Playing with with AB Yehoshua, Ben-Gurion and Jabotinsky

AB Yehoshua's play, "Shall The Two Go Together", which I commented on when it appeared in England,  made an appearance at the Knesset by invitation of the Speaker of the Knesset Ruby Rivlin.

I got Yehoshua to autograph the play:

Photo credit: TDarmon


Some two dozen former MKs and a similar number of current MKs were present, two former Supreme Court Presidents and the current President, Ministers, and other public figures crowded the Knesset auditorium.  Eight employees of the Begin Center, too.

The play, actually, is quite good and the actors were excellent.  I am not sure the fictitious Maryusa was that necessary as a dramatic device.

At the end there was a panel discussion with Yehoshua and President Peres and Speaker Rivlin moderated by Professor Shlomo Avineri.

I learned that:

a) Bullie Yehoshua was Rivlin's madrich in the Scouts in Rehavia;

b) that Avineri was Rivlin's high school teacher;

c) that Peres is still an unyielding Ben-Gurionist as he roundly defended BG as a statesman and leader while accusing Jabotinsky of proposals for political activity that were impractical.  When he rhetorically asked if the Yishuv could fight the British, and to be fair he was referring to the late 1930s, Geula Cohen nevertheless shouted out a 'yes!'. He termed the Histadrut as the state in reflection and that BG's socialism wasn't really an economic program but more social.  At one point, even Yehoshua seemed to want to disagree but couldn't get a word in although he raised the microphone to his mouth.

^