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THE SHEPHERD KING1,
by Leizer Treister
(Yiddish: Der pastech-kenig)
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“The
Shepherd King" is a biblical drama
in two parts and fourteen scenes,
written by Leizer Treister, with music by
Sholom Secunda.
It was staged
by Maurice Schwartz at the Yiddish
Art Theatre on 111 East Houston
Street in New York City and opened
on 12 October 1955, with
choreography by Belle Didjah;
settings and costumes by Saul Raskin;
settings painted by Mabel A. Beull;
Technical Director, Morris
Strassberg.
Along
with Maurice Schwartz, the cast included:
Sara
Gingold, Leon Shechter, Dora Kalinova, David
Ellin, Sonia Zomina, Frances Schwartz [Maurice
Schwartz's adopted daughter], Sheftel Zak,
Rosetta Bialis, Menachem Rubin, Gustave Berger,
Miriam Kressyn, Yudel Dubinsky, Morris
Strassberg, Edmund Zayenda, Jacob Zanger, Rose
Shoshana, Jacob Fisher, and Gina Goodwin. |
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photo:
Miriam Kressyn and Maurice Schwartz
in "The Shepherd King", 1955.
From the Museum of the City of New
York. |
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So, here is the
synopsis of Treister's "The Shepherd King". The
name of the actor who portrayed a particular
role is indicated in parentheses):
FOREWORD
Saul, the Shepherd (Maurice
Schwartz), had been crowned king by
the Prophet, Samuel, under pressure
of the people, who wanted a King
like other nations. During a clash
with the Philistines, the King had saved a young
Israelite dancer, Ritzpah (Miriam Kressyn), from
their abuse, and brought her to the palace as
his concubine. The Queen, Ahinoam (Dora Kalinova),
humiliated, secluded herself in a remote part of
the palace, maintaining contact only with their
children, Jonathan (David Ellin), Mayrav (Sonia
Zomina) and Michal (Frances Schwartz). The King,
under the spell of Ritzpah's charm was ignorant
of her love affair with his cousin, Abner
(Gustav Berger), the young, shrewd commander of
the king's hosts, who, returned her love. Her
burning ambition was to wrest the crown from
King Saul, to crown Abner, and thus become
queen. |
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photo: Maurice Schwartz, as King
Saul, "The
Shepherd King".
From the
playbill cover of the 1955
production. |
The King,
compelled by Samuel (Jacob Fisher), reluctantly
continued to wage ruthless wars. He loathed to
shed the blood of old men, women and children,
and he suffered in silence. He began to doubt
that Samuel's commands were truly those of the
Lord because the Almighty is a God of
Compassion. When Samuel ordered the King to
annihilate the Amelekites, he disobeyed. He
carried off their herds, took the women and
children into captivity and brought King Agag
into the palace as hostage against further
molestation. Samuel, in a fury, slayed King Agag
in the kingly palace. The sight of this
bloodshed unnerved the peaceful Saul.
Samuel, gravely
ill, had inserted a decree in his will against
the King, to be read to the people after his
death by the High Priest, Ahimelech (Menachem
Rubin) to the effect that King Saul be dethroned
and his heirs never to wear the crown. When the
King learned of this decree, he cast off his
armor, determined not to war against the
Philistines.
PART ONE
The forsaken
Queen, Ahinoam, greatly perturbed, sends for her
children in the middle of the night to learn
from them why the King had refused to wage war
on the enemy!
The King, learning
the truth of the prophet's decree from the High
Priest, Ahimelech, orders him confined in the
palace, and rushes off to his star-gazer, the
Edomite, Zelek, to read to him what the stars
foretell about his destiny. During his absence,
the lovers Ritzpah and Abner are conspiring
against the King. Upon the King's return, he
confides to his mother, Naomi (Rosetta Bialis),
that the star-gazer foretold his downfall. Since
he had always yearned to return to his pastures
as a shepherd, he feels now that it is time to
abdicate. He thereupon asks Ritzpah to come with
him, but she considers him insane, and joyously
believes that the crown is now within Abner's
reach.
