The Israel Festival will take place this year from July 1 – 24, 2025. Although the word “festival” is associated with celebrations, and we do not feel like celebrating in these war-torn days, I do feel that art has an important role in our lives – through art we can become more deeply in the issues and events that confront us, find new perspectives, healing, and hope. This year’s festival engages intimately with the Israeli reality, both in its content, and the breadth of its reach. Performances will take place throughout the country, in Jerusalem, Majdal Shams, Kiryat Shmona, Kibbutz Kfar Blum, Tel Hai College, Ofakim, Kibbutz Urim, and Kibbutz Tze’elim.
Michal Vaknin and Itay Mautner, the artistic directors of the festival: “And perhaps it’s still too soon to speak of recovery. Recovery begins where the war ends, and we are still caught in a vortex that pulls us, time and again, to opposite extremes. Reality stings, splinters, and shatters us. Our hearts are broken and our eyes are still far from dry. And amidst all this, life asks us to infuse it with meaning; to make it worthy of the weight it carries. To observe, respond, and act, rather than standing by.
This year’s festival stems from what is happening around us and within us. Its contents offer another perspective on our circumstances. At times, it takes a documentary perspective, and at other times, it is poetic and full of spirit. A point of view that allows us to open our eyes and look directly at our situation. Don’t look away. Don’t close your eyes.
We want to create a layered image; to spark a bit of light in the darkness, and add a touch of blue to all the red that surrounds us. To pause the flood of immediate thoughts, and make room for something else to come in. This is our humble offer. Our request. Our intention. Our prayer. A dream of recovery amidst the reality of war.”
Eyal Sher, CEO of the festival: “Against the backdrop of the physical and social rehabilitation challenges of Israeli society, political polarization and international isolation, we operate out of a deep belief in artistic creation as a unique tool for strengthening the fabric of shared life in Israel, in the hope that the works will bring light, tenderness and compassion to the extremely difficult reality in which we are all placed.”
As in the past, the festival has a social ticket policy, with the aim of allowing the entire population to enjoy all performances. Ticket prices range from 50 NIS to 160 NIS and there are a variety of benefits for senior citizens, students, soldiers, Jerusalem card holders, credit card operators and customer clubs. Admission to the festival performances in the Western Negev and Upper Galilee at a special price of 50 NIS per ticket – is made possible thanks to a dedicated donation from the MEI Law firm.
FESTIVAL PROGRAM
The festival’s two opening performances will take place in a specially built open-air amphitheater in the Jerusalem Theater Plaza, designed by artist Muhammad Abo Salme.
Opening Night: Music People
In collaboration with the Jerusalem Municipality and the Jerusalem Foundation. In the Upper Galilee, in collaboration with Tel Hai Academic College
In times, when words can’t contain the magnitude of reality, music takes precedence. Subtly, music manages to create meaning where words end. “Music People” is a musical project that was born immediately after October 7th and brings together young musicians who process what they have gone through with the help of music.
This year, “Music People” turns to the north. Especially in honor of the 2025 Israel Festival, the young artists from the north will join forces on stage alongside well-seasoned musicians: Leah Shabat, Amir Lev, Jane Bordeaux, Daniella Spector and Shazam in collaboration with Tamarat from Safed, Ram Halabi, the wonderful singer from Majdal Shams, Eviatar Hazan, the virtuoso Shlomi, and others. This is a rare opportunity to capture the most intriguing voices from the north of the country, appearing alongside experienced artists, and together expressing the soundtrack of our era.
Production – Music People – Producer Haim Shemesh, Musical Direction Yuval Shafrir. On-site Production – Zoe Rappaport
1.7, Doors open: 20:00, Show starts: 21:00, Jerusalem Theatre Plaza
17.7 Doors open: 20:00, Show starts: 21:00 Arnold and Anita Silver Amphitheater East Campus Tel Hai Academic College
From Ashes to Gold
Avishai Cohen and the Jerusalem Symphony Orchestra
In collaboration with the Jerusalem Symphony Orchestra and the Jerusalem Theater
The award-winning Israeli international trumpeter’s new album stems from reality. It was written in the wake of October 7th and contains a broad emotional musical range that moves on the axis between despair and rage, between hope and optimism. The album’s title, From Ashes to Gold, contains within it the great aspiration – to transform bad into good, the ugly into beautiful, the lowly into the sublime. Influenced by the Japanese ceramic art of Kintsugi, Cohen seeks, through music, to heal the broken pieces and create a new reality.
