Habima theater to perform S. Y. Agnon classic in Kiryat Arba – Hebron neighborhood.
(Image: Promotional poster from the Habima performance of A Simple Story. Credit: Habima website.)
Habima, the national theater company of Israel headquartered in Tel Aviv, will be performing a classic play at Kiryat Arba’s Performing Arts Center this November.
The legendary theater troupe, originally founded in 1912, will perform A Simple Story [Sippur Pashut], based on the novel by famous Israeli writer S. Y. Agnon. Written in 1935, the play deals with a young man in a small Jewish village in eastern Europe who falls in love with a poorer woman but is pushed into marriage to a more bourgeois woman by his family.
Agnon, the author of the tale, won the Nobel Prize for literature in 1966 “for his profoundly characteristic narrative art with motifs from the life of the Jewish people.” The award was significant as being Israel’s first Nobel Prize laureate and also because his books were written in Hebrew.
Agnon’s house in the Talpiot neighborhood of Jerusalem, now a museum, was ransacked during the riots of 1929. On August 23, 1929, the same day of the infamous Hebron massacre, Jihadists also rioted in Jerusalem and other communities.
Kiryat Arba is located next to Hebron and was founded by Hebron pioneers. The municipality released a statement regarding the performance.
“We appreciate the Habima Theater for joining the many artists and institutions who have taken a part in Zionist culture which connects all of Israeli society.
Kiryat Arba commends the management and artists of the Habima Theatre… out of the understanding that good culture is enjoyed by all people, not just a certain, small group. Kiryat Arba and Hebron is the cradle of civilization and represents the cultural heritage of the people of Israel.
In the words of veteran Labor leader Yigal Allon ‘if one does not know his past, then his present and future is uncertain.’
We invite all our residents and all supporters of Kiryat Arba and Hebron to respond to the various news articles on the subject.”
Miri Regev, the Knesset’s Ministry of Culture and Sport praised Habima for its decision “to perform in all parts of the country” stating:
“The decision to perform in Hebron for the first time exemplifies the fact that the national theater has a central role in treating all citizens of the country as equals in the right to cultural enrichment.”
The performance will take place Thursday November 10th, 2016 at the Kiryat Arba Performing Arts Center. Doors open 8:15pm, with the performance starting at 8:30pm. Tickets are 50 NIS. For more information visit the center’s website
or call 02-996-1666.
SOURCE NOTES:
* Habima to travel to Kiryat Arba – Ynet
* Theater shrugs off pressure over Hevron – Israel National News
* Kiryat Arba official statement (Hebrew)
* Kiryat Arba official statement (Hebrew)
* Kiryat Arba Cultural Center website
* Minister Miri Regev Facebook posting
* Kiryat Arba official statement (Hebrew)
* Kiryat Arba Cultural Center website
* Minister Miri Regev Facebook posting
To visit Hebron:
United States contact info:
http://www.hebronfund.org/
1760 Ocean Avenue
Brooklyn, NY 11230
718-677-6886
info@hebronfund.org
In Israel contact the offices of the Jewish Community of Hebron at:
http://en.hebron.org.il/
02-996-5333
office@hebron.com
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/hebronofficial
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