haven’t a moment to spare. Thank God you’re here. Mr. Fishman, my dear friend from the Russian Absorption Center - Sonya Gelman FISHMAN (SHAKES HER HAND) Nice to make your acquaintance. EZRA She was extremely helpful with our housing problem. FISHMAN What the hell happened to your face. EZRA I walked into a B52 jet. FISHMAN I can stay for only a few minutes. I have to catch the next plane. How can I help? EZRA You know the problem. FISHMAN Your nephew is in jail and his prospects look very unpleasant for us all. EZRA That’s not the problem. FISHMAN I’ll dispatch a lawyer However, his medical health is more troubling - according to my team of doctors. One eye is lost and his good eye is a bad gamble. EZRA I told you about his health. FISHMAN I don’t like those odds. We’ll redraft the contract and allow the doctors to make the call. EZRA Mr. Fishman . . . FISHMAN (FEIGNING ABSENTMINDEDNESS) But of course there is the refugee flight from Addis Ababa. EZRA I have no word yet from Minister Sharansky about landing rights in Tel Aviv. You promised me that he would get behind this! FISHMAN No one controls Sharanksy except his wife. EZRA My friend, 1400 frightened Falas Muras have been airborne for 2 ½ hours. There are no seats, no food or water, no crew. It must land here. FISHMAN God willing. EZRA The Minister has reversed himself yesterday and refuses to allow the plane to land. That is what he’s saying publicly. And I take Sharansky at his word. FISHMAN Under pressure by his Russian political party. You and Sonya know that. EZRA OK, OK. Let’s compromise. Sharansky can grant 1400 tourist visas to reunite the refugees with Israeli relatives for a couple of weeks. Which buys us time. FISHMAN It’ll be a nightmare trying to round them up for the return trip. I already played that card with Sharansky. EZRA Where are you sympathies? FISHMAN With everyone Jewish. Do you want me to blame you for your carelessness? SONYA (SENSES EZRA’S ANGER ABOUT TO FLARE) Ezra . . . FISHMAN Well, perhaps the plane will be diverted to an American airbase in the Mediterranean? EZRA That won’t help anyone. (TRYING TO COMPOSE HIMSELF) Call Sharansky. FISHMAN Sharansky doesn’t respect me any more. We hardly see one another. EZRA You’re his chief fund raiser outside Israel. FISHMAN He doesn’t take orders from Americans. Don’t you get it? (TO SONYA) Tell him. Tell him the truth about Sharansky. (PAUSE) Ezra, he doesn’t give a shit about these people. EZRA Pick up the phone right now. FISHMAN Sharansky’s never in his office after 2PM. (INDICATING SONYA) Why not your lovely colleague make the call? EZRA You’ve given his party a small fortune. SONYA (SARDONIC) Call Sharansky. FISHMAN With the plane in mid-flight, it’s a long shot, Ezra. Redirect the plane to Turkey, and let the U.S. military handle it. EZRA I’m not calling the plane down, Mr. Fishman. Phone Sharansky! He owes you a large favor. FISHMAN You’re fantasizing. Does the American Secretary of State know? EZRA Yes.. FISHMAN That makes all the difference. (SMILING WARMLY) Bottom line - the plane will be allowed to land in Tel Aviv. SONYA Israel has turned away planes before. FISHMAN And risk American sanctions and horrendous press? EZRA I want an insurance policy. Pick up the phone. FISHMAN You know I spent a lot of money and political capital on this airlift already. EZRA Pick up the phone. Damn it, pick up the fucking phone! FISHMAN (SLOWLY, REACHES FOR PHONE ON DESK AND PICKS UP RECEIVER) This will accomplish nothing. (BEGINS TO DIAL) It’s ringing. (HE HANGS UP) I can’t. I’m very sorry for you, Ezra. (PAUSE) I’m more important than a wayward African plane claiming a trace of Jewish blood. (GLANCES AT SONYA, AND THEN EZRA) I have my own high ethics. Remember that. (RISES TO EXIT) END OF SCENE SCENE NINETEEN (OUTSIDE FOYER OF JAIL. A GUARD WALKS ETI OVER TO DELAL AND EZRA. ETI IS IN STREET CLOTHES. THE NEXT DAY, LATE FEBRUARY) ETI They’re getting my things from a locker and I can leave. (GUARD EXITS. DELAL REACHES FOR ETI’S ARM) I don’t feel well, Ima. Leave me be. (HE RUBS HIS EYES) DELAL You look thin. ETI I’m training for Yom Kippur. DELAL Come, we’ll eat at home. EZRA There’s good news, nephew. Sheva came out of her coma. ETI (DISBELIEVING) We are still