In Israel, anything associated with the Israeli-Palestinian conflict is referred to as “the situation” (“HaMatzav”). This is done out of fear of naming those in conflict, or the details of that conflict, because any such specific categorization is itself politically charged. Yet, the subliminal keeps rising to the surface, even if with great difficulty, because how do you talk about “the situation”? How do you give it a name, a shape or structure, without using clichés or getting entangled in efforts to maintain political correctness? How do you write a disturbing drama that will shake people to their core in a reality that is so complex and has multiple facets, narratives and wounds?
When you look at Israel’s social and political aspects through the prism of Jewish-Arab relations, you can either look away and ignore what you see, or you can delve into the issue and strike a nerve. So, how do you represent a bleeding reality on the stage? Do you seek balance? Is it even possible to represent the other without being in their shoes? Do they want such representation or presence on the stage? And, can you really talk about everything? Maybe both the creative team and the audience would prefer escapist theater
rather than theater that provokes them to explore their convictions regarding “the situation”?