Hey Everybody. Well we are doing it thanks to your generous help. By Tuesday morning, November 18, we passed the $3000 target we had set over the previous weekend. Then the afternoon of November 26 we hit $5000. YAY!!! Please contribute ASAP so that we can reach our goal in this final day of our campaign. The clock is ticking! Thanks again to all of you - Jim
MORE NEWS:
"The First Light" project has launched a "Say NO to Endless War"
campaign with silent peace processional events around the Bay Area.
We
are committed to the interface between arts and activism through this
project. We encourage you to join us in supporting this important work,
as well as in participating directly. Our next event is today, Saturday, November 29, at 12:30 PM, at Castro and 18th streets in San Francisco. Weather permitting, of course.
![]()
![]()
Hello, my name is Jim Berenholtz.
THE FIRST LIGHT is a theatrical work-in-progress that originally emerged out of "The First Light Pilgrimage for a Nuclear Free Planet”.
I spearheaded this pilgrimage with other San Francisco-based performing artists Nancy Wang and Robert Kikuchi-Yngojo, along with Hiroshima survivor Takashi Tanemori in the summer of 1999.
Between 1999 and 2000 I developed a basic storyline, and wrote and recorded three songs, which I share here as a perk.
The story of "The First Light" spans the entire Nuclear Age, from 1945 until now, and explores not only the nuclear issue, but the very roots of war and violence that are so embedded in the human experience.
Following the onset of the Fukushima nuclear disaster, which is tragically still not over, I have felt the call to finish developing the characters, writing the script, and composing the rest of the music for the show.
The initial funding goal will provide the seed money I need to do a detailed outline of all the characters and scenes in the show, with complete text for at least a few scenes, plus composing and recording of three more new songs for the show. These new songs include the titles "Fukushima is Here", "The Violence Inside Us", and "Dracula's Drug".
Then, with seven complete songs plus a substantial amount of the script, I will shop THE FIRST LIGHT to theater companies or producers, and get the backing I need to fully finish the work.
In short, this funding will help cover my living costs so I can focus my energy on creating, as well as pay for a preliminary recording of the three new songs.
Please don't delay. The time is now.
With your support of THE FIRST LIGHT, I will explore and illuminate what is certainly one of the most critical issues of our time.
Even simply sharing this campaign with your friends and family will help!
Thank you for being an agent of positive change.
SPECIAL VIEWING TODAY!!!-Here's an example of one of my past theatrical productions. Excerpts from the 2003 Hollywood performance of "Temple of the Cosmic Serpent", a ritual dance theatre extravaganza created by Jim Berenholtz along with a diverse team of dancers, musicians and live snakes.