broken. EZRA Did you hear me? ETI Sheva . . . EZRA Is out of her coma. Her condition is improving. She will come through, Eti. DELAL She is stronger. You will see. EZRA You have to be patient. We’ll all go to the hospital, OK? ETI Her family thinks I’m a thief. EZRA No. They know what happened. I’ve talked to the jeweler Heshi. The police found the culprit - one of his suppliers from Tel Aviv. ETI An Ashkanazic? (PAUSE) He came to visit me in jail. The jeweler Heshi. He couldn’t look me in the face. Said a few words. Was very sad. Wanted to adopt me. Said I should come back to his shop. Hhe started to cry like he was my father. A Jewish diamond. He is Israel to me, Uncle. (PAUSE) And Fishman? EZRA He’s gone. I’m sorry. ETI (TO DELAL) My brothers and sisters are not here. DELAL You’ll see them at home. ETI They should see a jail, Ima. DELAL (EXITS BRIEFLY) I’ll get your things. ETI (PAUSE) What happened with your airlift? EZRA The Ethiopians are in quarantine at the airport hotel. We don’t know yet if the government will reconsider. ETI Reconsider? You’re a different generation, Uncle. You’ve adjusted to things here. You have mastered the language and the barriers. You’re like the white Jews. You have enough years to pass. EZRA Things are more complicated than that. (DELAL RETURNS WITH A SACK OF ETI’S THINGS) ETI Are they? END OF SCENE SCENE TWENTY (TRIPLE SPLIT STAGE: ETI VISITING SHEVA AT THE HOSPITAL, EZRA MEETING SONYA AT A HOTEL BAR, AND HESHI AT DELAL’S HOME. EARLY MARCH) EZRA Refueled and sent back last night with all 1400 wearing new sandals, caps and T shirts. Enough to make one puke. SONYA I’m truly sorry, Ezra. EZRA The Jewish Agency got involved. We had media coverage. The best negotiators. The Ethiopian community here knows the extent of what happened. They know Sharansky folded. And so did the Prime Minister. ETI (IN ANOTHER AREA) Sheva, I could peel an orange for you. SONYA God knows. Give it a rest. EZRA I can’t. ETI(IN ANOTHER AREA) It’s hard for me to eat. I used to like food so much before jail. SONYA Sharansky said he will soon go to Ethiopia for a personal inspection. That might yield 5000 visas. You did everything you can do. Finish your drink (LIGHT ON HOSPITAL CORNER WITH ETI AND SHEVA IN A WHEELCHAIR) ETI I spoke to your mother. She knows about our plans (PAUSE) I saw photos of my grandparents. My uncle gave his album to me. They’re taller than I thought. They were giants, like your grandparents. Beautiful giants, Sheva. From the tribe that wandered far south. Their faces have pain, but I see eternal beauty. My good eye works. I have a magnifying lens. (SHOWS IT FROM HIS POCKET) DELAL(IN ANOTHER AREA) He’s not here. HESHI(WITH DELAL) I’ll come back another time. It was very hard to see him in jail. ETI And for distance I can use this glass. (THE SPYGLASS IS ALREADY IN HIS HAND) And the world looks perfect. If I could paint, I could show this to you. (SHEVA STIRS, ETI PEELS THE ORANGE) SHEVA (SOFTLY) Show me. (LIGHT ON DELAL’S HOME) HESHI I blame myself. DELAL Yes. HESHI Doing business with my cousins for years. How was I to know they would take from me? I nearly died from the news. SONYA(IN ANOTHER AREA) You know I have two grown children. EZRA(WITH SONYA) You once told me a long time ago. HESHI I cannot apologize enough. I want Eti back in my shop. I want to cater the wedding, Mrs. Shlomo. I have to make up the sin. Please understand. I know how to be a better man as God is my witness. ( LIGHT ON HOTEL BAR) SONYA I let on about you. They were upset. EZRA Because of your husband? SONYA No, because you were born in Ethiopia. ETI(IN ANOTHER AREA) I still like diamonds, Sheva. SHEVA(WITH ETI) So do I. ETI If I go back to school, we’ll have to get by with just a few shekels. EZRA I’m sorry if I caused you turmoil. DELAL(IN ANOTHER AREA) My son has a future. SONYA I want to keep seeing you, Ezra. I don’t care about the risks. (SHE KISSES HIM) (LIGHT ON DELAL’S HOME) HESHI It is a bright future, my dear woman. (PAUSE) I’ll come back tomorrow. Thank you kindly. ( LIGHT ON HOSPITAL) SHEVA You’re the fastest runner in the world, my Eti. ETI I love you, Sheva. Thank you for finding me. (PAUSE) I’ve been lost for a long time. (LEANS OVER WHEELCHAIR TO KISS HER) END OF PLAY