Especially for the Israel Festival, Cohen and his quartet join the Jerusalem Symphony Orchestra and perform a spectacular concerto arrangement for 60 musicians. This unique musical event will take place outdoors, in the Jerusalem Theater Plaza, and will be accompanied by a spectacular video-visual experience.
Created by: Avishai Cohen, Piano: Yonathan Avishai, Drums: Ziv Ravitz, Double Bass: Barak Mori, Music Arrangements: Eugene Levitas, Production: Tal Donner Rozenrot
2.7, Doors open: 20:00, Show starts: 21:00, Jerusalem Theatre Plaza
Speeches Against Despair
Words that offer strength and hope
There are moments in life when we need words. Wise, profound, inspiring words. Great words from the past that can help us traverse a very dramatic present.
Guri Alfi and Eli Haviv will host a dream team of performers providing their interpretation of great historical speeches, from a range of times and places in the world. One by one they will take to the Jerusalem Theatre’s big stage, prepared with sincere intentions and polished words. Each of them will give their personal touch to those great words, creating an inspiring hybrid of powerful speeches and one-off original performances. In between, Guri and Eli will make sure to jab at the oratorical pathos. At the end of the evening, a bridge of words will be built between then and now, leaving us a bit more optimistic. That’s our hope, at least.
Participating Artists: Guri Alfi, Eli Haviv, Noa Koler, Galit Hoogi, Norman Issa, Noga Erez, Maya Landsmann, Michael Ensemble. Concept and Direction: Guri Alfi & Eli Haviv. Stage & Light Design: Shai Dror. Sound Design: Avishay Lidani. Content Production: Keren Mazig. Production: Shemi Dahan.
Spurs
An enchanted evening that melts words and stories into sounds and flavors, To mark the 25th anniversary of the Sapir Prize for Literature.
In collaboration with Mifal HaPais
Humans have always told stories: invented plots, built characters, created tension, captivated audiences. This is true of the time when we still lived in caves and sat around the fire listening to stories, and it has been true for many years in the book format. The Mifal HaPais Sapir Prize for Literature honors the best writers and books with the award. For 25 years, the best of our storytellers have won this prestigious award. The extensive garden of the Hansen House in Jerusalem, the special spaces found in this architectural gem – will form the backdrop for the story we will tell. The audience will be able to wander, meeting Etgar Keret, Arkadi Duchin, and Daniel Koren amongst many others.
“Spurs” is an evening celebrating the written word and its connection to various arts. It allows for physical, emotional, and conceptual wandering between words, sounds, and images. “Spurs” is the living version of the act of reading – deep, imaginative, and extremely experiential.
With the participation of: Etgar Keret, Arkadi Duchin, Daniel Koren, Renana Raz, Studio Mela, Noa Yadlin, Shimon Adaf, Esther Peled, Yair Assulin, Tali Karak, Naomi Yoeli, and more.
Artistic Direction: Yuval Avivi, production: Yael Hershkowitz, Production Support: Uri Gliksberg, Technical Management: Yuval Hermoni, Lighting Design: Shai Dror, Space Design: Eiv Kristal.
July 8 – 9, 17:50, 18:40, 19:30, Hansen House, Jerusalem.
Al-Malab (The Pitch)
A living tribute to childhood, innocence, and memory
In collaboration with the Majdal Shams Local Council
On July 27, 2024, a rocket struck the football field in Majdal Shams, taking the lives of 12 children. This tragic event serves as the starting point for a new performative, documentary work that seeks to give voice and presence to the children who are no longer with us, and to tell a story of place, loss, and community.
The audience will be invited to a football field where they will watch Majdal’s youth team practice. This is a normal, daily training session, where the boys do what boys are supposed to do – play. At the same time, the audience will have headphones through which they will hear a compilation of texts, memories, and recorded voices… collected pieces of lives that were and are no longer. In the gap between the liveliness of football practice and the silence of disaster, questions arise about fate, the end, and the power of life.
The show will take place at the Majdal Shams football field and the Liberty Bell Park in Jerusalem.
Created & Directed by: Raed Shams & Yonatan Blumenfeld. Sound Design: Ori Kadishay. Movement Design: Mor Lidor. Director of the Bnei M.M.B.A Golan Club: Saleh Farhat. Production: Meital Izbicki
Liberty Bell Park, Jerusalem 3.7, 18:00 & 21:00
Majdal Shams, 14.7, 19:30 + 15.7, 18:30 + 21:00
Coming Home
A performative Talmud lesson
Home. One word with many meanings that have undergone a huge upheaval in the last two years. Our national, personal, and spiritual home has changed, shaking our foundation and sense of security. And yet, quite a few people are “returning home” – from the battlefield, from captivity, from the evacuation forced upon them. So, how do we get back home?
