"Hey, you work in insurance, right?".
I couldn't help but hear that question.
The questioner, a young woman, I think about 30 plus years old, was standing a few meters from me, in a store in the mall, and she addressed this question in a loud voice and with full confidence to a woman who was standing not far from her and me.
When I glanced in the direction of the questioner, an older woman but with a very impressive appearance, I saw that it was nothing less than Edna Lev.
"No, I'm not from the insurance," the veteran singer replied with a smile, perhaps hoping to put an end to this dialogue, but the questioner insists: "Are you sure? Because I really know you."
"Perhaps from the television," answered Lev, and continued on her way, maintaining poise and elegance, and I think she even managed to keep the smile on her face.
Edna Lev, photo: Coco
And I cringed, and I wanted to say something to her, but I couldn't.
Maybe say "Edna, I remember. And there are many more who remember."
But she left, pretty quickly.
If I were her, I would also run away from the tireless questioner.
I was left with my silence, and with a feeling of sourness and many thoughts about the difficulty of growing up in this field, about the years that pass, about the generations that change, about the stars that are only in the sky, because those here on earth do not always continue to shine in their full light, even when they are alive and kicking and breathing - only outside to stage
And Lev is not the only one whose public light has gone out.
There are many old artists who have not been able to preserve their careers, who do not fill halls even at the age of 70 plus, who do not release new songs to the radio and do not appear before workers' committees with their old hits.
Those who are always fun to hear and embrace who we were when we heard them, who do not fill halls even when the acting talent is still with them but no theater embraces them.
Yankel'a Ben Sira, photo: Gideon Markowitz
When the actor Yankel'a Ben Sira passed away, much was said at his funeral about the comedic talent he had, about the "charity actor" he was until his last day.
And yes, he really was a wonderful actor.
But in the last years of his life he presented his acting talent mainly to passers-by on Hanaviim Street in Tel Aviv, the street where I lived, a building next to it, a street where he would spend many hours during the day, joking with everyone who passed by, juggling old monologues and making fun of those who grew up on him or the ones who discovered him at that moment.
The late Ben Sira did not play in any theater in his last years even though he could, and even though he wanted to.
Give them a platform
I didn't ask Edna Lev if she wanted to perform, but something in me says yes, if only she were given the stage.
I watched her at the Yoram Teharlev tribute show that took place at the Bhima National Theater about a year ago, and she was wonderful.
There is a whole generation of artists here who no longer make art, but who want to and can.
Something must be done so that they get the stage they deserve, and not just talk about them and praise them after they leave the world.
When I returned home, I ran to listen to "If You Come Back", that hit of Lev's, while wondering deep in my heart how, when and if there is a chance that she will come back.
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