The Fate of a Star

B"H

The great thing about Tel Aviv is that the faces of the inhabitants already tell the personal story of a person. Just look into the faces and you can read a lot or at least, imagine that you do. And in case you see nothing, be patient and soon exciting events are going to happen. Tel Aviv is never boring and there are always stories to tell.

In Jerusalem it is the Ben Yehudah Mall, and in Tel Aviv it is the entrance to the Carmel Market. Right at the corner Allenby / Sheinkin. The huge Carmel Market is definitely one of the excitements in downtown Tel Aviv, and any comparison to its counterpart, the Jerusalem Machane Yehudah Market, would be totally out of place. Both markets have its unique character but the Carmel is much more exciting and colourful. On the other hand, the entrances to the Jerusalem market are constantly guarded by the army whereas the Carmel Market is only under police surveillance on Fridays, right before Shabbat.

There is always something going on at the square in front of the Carmel Market. And if, for a change, not too much is going, you can always watch Chabad or Breslov standing there. Last Friday afternoon, however, the square was more than busy. Full of people doing their shopping for Shabbat or just enjoying life. "La'asot Chaim - לעשות חיים", we say in Hebrew.

When I got to the square, a group of young people dressed in freaky uniforms had just started their concert. About ten guys with big and small drums and tambourines stood in a circle and started playing. It didn't even take a second and the group got all the attention. They played well but loud. The noise obviously disturbed one of the elderly guys sitting on the nearby benches and he came over to complain. While shouting, the old guy was throwing around his arms and we all thought that he would hit one of the drummers. The audience got upset and asked the drummers to continue whereas the old guy eventually gave up and left. The members of the band, however, were quite embarrassed, and one of them said that the whole situation, people complaining about the noise, wasn't too pleasant. But eventually the continued playing.

A few meters far away, a female singer was giving her concert. I walked over to have a look and as soon as I saw her I thought: "Isn't she so - and - so ?"
I was already about to ask one of the bystanders but the loudspeaker prevented me from doing so. She had put it on full volume and nothing else besides her and her music, could be heard. But then I saw a notebook laying in front of the singer. On the front page it said her name in a spidery handwriting.
I was right with my guess. It was her.

In Israel, almost everyone knows her; abroad she is unknown.
I am talking about Miri Aloni.

Just to bring her back into your minds: Miri Aloni is or was one of the greatest and most colourful Israeli pop stars. She had a few hits and used to be quite good. However, a certain event made her almost famous all over the world. It was Miri Aloni singing with the previous Prime Minister Yitzchak Rabin only minutes before he was killed. Mrs. Aloni and Y. Rabin stood together with other politicians and celebrities on the balcony of the Tel Aviv municipality in Ibn Gavirol Street and all of them were singing together "Shir Le'Shalom". A song through which Miri Aloni became known to everyone and whoever sees the singer today, will automatically be reminded of that particular night in November 1995.

It might be the case that ever since, people have been more identifying her with the Rabin assassination than with herself and her songs. And there are always times when a singer is out of fashion and doesn't get any job offers anymore. Exactly this happened to Miri Aloni after some time and for the past few years, she has been sitting at public places in Tel Aviv and giving her concerts as a street singer.

But don't make the mistake and think that Miri Aloni is an ordinary street singer who places a little box in front of herself in order to earn a few Shekels. Miri Aloni was a star, she still is and she will always be. She is definitely not what you would call a "lady" but rather an introverted hippie.

And a star, of course, needs a stage.
Before Miri starts her performance, she is busy building her own stage. She sets up a blue carpet and places plastic stools around it. This way, people can sit down and enjoy her songs. And maybe give some more money as well. Everything is in a complete order: the loudspeaker, the microphone, the plastic stools and her freaky black handbag placed on a separate stool.

White trousers, coloured shirt, sunglasses which could fit a Hollywood diva, and long blond curly hair, this is how she was dressed up last Friday. She sang all her songs including "Shir Le'Shalom" but somehow she couldn't really get hold of the loudspeaker. Full volume and making funny noises from time too time. It didn't bother the audience too much but sometimes it still was very disturbing.

How old would Miri Aloni be today ? In her sixties at least, but we shouldn't discuss the age of a star.

After a while, something seemed to disturb her. She got up and we thought that this is it. A guy asked what happened but Miri Aloni didn't answer him. It was as if she was in trance or if he didn't exist. Slowly she walked over to the drum players.
"Is she going to complain ?", I asked the guy who didn't seem to exist for the singer.
"No, she is going to start a big fuzz. Just wait and see", he responded.

And this is exactly what happened. Miri Aloni started yelling at the drum players. They started to get embarrassed again but soon the embarrassment turned into anger.
"Who are you and who am I ? I am a star and you are nothing."
Only a few minutes later, the drum players gave up and moved somewhere inside the market. Mrs. Superstar, on the other hand, returned to her little "living room" and continued singing just if nothing had happened. She had won the argument and was proud of her performance. Her audience wasn't upset about her behaviour but enjoyed listening to her songs.

Should she be ashamed of herself because she sings in the streets of Tel Aviv and not in big concert halls ? Once she used to be a real star but in the meantime, others have taken over.
Is this a reason to be ashamed ?

Not for Miri Aloni. Once a star - always a star. And Miri Aloni is still a star. Even in front of the Carmel Market.