On the Way to the Promised Land: A Dental Tragedy [Vers toi Terre promise, Tragédie dentaire]

Accompanied by a choir, a narrator recalls his appointments at a dentist's office after the war. The dentist and his wife are the victims of a painful and tragic sequence of events. Subject to anti-Jewish laws, Dr. Spodek is forced to abandon his dental practice during the war, and he is unable to reopen the practice until 1945. In the meantime, one of his daughters is deported. The other daughter, who was placed in a convent during the Holocaust, has chosen to take her vows. For the couple, who are atheists, the news comes as a shock. Gradually, the feeling sets in that they no longer belong in the country, and the idea of returning to Israel seems like the best solution.

Format: Tragicomedy

Cast Size: 4–7 characters, 2M/2F

Character breakdown:

Charles Spodek
Clara Spodek
Suzanne
Mother Superior
Mauricette
The choir
(Philippe Fretun, Antoin Mathieu, Clotilde Mllet, Christine Mourillo)

Notes:

Jean-Claude Grumberg, “Three plays. ‘The Workplace’ (‘L’Atelier’, 1979), ‘On the Way to the Promised Land’ (‘Vers toi Terre promise’, 2006) and ‘Mama’s Coming Back, Poor Orphan’ (‘Maman revient, pauvre orphelin’, 1994)”, University of Texas Press, Austin, 2021.

Revival: Théâtre du Rond point 2009: The play won the Molière award for best living Francophone playwright and the Syndicat de la critique théâtre prize.

Original or Prominent Production:
Directed by Charles Tordjman; music by Vicnet; set design by Vincent Tordjman; lighting by Christian Pinaud; costumes by Cidalia Da Costa; Aix-en-Provence (France): Théâtre du Jeu de Paume, 11-14-2008.

Original Source Material: BNF Richelieu - Typescript, 2005. 4-COL-250(317) “One of the first versions”. Typescript, [undated]. 4-COL-250(323)

Original Language: French

Publisher:

Actes Sud-Papiers, 2006.
English version: “On the Way to the Promised Land: A Dental Tragedy”, New York, USA: University of Texas Press, 2021, p.107-156.

Production Rights Holder:

Coproduced by Théâtre de la Manufacture, Nancy, Théâtre du Jeu de Paume, Aix-en-Provence, Théâtre du Rond-Point, Paris… [et al.]

Experience(s) Chronicled: Allegoric or Metaphoric Representations | Survivors and Subsequent Generations | Reactions to the Holocaust