[usr 4]
Writer, composer and director Joanna Weinberg and Emanuel Synagogue’s joint collaboration has turned the tragic story of the expulsion of the Jews into a most entertaining, sometimes light-hearted musical. It’s a fascinating and entertaining musical, presenting the historical timeline from the Spanish Inquisition then on to Lisbon, Antwerp, Venice and Constantinople. There is wonderful singing by all, but particularly Dylan Hayley Rosenthal playing La Luna.
Born in 1510 in Portugal Gracia Nasi Mendes became a merchant trader and one of the richest women in the world. She used her wealth to help refugees escape the Inquisitions across Europe. She was the 16th Century’s Schindler. From Constantinople she assumed the leadership of the Sephardi Jewish world of the Ottoman Empire.
This is a wonderful example of how a small stage space, with large audience surrounds, can provide vibrant theatre. About three square meters for the actors to perform and another few meters for the three musicians, this production is an inspiration to producers looking for small performance spaces that have large audience seating. Let’s see more productions in new spaces. Perhaps these spaces are where innovative theatre is born,and where the audience feels part of the action as the performers race down the aisles to the stage, call lines from behind the audience, and sit on the edge of the stage close to the audience.
The cast was Dylan Hayley Rosenthal, Amy Hack, Elaine Morel, Laurie-Ann Wooley, Joanne Haycraft, Rebecca Spicer, Shameer Birges, Brian Lansworth, Aaron Robuck, Laurie-Ann Wooley, Annerose de Jong and Geoff Sirmai, accompanied by Michelle Goldman on the keyboard, Jeremy Cook on percussion and Llew Kiek on the lutes and guitar.
Special congratulations to costume designer Brendan de la Hay. What an imagination! The huge turban on Suleiman the Magnificent, giving opportunity for humorous one-liners causing chortles from the audience. The cape for Pop Paul III and all his other costumes brought a sense of satire and pasquinade.
LA LUNA may be set in the 1500s but it may as well have been written about today. Each of the rulers, Spain, Dutch, French, the Pope and Suleiman the Magnificent, complained about needing money for the wars they were forced to fight, begging the question, of course, why fight in the first place? These little quips had a powerful impact on the audience, reminding us of our very own AUKUS deal costing over $380 Billion. But let’s not go there.
Carol Dance’s review is of the performance that took place at the Emanuel Synagogue on the 25th March 2023.
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