Pintele updates 1 - 4
Over the last couple of months, I’ve posted occasional Pintele updates on Facebook — partly to keep my friends informed, but more as an accountability tool, on the theory that if I keep talking about this project I’ll have no choice but to finish it and release it. Given the ephemeral nature of social posts, and the instability of oligarch-controlled platforms like Facebook, I thought I’d collect those updates here too. So, the first four official Pintele updates are below, and future updates will also be published here at noahdiamond.com/pintele.
Pintele update #1
December 3, 2024
Early in 2022, I was working on what I thought would be a solo stage show about Jewish identity, with the working title Pintele. I filled up some notebooks, and wound up with far too much for an evening. But it wasn’t a book; too much of it clearly had to be performed out loud. I put it aside to work on If You Get Near a Song, Play It and then Marxfest. By the time I was able to return to the Jewish identity project, the subject seemed fraught. I didn’t want to write about October 7 or Gaza, but it seemed impossible not to.
And then, a fascist took the American presidency, after promising to put immigrants in concentration camps. He’s long enjoyed the support of neo-Nazis; in 2017, his supporters marched in Charlottesville, waving Nazi and Confederate flags and chanting “Blood and soil” and “Jews will not replace us.” At other events, including the January 6, 2021 terrorist attack on the United States Capitol, they wore tee shirts that said “Camp Auschwitz” and “Six Million Wasn’t Enough.” This year, their führer declared that if he lost the election, American Jews should be blamed. Perhaps it’s exactly the right time for a piece about solidarity with victims of oppression, particularly those living disadvantaged lives under autocratic regimes.
But Pintele (or whatever I wind up calling it) isn’t all about Nazism, theocracy, and the middle east. Some of it is really funny! It’s mostly about childhood, the search for meaning and identity, Passover, Fiddler on the Roof, The Jazz Singer, Spaceballs, and the twentieth-century exodus from the Pale of Settlement to the United States. Let’s shtetl this once and for all!
And it’s a podcast — a limited series, six episodes. That seems like the right medium for a spoken word piece that’s too long for one or two sittings.
Anyway, now that I’ve talked about it publicly I’ll have to finish it. Coming your way in early 2025.
Pintele update #2
December 22, 2024
I’ll keep posting these occasional progress reports about the Pintele project, not because I think you’re so anxious to hear about it, but as an accountability tool for myself. If I keep talking about this I will have no choice but to finish it!
It’s going to be seven parts, not six. I’m not adding a new part, just dividing an overgrown part into two. I had wanted an even number of episodes, but Amanda told me that seven is a meaningful number, and I’ve since learned that in traditional Judaism it’s considered the number of completion. So I may later pretend to have intended this.
I’m hoping to use the holidays to finish the writing. There’s one major section left to write, plus numerous places where I’ve written things like Nixon story goes here, or Make this funnier. Then I’ll spend some weeks reading it aloud and working with Amanda on the performance, with the goal of getting all seven scripts recorded by the end of February. Producing them from there will be a big job (but fun), with many musical and editorial challenges, but I hope to start releasing the episodes by the beginning of April.
I feel increasingly happy with Pintele as the title — I like everything about it, except that it’s an obscure term and not very descriptive, so it might need one of those long, obnoxious, keyword-laden subtitles. But it’s hard to sum this thing up in a phrase that doesn’t somehow give the wrong impression. I’m not sure.
I’m not presuming that the finished product will have this effect on others, but for what it’s worth, I keep making myself cry while working on it. It certainly goes to more personal and more dangerous places than other things I’ve written. And there’s just a lot of material packed into it, which is a luxury of the format. The finished written length will probably be about 50,000 words, while 400 Years in Manhattan, a densely-written 90-minute stage monologue, is about 12,000 words.
Anyway, I’m saying it again: I shall finish writing this by the end of 2024! (I mean, it’s okay if I keep polishing after that, though...)
Pintele update #3
January 1, 2025
Well, the best-laid plans...
As you might recall, I’d intended to use the holiday time off to finish the principal writing of all seven scripts for Pintele. But as it’s turned out, I’ve spent much of this time fighting a nasty cold. I should have known this would happen; it happens every Christmas. So a lot of this time which I was hoping to spend writing, I’ve instead spent coughing, sneezing, and sleeping.
I’ve still managed to do most of the writing I’d planned. The seven scripts are now complete — at least in the sense that they go from beginning to end with no big pieces missing. But the newer stuff still needs work. Some of the older stuff needs work too. Also, there’s a key section which depends on getting permission to use a specific piece of audio, and if I’m unable to, I’ll have to rethink and rewrite a major chunk.
Several nights ago, I read the first three scripts out loud for Amanda — and the next day was the beginning of Holiday Head Cold 2024. So that’s all the progress we’ve made on that side too. I’m not sure what impact the lost time might have on the schedule I outlined in my last update — maybe none; we’ll see.
Here are the titles of the seven episodes, at least until I change them:
Straight Outta Anatevka
God and Other Gods
A Very Brody Passover
Pintele Yid
The Old Jewish Man of Unity
Tyrants Disappearing
Next Year in Manhattan
And yes, that is a photograph of me as Tevye in Fiddler on the Roof when I was twelve. I made the beard by cutting up an ALF costume.
All this and more will be explained, in the first episode of Pintele!
Happy New Year, my friends — though that phrase has rarely rung hollower than it does now. But I hope you’ve had a happy and peaceful first day of what is certain to be a catastrophic year. We’ll survive it together. And come to think of it, that’s one of the main themes of this new work which I’m so looking forward to sharing with you.
Pintele update #4
February 1, 2025
This weekend’s Pintele update is a little skimpy, though it’s a chance to show off this nifty new Yiddish theatre-inspired graphic — evidence that the audio-only nature of this project won’t stop me from finding visuals to tinker with when I should be writing.
With the writing, I’m still pretty much where I was at the time of my last update: making lots of small changes, and adding new details revealed by research or reflection. In December, I set a goal of recording all seven scripts by the end of February. That still seems possible, but I’ll forgive myself if it takes a little longer.
Predictably, there are passages which have already needed rewrites in light of breaking news — mostly in Part Six, “Tyrants Disappearing.”
As always, music is a crucial element, and it’s been a pleasure to immerse myself in over a century of great Jewish music. The music of Pintele includes classics from the golden age of Yiddish theatre, Jazz Age pop, and some extraordinary recordings by contemporary Yiddish artists who have generously granted permission to include their work. I’m still looking for a few of these.
I think I’ll have more specific updates in the weeks ahead, as the “still writing and making tiny changes” phase has just about run its course.