The now-repentant
King suddenly makes his way to his estranged
Queen, and appeals to her to return with him to
relive the happy days of their youth as
shepherds; his children are bewildered at his
demands. The Queen, anxious to save the crown,
urges their son, Jonathan, to hasten to Samuel
to seek anointment. Jonathan believes that his
father's distress stems from the sense of shame
because there is no one in Israel to accept the
taunting challenge of the giant, Goliath, and
seeks his father's permission to fight the
Giant. The King refuses to risk his son's life,
but sends him to the Prophet Samuel to be
anointed as King. Upon reaching the prophet's
hut, Jonathan learns of Samuel's death!
Jonathan returns
to the palace to report to his father what the
High Priest read in the will of the prophet,
Samuel: that Ritzpah and Abner are plotting to
get the crown, that the Palace is a house of
sin, and that a young shepherd, David (Edmund
Zayenda), of Bethlehem, will inherit the crown!
The King,
infuriated at the news, orders his son to leave,
and tells his mother, Naomi, that he does not
believe that David would inherit his crown, that
should David be victorious over the Philistine
giant, Goliath, it would be a sign that the
Almighty is with the King, and not with the
deceased prophet.
The miracle
occurs. David destroys the Philistine.
Accompanied by jubilant shepherds, David brings
the head of Goliath to the palace. The King
elevates David to be his chief commander in
Abner's place. He also offers him his younger
daughter, Michal, in marriage. The King then
asks David to sing and play the harp. When David
chants one of his favorite shepherd psalms, King
Saul is struck by the divine spirit of the
chant, but in a fit of jealousy and apprehension
for his crown, terminates the celebration.
PART TWO
The King is
convinced that God is with him because of
David's victory. Fearful of God, and to appease
His wrath against misbelievers, such as the
stargazers and sorcerers, he determines to have
them annihilated. The Queen, unhappy by the
King's decision to give his youngest daughter,
Michal as wife to David, appears before the King
to plead for the elder daughter, Mayrav who,
according to tradition, is entitled to be
married off first. Loving both daughters, the
King regrets that he has erred, and decides to
give his younger daughter, Michal, to the
commander, Adriel (Jacob Zanger), head of the
tribe of Judea. When Michael, greatly in love
with David, learns of her father's decision, she
decides to leave the palace and bids a final
goodbye to her brother, Jonathan. She hears the
singing of the people as David returns from
Bethlehem, where he had visited his father and
brothers. She begs Jonathan not to reveal her
decision to David and hurries away. David and
Jonathan greet each other with joy. David looks
forward with eager anticipation to the wedding
with Michal, unaware of her flight.
The King, fearing
David's great popularity with the people, is
shaken by jealousy, and cannot find repose day
or night. Ritzpah incites the King against
David: "He is beloved by the people and you and
your crown prince are hated. David will soon
wrest the crown from you. Destroy him together
with the High Priest. They are plotting your
downfall!" She persuades him to reappoint Abner
as the chief commander of Israel's hosts and to
banish David as a traitor!
At a general
assembly in his throne room, King Saul, in great
agitation, throws his spear at David, but
misses. He then orders David banished to the
wilderness for life, and dooms Ahimelech with
all his priests and their families. The people,
outraged, storm the palace and kill Doeg (Leon
Shechter), the head of the King's herdsmen.
Abner flees and joins the Philistines on Mount
Gilboa to wage war against the King in order to
win his crown!
King Saul, in
despair, goes to the only surviving sorceress of
Ein Dor (Rose Shoshana), who conjures up the
spirit of Samuel, who foretells King Saul's doom
and also affirms that all his commands came from
the Lord, and that the anointment of David was
also God's will. The King, aghast, cries out:
"Why did you impose kingship upon me? I was
happy as a shepherd! It was you who ruled the
throne, not I!" Despite his awareness of his
approaching end, the King hastens to Mount
Gilboa to oppose the Philistines. There he hears
the approaching enemy and determines to die by
his own hand, rather than be taken prisoner.
David routes the
Philistines and captures the traitorous Abner
and Ritzpah. In the battle, Jonathan and his two
younger brothers are killed. In awe, David
stands before the body of King Saul. Bitterly he
execrates Mount Gilboa, where the heroes fell.
Deeply affected he eulogizes the King and his
son, Jonathan and, with humility, bows to the
Lord's will that he be King of Israel. |
