A light through the darkness

For Simon Starr, the core inspiration for A Path to the Light – HaDerech el Ha’Or – is deeply rooted in a quote by Viktor Frankl. The message that “no one can control our inner world, our imaginations and dreams belong only to ourselves, and we can define the narrative of our perceived reality. Regardless of what external circumstances are imposed upon us.”

Through a collaboration between voices that are around today and voices of those who were stifled or extinguished during the Holocaust, A Path to the Light, presented by the Lamm Jewish Library of Australia, ensures the words and thoughts of the Jews of Theresienstadt are remembered.

“It felt like such an important message to communicate and share – it’s an eternal state that we can aspire to,” Starr told The AJN. “The idea was for the music to reflect the writings of the children, Viktor Frankl, the many artists and thinkers who were in Theresienstadt, a lot of which weren’t consumed by the difficulties and tremendous challenges of day to day life there, but to include reference to the richness of our inner worlds. Not too heavy, not too light, just right.”

As Starr pointed out, Jews still lived, created, performed, thought and wrote during that time. And despite the hardships endured, there was so much light that shone through, “generated from our inner light”.

In 2023, the musician was approached by the War Memorial to create performances to commemorate the Shoah. A show was performed at the Concert Hall with the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra, and while HaDerech el Ha’Or was supposed to be performed at the same time, the show was cancelled. The venue that was producing it didn’t want to be associated with something Jewish in a post-October 7 world.

A Path to the Light will feature performances by Lior, Deborah Conway Willy Zygier, Paul Grabowsky Anita Lester, Luke Howard and Simon Tedeschi, among others, presenting the thoughts and writings of Viktor Frankl, Ilse Weber, Friedl Dicker-Brandeis, as well as the Theresienstadt children’s poetry, diaries and artwork.

Projections of artwork from Theresienstadt will complement the music, providing an immersive experience that brings their voices to life.

Starr sees the performance as an opportunity for Jewish artists in Australia, many of whom have faced doxxing, antisemitism, negative press and have been “actively ostracised”.

“Many Australian Jewish artists have been in much reduced circumstances since October 7. The almost universal shunning of any Jewish artist who is proud of being Jewish, and who thinks of Israel, despite everything, as a safe refuge for us, has meant that so many Jewish artists have little to no work from the non-Jewish artistic community, and indeed are actively ostracised,” he said, explaining A Path to the Light as an opportunity to show strength and solidarity.

The whole team behind the production, including the artists themselves, hope the concert brings a sense of hope to the audience.

“We are hoping that first and foremost, people will love the music, and feel less alone, more hopeful, more resilient,” Starr explained. “That they will come away feeling like we will get through this, whatever the path looks like. That it will genuinely be a path to a light, a light that we create, and will help illuminate the path for whoever else needs some comfort and strength in these very very challenging times.”

For Starr, it also helps ensure that history will never be forgotten. “History repeats, both for good and bad,” he pointed out, explaining that A Path to the Light also shines a light on Theresienstadt itself, showing that while it was not the model camp the Nazis tried to make it out to be, the Jews of Theresienstadt found a path to light for themselves.

“This will be a memorable night, as well as hopefully, the beginning of a wave of optimism, agency and action,” Starr promised. “We can’t control the prejudices of others, their ignorance and hatred. We can only control our own inner worlds. That responsibility is considerable, and the more we focus on this, the brighter the positivity we will emanate.”

A Path to the Light – HaDerech el Ha’Or – is on Wednesday November 19 at 7:30pm. BOOK TICKETS.