First I must extend my deepest gratitude and admiration to Florida Atlantic University Department of Theatre and Dance and its generous donors (including presenting sponsors Florida-Israel Institute, Palm Beach County Federations and Executive Producer Dorothy F. Schmidt College of Arts and Letters) for having the vision and, given today’s fearful, repressive climate, dare I say chutzpah to promote Israeli artists. And for their support of artistic excellence and international exchange via a two-week Boca Raton residency program between world-class Jerusalem Ballet and their own dance students (who are also scheduled to spend two weeks training and collaborating with the company in Jerusalem next summer).
But selfishly, most of all, I thank FAU for facilitating this unique opportunity for South Floridians to experience Jerusalem Ballet’s multi-sensory, varied dance style which has earned raves for its innovation, skill, and dramatic tension. Their dancers perfectly execute every routine – whether en pointe, in ballet slippers, jazz shoes or socks, in groups or via individual, gymnastic leaps and bounds. They perform beautifully in every physically expressive way possible.
I will say it outright: If you love dance in any form – traditional, modern, jazz, swing … a little tap, you’ll love this ballet company and be impressed by their American premiere of HOUDINI – The Other Side. And even if you never attended a ballet in your life, but enjoy live theater, you’ll want to experience Jerusalem Ballet’s highly theatrical and emotional rendition of renowned escape artist Houdini’s personal “other side” of life. Curious about the hidden drives behind celebrity fame or relish getting emotionally involved in another human’s story? This one’s for you, too. And for everyone, there’s the added thrill of watching breath-taking, high-flying acts and dances performed to popular tunes from American and Jewish songbooks and classical composers, all accompanied by stunning visuals.
They say: “Show don’t tell.” So now I’ll try to paint a picture of the experience of Houdini from “the other side,” i.e. his personal life. The show opens with a bang! A rising crescendo of “2001: A Space Odyssey” music plays to a pitch-black stage when, suddenly, a spotlight shines on a human form in a straitjacket hanging upside-down by his feet while descending into a locked water chamber. The dark, dramatic music continues as the man erupts – free of the jacket and locked box but still confined by long metal chains attached to his wrists and ankles.
The man, sporting a bare muscular chest and black jazz pants, is Harry Houdini. But we go back in history to when he’s still Erik Weisz, a rabbi’s young son and member of a large Jewish refugee family that escaped Budapest, Hungary, for America in 1878. The chains which now bind him are not part of an elaborate escape act, but rather depict chains to his past – specifically religious ties to his father and tradition.
Mihai Botoc, who’s a constant dancing-and-performing presence onstage, is over-the-top impressive in the titular role of Houdini. He’s often seen tumbling and flying-through-the-air like a gymnast, in addition to impressing us with traditional and original ballet routines, modern dance, jazz … he even dons tap shoes for a tap or quickstep number. By utilizing his entire body and facial expressions, he conveys all the agony of a man who’s always stretching to excel to new heights while being burdened and guilt-ridden by ethnic and familial obligations.
What I can only describe as Botoc’s “Chain Dances” are exquisitely choreographed wonders to behold, wherein his chained body is literally pulled, turned in circles, and manipulated by key company dance members. Steel chains are also employed for “tightrope” walks, for connection, and rattled in anger. In these dances, Eric Weisz/Houdini is joined by his future wife Bess, played by Anael Zateikin (Saturday) and Noa Levy (Sunday), his father, Meyer Shmuel Weiss, played by Alexander Shevtsov, his mother Cecil Weiss, played by Naama Beller (Saturday) and Alisa Zeldin (Sunday), and Jim Collins/friend & assistant Dmitrii Shevtsov.
We are taken back to Eastern Europe, and the soulful sounds of klezmer music. Houdini’s father, Meyer Weiss, with kippah (skullcap) on his head and tzitzit (knotted ritual fringes) streaming from his black tunic dances to “A Yiddishe Mame,” the haunting classic tribute to Jewish mothers everywhere.
The mood is abruptly broken (as it often is between scenes) by a loud foghorn that might also signal a ship’s departure. The Weisses have escaped to America, backed by Louis Armstrong’s quintessential freedom song, “Go Down, Moses … Let my people Go!”
Houdini started out in entertainment as a nine-year-old trapeze artist, then worked with limited success as a magician. And then we hear the sounds of mourning and the Hebrew prayer proclaiming allegiance to the one God that’s recited, morning, night, and upon meeting one’s maker, “The Sh’mah” (Listen). The promise of a new beginning is only fully embraced when 17-year-old Erik Weisz, crushed by his father’s death, rejects his mother’s offering of dad’s tallit (prayer shawl), throws off his skullcap, and reinvents himself as Harry Houdini, the world’s greatest escape artist who can’t be confined by any padlock, bindings or chains (including the infamous Chinese Water Torture Cell).
And for a while, happy days lie ahead as Harry tours his act and falls in love with show dancer Bess who would become his wife and on-stage assistant. Their joyous union is reflected in “Forget your troubles, come on get happy!” a jazzy number performed by the Jerusalem Ballet ensemble in bright orangey tops and puffy black tutus, hats, and canes. And then Mihai Botoc (Houdini) comes out in tap shoes and delights us with his expertise in this dance form as well.
A near-death experience, in which Harry promises Bess to stop the tricks that endanger his life, also brings us closer, once again, to his constant stalker, the Angel of Death – always en pointe and ironically dressed all in white. Played, and danced, to perfection by Dina Giber and Avital Barsukov, her movements are accompanied by the regular chimes of a ticking clock, as if ticking down the passage of time till one’s last breath. She’ll join Houdini in his ultimate death dance at the end. But first his friend and assistant, Dmitrii Shevtsov, lightens the mood with an impressive, humorous solo.
Did I mention this show has most EVERY type of music and dance? We also enjoy Glenn Miller’s peppy swing band number, “In the Mood.” Techno music plays after a séance when grief-stricken Houdini attempts to contact his mother who’d passed while he was away on tour, but soon realizes it’s all a farce. And I couldn’t help thinking of our “Day of the Dead” celebrations, coming up soon, when similarly masked revelers fill the streets to those depicted in what I call Houdini’s “Devils Dance.” But in place of boisterous Mexican music, the Houdini dancers move to plaintive Klezmer sounds of the past, till the insistent chimes of the ticking-clock hand/Angel of Death returns to claim her next victim. And we return to where we started, with Harry Houdini chained to his family – but this time only his eternal spirit breaks free to rise above the husk of his abandoned body.
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Jerusalem Ballet’s special two-weekend event features two outstanding, original ballets (Houdini and Memento) by Israel’s premiere, award-winning company (whose work by its Bolshoi Ballet-trained dancer, teacher, choreographer and co-founder Nadya Timofeyeva was also featured in the 2019 documentary, Underground Ballet).
Before introducing us to Nadya, who served as this series’ artistic director/choreographer with ballet master/deputy artistic director Martin Schõnberg (both of whom couldn’t say enough in praise of their young dancers’ creative energy and total commitment to their art), we were welcomed by FAU’s assistant professor of dance Aidan Nettles. Who proceeded to warn the audience that this opening act was purposely designed to be difficult, even challenging, in order to evoke a sense of tension, fear and trepidation.
Obviously, it reflects the inner struggles and conflicts of Houdini’s early life. But the ballet’s choreographer was likely also taking her cues, consciously and unconsciously, from her country’s pervasive sense of danger, anger, and feeling stuck in an untenable situation after the October 7 Hamas massacre. During the ensuing “bunker years,” both rehearsals and performances were planned for quick access to safe rooms when sirens blared, warning of incoming rocket attacks.
