Robert Friedman Presents

Shmulik Shohat's THE DYBBUK: Between Two Worlds was first Produced by Israel's National Theater, Habimah. 

The Story
The classic story of two lovers that are torn apart by the bride's father, that chooses to wed her to a wealthy man. Her broken hearted lover dies.

The beloved girl, that cannot be without her love, cries over his grave, and begs for his return – he returns to her as a spirit (the dybbuk), and holds onto her on her wedding day. She is taken to a Rabbi that after a battle succeeds in exorcising the dybbuk. The bride, seeing the spirit of her love leaving, sees no reason to live, and follows him into the next world where there is a place for them together.

About the play
The world of the stage is transformed into a séance where characters and puppets rise and are
operated. The tension between actor and puppet, operator and operated, sheds a new light on the classic play'The Dybbuk'. The play combines the world of puppeteering as an image for the operating of the material world by the spiritual world.

Reviews

 “The play manages to touch the mythical subjects of Anski's immortal play and Vakhtangov's renowned show on one hand, while bringing a fresh, young, mischievous spirit to the stage on the other... The combination of puppets and humans not only brings a humorous, jesting spirit to the familiar story, but also manages to soar to romantic heights at critical moments...

A sophisticated parody full of love and yearning to the origin... which rediscovers the old story's primal magic and turns the Dybbuk
into a living, moving theatrical reality."
Shai Bar-Yaakov, "

--Yedioth Ahronoth

"The carefully constructed puppets were amazinglymanipulated and swept the audience with them into the happenings on stage...  The transitions between actors and puppets, characters and scenes, are completely smooth and enable total submersion...

The end where Leah traverses between worlds is no less than extraordinary. It was simply delightful. About 75 minutes with no interval passed quickly and left a desire to watch again."

--Maya Eldar, Kol HaIr Culture

"A fresh, interesting play... the use of puppets and actors is successful and rich with visual imagination, but also with generous
humor. The play reaches its climax with the image of the Dybbuk's exorcism. A splendidly theatrical and complex image. Pleasing to the
eye and pleasant with its mischievous spirit."

--Elyakim Ron, "Maariv"