The Philadelphia Orchestra's tour of Europe and Israel is done: What did we learn?
The Philadelphia Orchestra wanted relevance. It got relevance. In December, as the ensemble was readying plans to visit Israel this June on its 2018 tour, President Trump controversially recognized Jerusalem as Israel's capital. In March, as the tour's departure approached, a campaign of protests began in Gaza that would escalate into the worst bloodshed in years as, over the next couple of months, Israeli troops killed more than 100 Palestinians after warning protesters to steer clear of the border fence. And so the orchestra was swept up into a larger discourse in which much more was at stake than good reviews. Security, access to the kinds of outreach events the orchestra wanted to undertake, and the tightrope-walk of managing the orchestra's reputation were all up for grabs. By April, pro-Palestinian protesters in support of the international BDS movement (boycott, divest, and sanction) began demonstrating in front of the Kimmel Center, urging the cancellation … [Read more...] about The Philadelphia Orchestra's tour of Europe and Israel is done: What did we learn?