GLOSSARY FALASHA - Literal meaning, foreigner, the term referring to Jewish Ethiopians. BETA ISRAELI - The term that Jewish Ethiopians call themselves. FALAS MURA - Historical Jewish Ethiopians who have converted to Christianity. ASHKANAZIE - The family of Jews from Central Europe and Russia. KNESSET - The Israeli elected parliament. MISHIGUNAH - Yiddish term for “crazy”. ARIEL SHARON - Cabinet Minister & Army Officer who led 1980s Lebanon invasion. NATAN SHARANSKY - Cabinet Minister & celebrated Soviet emigre. MIKVAH - purification bath for Jewish women. OPERATION MOSES - First Israeli emergency airlift from Ethiopia/Sudan in 1984. OPERATION SOLOMON - Israeli airlifts from Ethiopia in 1991. STAR OF DAVID - 6 Point Jewish Star, symbol of Jewish culture and statehood. QUARA DISTRICT - Region in Ethiopia where remaining Jews reside. DOHONE - Derogatory word for frightened African Jews who converted to Christianity. LAW OF RETURN - Israel’s policy to allow any Jew an unimpeded entry into Israel. BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE FALASHA/ BETA ISRAEL Beta Israel people claim lineage to Menilek 1, the known son of King Solomon and the Queen of Sheba. It is assumed, however, that their ancestors came from Ethiopia’s Agew peoples who were converted by southern Arabian Jews around the turn of the Christian Era. These Ethiopian Jews observed Jewish practices after the conversion of the Ethiopian Kingdom of Aksum to Christianity in the 4th Century, and sadly they were persecuted and driven back to northern Ethiopia. There were sustained attempts to destroy Beta Israel in the 15th and 16th centuries, but they kept their autonomy until the 17th century when they lost their lands. In more modern times Beta Israel’s situation improved in Ethiopia’s Lake Tana area where the men work as farmers, weavers and blacksmiths and the women raise children and fashion pottery. Beta Israel have a Bible (although without the accompanying Talmudic laws) and prayer book written in the ancient Ethiopian language Ge’ez. Sabbath is observed along with many dietary laws and circumcision rites are consistently practiced. Synagogue services are conducted by “kohanim” rabbis and many of the major Jewish holidays are celebrated. The controversy of how many Ethiopian Jews have immigrated in Israel during the 1980-1992 years continues to this day. According to the Israel’s Central Bureau of Statistics, almost 45,000 Ethiopians reached the nation during that period. This should be seen in contrast to the 1952-1979 era with under 500 Ethiopian arrivals. Unquestionable, most of these people were Beta Israel/ Falasha, while others were either lacking significant Jewish affiliation or were explicit Christians. The most dramatic Israeli evacuation, Operation Moses (November 1984 - January 1985) airlifted over 6500 lives routed through neighboring Sudan. Israel’s Operation Solomon (May 1991) brought over around 14,000 Jews from Ethiopia’s capital Addis Ababa. In an Israeli newspaper expose in the winter of 1996, these Falasha immigrants were greatly humiliated by the Israeli government’s mass discarding of all donated Ethiopian blood. Clearly, the government’s chief fear was HIV contamination which was and is so prevalent in Africa. One immediate consequence was a violent protest by 10,000 Falasha individuals which led to injuries in more than 70 demonstrators and police officers. These numbers accounted for 1/6th of the 60,000 Falasha community in Israel at the time. Subsequently, the government issued a commission of inquiry chaired by former Israeli president Yitzhak Navon. In light of the Falasha phenomenon, the most pressing ongoing issue in Israel concerns how many remaining Jews are in Ethiopia’s Quara district and also how to view Ethiopia’s Falas Mura community which has strong anthropological claims to Beta Israel. Falas Mura people were either forced into Christian conversions or chose to convert over the last few generations. Typically, many Falas Mura individuals wear Christian cross tatoos on their faces as a public sign of fidelity. Because of their discernible ties to Beta Israel/Falasha, many Falas Mura families claim today that they are hounded and despised by their Ethiopian neighbors