Theater in the Museum
Theater performances at the Museum, in our opinion, can improve visitor experiences and provide a more intimate perspective on the past. We have a full-length play and dramatic monologs in our repertory.
Theater in 'Yad Layeled'
The dance of joy and sorrow
'My mother is a sad woman... but actually, she's not... She's smiling, she's sunny'
A solo performance based on the book of Holocaust survivor Leah Fried, whose account is featured in the Yad Layeled museum on Jewish children during the Holocaust. The monolog deals with memories, coping with loss, and overcoming loneliness.
A hundred times
better to be a child
'If I had known then, I wouldn't have wanted to grow up at all. It's a hundred times better to be a child'
The monolog focuses on the life of Janusz Korczak and his work through the eyes of a boy who was in the orphanage, and his educational partner, Stefania Wilczynska. The story is set in the Janusz Korczak space in "Yad Layeled", and thus the exhibitions are 'come to life' through the stories that they awake.
Avremal'e
The child from there
'That boy, Avremal'e, looks so thin, as if
completely transparent'
The monolog, which is based on Tamar Bergman's book 'The Child From There', explores the early Israeli struggle of Avremal'e, a young Holocaust survivor, to fit in with the other kibbutz kids. The story focuses on universal issues like growing up under the shadow of war and accepting the "different" in society.
Dramatic Monologs in the Exhibitions
Hetty Voute
A Story of Rescue
We shall learn about the heroic life of Hetty Voute, who was later recognized as "Righteous Among Nations." The actress "hosts" the audience in her "residence" during the monologue, and recounts how she took part in the underground effort to save several Jewish children at the time of the Holocaust in the Netherlands. Hetty speaks about the challenges of the rescue and the need to find them a safe place to hide. The monolog focuses on the dilemmas and conflicts of those who put their life in danger for the sake of others.
Tzivia Lubetkin
The September meeting. 1942
'We sat together with a few dozen surviving comrades, we were one big grieving family.'
Only tens of thousands of Jews remained in the Warsaw Ghetto after the deportation. To determine their course of action, the leaders of the "Dror" youth movement assembled in Kibbutz Hashomer Hatzair at 63 Mila Street. The monolog emphasizes the dilemmas they experienced: How should they respond to the altered circumstances in the ghetto? Should they set up covert operations or perform a valiant suicide? The monolog focuses on the voices of those young people in the final days of the ghetto.
In an exhibition dedicated to the memory of the founders of the place, we will sit on four sides of a table with thick books on them, which bring the testimonies of the founders. The monolog introduces the audience to the story of the second generation of the kibbutz, from the point of view of Yoram Harpaz, who grew up in the kibbutz. The monolog humorously describes the gap between the second generation, who wanted to be like the rest of their Israeli peers, and the founders, Holocaust survivors that wanted to remember and remind the past.
Yitzhak 'Antek' Zuckerman
A school for the Human Spirit
On January 18, 1943, the Germans entered the Warsaw ghetto in order to deport the remaining Jews. The Jewish underground organization decided to resist and respond and fight back against the Germans.
Yitzchak Antak Zuckerman, one of the underground commanders, narrates the first day of the combat. The story sheds light on the early stages of the revolt and its impact on the Jews living in the Warsaw ghetto at the time as if it were emerging from the display.
Fanny Solomian
A Medicine Woman in the Partizans
The "Yizkor" exhibition located next to the archive showcases authentic artifacts from the time of the Holocaust, that were brought to the museum over time. One of them is a set of medical equipment that belonged to Fanny Solomian, a member of the partisan's medical staff. The monolog is based on a biography she wrote and gives us a glimpse of her unique story, her decision to join the partisans in the forests, her struggles and challenges as a woman in a male environment, and her ability to improvise methods of treating the injured in the challenging surroundings of the forest.
Friedl Dicker-Brandeis
artist | educator | therapist
'You must see the colors of reality even if it's in black and white'
The monolog provides a glimpse into the life of German artist Friedel Dicker-Brandeis, who was deported to the Theresienstadt ghetto. She created pedagogical approaches that utilized drawing to integrate art and therapy. She started art lessons for girls in the ghetto, where she encouraged them to express themselves through art as therapy. This monologue is a component of the workshop "Because butterflies don't live in the ghetto," which links the stained-glass area in the museum with the artwork created by kids in the ghetto.