In a performative learning session, we will meet around a large table and study the sources. We will focus on a sequence of legends in the Babylonian Talmud, and also dive into the Mishnah, Iliad, Odyssey, and contemporary texts from local culture. The study will be led by Chaya Gilboa in collaboration with talented cellist Maya Belsitzman, singer and composer Orit Tshuma, actor and puppeteer Daniel Engel, and several other figures connected to themes central to the study.
This is not a regular lesson, nor is it a regular performance: it is a kind of artistic hybrid that seeks to stimulate the intellect, open the heart, ignite the imagination, and mark out our collective path back home.
Artistic Direction and Concept: Chaya Gilboa. In participation: Maya Belsitzman, Orit Tshuma, Daniel Engel, Raya Adani, Liat Atzili, Meital Raz. Content Production: Inbal Dekel. Design: pilpeled. Lighting Design: Tamir Tubul
2.7, 19:00, Henry Crown Hall, Jerusalem Theatre.
3.7, 19:00 and 21:15, Henry Crown Hall, Jerusalem Theatre.
VHS Blast from the Past
In collaboration with the Municipality of Kiryat Shmona
In collaboration with the Municipality of Ofakim
Imagine having the opportunity to revisit a moment in your past.
Now imagine what this encounter would have looked like… on stage.
‘VHS – Blast from the Past’ invites artists of various fields to go back in time, find meaningful moments in those old VHS tapes and process them into a living, breathing theater piece. Deep in storage is that box filled with tapes from the 1980s and 1990s. Time capsules with faded colors and flickering frames, containing snippets of life: family events, trips, lost memories, over-the-top hairstyles, celebrations, class parties, first loves… What happens to us in the present when we return to these family archives? What imprint did the recorded moment leave upon us? What will reuniting with our fading past look like on stage? Can we truly re-engage our times gone by, and have a meaningful experience through it? A new stage version of the hit show created by Renana Raz and Nitzan Cohen will be created especially for the 2025 Israel Festival.
In Participation: Shirili Deshe, Roni Kuban, Renana Raz, Doron Nesher, Yossi Zabari, Ofri Cnaani, Corinne Kitzis, Ilanit Ben Yaacov, Tom Avni, Avihay Shteren
16.7, 20:00, Culture Hall, Kiryat Shmona
24.7, 20:00 Culture Hall, Ofakim
Brothers
Tuval Haim – Album Launch
In collaboration with Eshkol Regional Council
Tuval Haim’s story is deeply affected by the events of October 7th and its aftermath. His brother, Yotam Haim, was kidnapped in Gaza and shot by IDF forces after he managed to bravely escape from Hamas captivity.
It’s been over a year since Tuval Haim recorded his first album – “Brothers.” Surrounded by great musicians, talented guests, and a supportive team, Tuval addresses what he has gone through via his music. The album is influenced by diverse musical styles and jumps between hip-hop, punk, rock and a few slow ballads. The album launch will happen in the most fitting site for it – in the South, on the lawn of Kibbutz Tze’elim. There, surrounded by family, friends, and those who grew up with him and Yotam, Tuval will celebrate the present. Joining the show are Echo, Tomer Yosef, and Yossi Yosef.
Production: Assaf Ben David. Production & Show Management: Lee Zach
23.7, Doors Open: 19:30, Show Starts: 20:30. Kibbutz Tze’elim.
Her Father’s Daughter
Netta Shpigelman is a phenomenal actress: she stars on stage and in a variety of films and television shows. She is also the daughter of Elisha Shpigelman – a prominent reporter on the renowned Israeli Broadcasting Channel One who fought for social justice and equality. Throughout her life, she held the subtle understanding that she too should aspire to heroism, which led her to want to become a consummate actress.
However, it was the five months she spent by her dying father’s side that became the masterpiece of her life. Now, with her four-year-old daughter beginning to ask about Grandpa Elisha—whom she never got to meet—Netta is searching for a way to bring his complex character to life.
On a set inspired by a television studio, like the one in her childhood memories at the Israel Broadcasting Authority, Neta addresses her father’s articles from the 1980s, settles scores with the girl she used to be, plays Yona Wallach, and uncovers family photos and personal emails And maybe, if the seance is successful, her father’s memory will also come to life for his granddaughter.
Creation and direction: Neta Shpigelman, assistant director and executive producer: Mor Hassan, artistic accompaniment: Alit Kreiz, video and performance design: Yaara Nirel, dramaturgy: Itay Doron.
2.7, 19:00, The Ulpan, Jerusalem Theater.
