“How camest thou in this pickle?”
William Shakespeare, The Tempest, Act V, Scene I
In Hebrew the word for occupation is “Kibush” a homophone to the verb for the act of preserving food in vinegar or brine, known as pickling. As conjugation would have it, the word for “occupied” and the word for pickled foods is identical: Kvushim. Shakespeare certainly has the right question – how did we come to be in this pickle? As for answers…
Tmuna Theatre is known for tackling the provocative, the strange, the beautiful, the funny and the political, especially in their annual A-Genre festival, with performances and installations that go beyond classic fringe. One distinctive tradition of A-Genre, which has taken place since 2005, is that the performances occupy every space within the theatre, from the bar to the foyer and even on occasion, out into the street. Occupation, the Occupation, is the theme of this year’s A-Genre festival, which will take place from March 18 – 22, 2014, and will begin with – what else? A festive meal of pickled food, the guest performance Beit Bliaa.
Deufert & Plischke will explore the relations between art and power in the festival’s closing event on Saturday, March 22nd, presenting The Entropic Insitute. According to my info, the duo from Berlin do not practice traditional theatre, but rather create a dynamic environment of spectators and performers – precisely what this means will be seen next Saturday. The Entropic Institute will include a workshop, choreography, march and masked ball, and relate to the Greek myth of Arachne, who was punished by Athena for her hubris in depicting the abuses of power among the gods. Deufert & Plischke will also conduct a four day workshop from March 16 – 19 at Kelim in Bat Yam, their participation in the festival is co-sponsored by Tmuna Theatre, the Goethe Institute and Moves Without Borders.
The festival’s participants explore artistically the ways in which the occupation is an integral part of everyday life in Israel, inescapable, it affects every aspect of perception, thought, and action, whether consciously or unconsciously. There will be a lot going on throughout the weekend, with two programs of works in addition to installations that will be ongoing.
The schedule:
Tuesday, March 18th at 20:00 Beit Bli’ah opening event.
Wednesday, March 19th at 20:00 Program Aleph
Thursday, March 20th at 18:00 A Discussion on Occupation and Shame; 20:00 Program Aleph
Friday, March 21st at 12:00 Program Bet; 15:00 Program Aleph; 20:00 Program Bet
Saturday, March 22nd at 16:00 The Entropic Institute; 20:00 Program Bet
Tickets are 65 NIS per program (the 4 hour Entropic Institute is 80 NIS) and may be purchased online, or call: 03-5611211.
