Wartime Diaries
Episode 16
Over and Out
- 1:11:19
- 2016
Stories of relationships that have ended, and the things (the often slightly nutty things) that people do in the aftermath.
In the last episode of Israel Story, we met couples in love. But for every story of love found, there are, of course, piles and piles of broken hearts. So today on our show, “Over and Out.” We’ve got three stories of relationships that have ended, and the things (the often slightly nutty things) that people do once they no longer see eye to eye. We’ll journey back to the early days of the State of Israel, and then travel all around the world, to London, New York, and even to Beijing.
Act I: United We Fall
Our first story, “United We Fall,” chronicles the falling apart of a tight-knit ‘family’ – the members of Kibbutz Ein-Harod, in the north of Israel. It was founded in 1921, and three decades later – in 1952 – things started to disintegrate. After years of living, farming, and fighting together, they found themselves on opposite sides of a deep ideological rift. The sense of hurt that accompanied that breakup hasn’t fully healed to this very day.
Act II: Prison Prayer
In Act II, “Prison Prayer,” Shoshi Shmuluvitz revisits her first big high-school love, Jonathan. He lived in London, she was in New York. He was into drugs and music, she was a studious introvert. But they fell hard for each other, loved intensely, and then crashed and burned. Recently, she got back in touch with him, to talk about what they had, and what they lost.
Act III: Anywhere
Act III, “Anywhere,” is about the lengths we will go to win a person back. After Mishy Harman’s girlfriend, “the one” as far as he was concerned, dumped him, he hitchhiked around the world to prove to her that he was “flexible.”
Credits
A very special thank you to Mishy’s parents, David and Dorothy Harman, who did the voiceover recordings in the kibbutz piece. Thanks to HaZira – Performane Art Arena who gave us permission to use music from their great puppet drama – “The Road To Ein Harod” – and to the musicians Guy Sherf and Rona Keinan. Thanks also to our friends at TTBOOK, Charles Monroe-Kane, Caryl Owen, Steve Paulson and Anne Strainchamps.
Closing song: Layla Dmama (“Night of Silence”). Original melody by Moshe Bik. Lyrics by Naomi Bruntman. Covered by Guy Sherf and vocals by Rona Kenan.
For more sounds of Israel, listen to our featured song.