3.7, 19:00 and 21:00, The Ulpan, Jerusalem Theater.
Fusion
Dancing through transformation. An autobiographical dance piece
As he battles a rare cancer, Gal Gorfung chooses to dance through the physical changes he is experiencing. He punches at the imperfection, sings about the paralysis of his lips, moves within his altered body, and celebrates while he can. Gal seeks to find humor, glam, movement, and compassion within the recovery process.
Fusion is a performance combining dance, video projections, singing, and drag. The performance seeks to coalesce not only the convalescent, but also the internal contradictions: the duality that exists between masculinity and femininity, between movement and paralysis, between life and death. Fusion produces a kinetic language that relies on contrasts – ranging from dance virtuosity to disease-driven reflexes – tremors, spasms, and asymmetry – interweaving one another until a new language is created that contains both. Fusion pushes past the physical body and its limitations, and in its quest for wholeness, seeks out the ability to undergo change, transformation, and transcendence.
Creator & Performer: Gal Bruck Gorfung. Director: Adi Goral
Wednesday 2.7, 20:30, Mikro Hall, Jerusalem Theater.
Thursday 3.7, 19:00, Mikro Hall, Jerusalem Theater.
The Voice of the World That Only I Hear
A dream-infused immersive journey through the theatre
An amusement park that turns into a bomb shelter, a siren transformed into electronic party music, and a foam cannon that fills the space are just some of the images found in “The Voice of the World That Only I Hear” – an immersive show that follows wartime dreams.
Over the last year and a half, our dreams have changed. Apparently, to know what a nation is going through in moments of crisis, it’s not enough to just look at the news, but rather at its collective subconscious – its themes, its colors, its imagery. Creator Shaked Mochiach has curated dozens of dreams from three generations of women — girls, young women, and adults. The dream accounts were recorded and transformed into the physical and conceptual soundtrack of her new work, premiering at the Israel Festival.
The show is an immersive journey through dreams and those who dream them. The audience, armed with headphones, will follow performers embodying this alternate reality. The performance will lead us through unique spaces across the theater, tracing a wide range of dreams. At the end of the immersive experience, we’ll awaken together — to a reality that feels a little more dreamlike, and a dream that feels a little more real.
Creator: Shaked Mochiach. Lighting Design: Yoav Barel, Original Music: Daniel Sapir, Dramaturgy: Anat Dreamer
Wednesday 2.7 18:00 and 21:00 throughout the Jerusalem Theatre.
Thursday 3.7, 18:00 and 21:00, throughout the Jerusalem Theatre.
Bright Future
Girls and boys from the North flood the stage with questions
In collaboration with the Clore Center for Performing Arts – Upper Galilee Regional Council
This period raises a lot of question marks. Many questions float in reality and consciousness. Concrete, essential, everyday, open questions, unanswered questions.
Alit Kreiz and Ayelet Golan gathered a group of teenagers, all residents of the North, to join them on a creative process. The act of questioning – to which they have devoted themselves in this project – has become a curious practice, an engine for action, a casting of doubt, an intimate act that seeks to challenge reality, within an unsettled reality. “Bright Future” is a performative ritual in which girls and teenagers ask questions. Slowly, the questions are collected and piled up in the air, and continue to resonate within us long after they end.
Created by Alit Kreiz and Ayelet Golan.
15.7, 20:00 Clore Center for the Performing Arts – Upper Galilee Regional Council
For more information and to purchase tickets: https://www.israel-festival.org/
The festival performances in Jerusalem will be held July 1-9. The festival performances in the Upper Galilee and Northern Golan will be held July 14-17. The festival performances in the Western Negev will be held July 22-24
The festival is held under the leadership of Eyal Sher, CEO of the festival, under the artistic direction of Itay Mautner and Michal Vaknin, with Ori Vaknin as the chief producer, and Attorney Inbar Afek serving as chairwoman..
The festival is held with the assistance of the Ministry of Culture, the Jerusalem Municipality, the Jerusalem Foundation, Mifal HaPais, the Mifal HaPais Sapir Literature Awards, and in the Upper Galilee and Western Negev with the assistance of the Bracha Foundation, the Glazer Foundation, the Clore Israel Foundation, Eshkol Regional Council, the Municipality of Ofakim, the Magdal Shams Local Council, the Municipality of Kiryat Shmona, Upper Galilee Regional Council, Restart 2025-2030 from Ruach HaGalil, Chevron Mediterranean Limited, MEI Law Firm, and the Circle of Friends of the Israel Festival.
*Information on the festival and texts were provided by the Israel Festival and lightly edited for clarity.
