Classical composer Eric Zeisl had a tough time living in mid-20th century Los Angeles.
The somber, heavy-browed Austrian, who left Nazi-dominated Europe in 1938, stated that the two things he hated most in this world were Hitler and the sun. He was able to flee the Anschluss, but what nearly did him in was Southern California weather. Exposed to its relentless rays, Zeisl's pale skin broke out in a rash. In photographs he peers out from under sombreros and parasols -- looking mightily displeased.
Despite the climate, Zeisl remained in L.A. and in 1954 the University of Judaism commissioned him to create a biblically themed ballet, "Jacob and Rachel," in collaboration with UJ dance and drama director, choreographer Benjamin Zemach. But Zeisl's requirement for a full orchestra broke the budget, and the project went unproduced. On Tuesday at the Wadsworth Theatre in Westwood, "Jacob and Rachel" will enjoy its premiere, half a century late.
This archaeological dig into rich L.A. cultural history is being staged by the Los Angeles Jewish Symphony and the dance troupe Body Traffic. In a local rarity, the event presents modern dance accompanied by live orchestra, as Zeisl originally intended. The full-evening program, "Ernest Bloch and Eric Zeisl: Fifty Years Later," marks the 50th anniversary of Zeisl's death at age 53 in L.A. It also honors the Swiss-born Bloch, a fellow Jewish emigre represented by "Suite Modale for Flute and Strings" (1956), one of his final works before his death, in Oregon, also in 1959.
The production of "Jacob and Rachel" advances a promising new repertory dance ensemble spearheaded by Lillian Barbeito, a Juilliard-trained modern dancer, and Tina Berkett, a founding member of Mikhail Baryshnikov's Hell's Kitchen Dance. Body Traffic's highly successful prior collaboration with LAJS -- an interpretation of Arnold Schoenberg's string sextet "Verklarte Nacht" staged at Sinai Temple in Westwood -- raised critical interest in the group.
E. Randol Schoenberg is the patron behind the Zeisl project. In 2006 the attorney prevailed in an eight-year quest to wrest Nazi-looted art from the Austrian government and restore it to rightful owner Maria V. Altmann in Los Angeles. LACMA's subsequent display of Gustav Klimt paintings, including the Austrian painter's dazzling golden masterpiece "Portrait of Adele Bloch-Bauer I" focused the eyes of the art world on L.A. for a joyous -- if bittersweet -- cultural moment.
