A loving wife sets on a journey to cure her husband, who returned from the battlefield dark and distant. A theatrical exploration of post-trauma through the eyes of a woman living with a veteran – a perspective that brings to light secondary trauma: the psychological toll experienced by those around trauma survivors. The performance is inspired by a Zen folktale, staged through minimalist Japanese puppetry. In the story, a woman asks the village healer for a remedy for her husband to regain the tenderness and love he lost. She embarks on a journey, discovering her strength, breaking points, healing instincts, and her own transformation. It is also the personal story of Dana, whose partner Gabriel, a trauma survivor, is in the audience. This piece gives voice to silenced struggles and the helplessness of living in the shadow of trauma. A tribute to the Sisyphean loop of love and survival – and the desperate hope that healing may be found in the power of love itself.

Dana Keila is an actress, theatre creator, and playwright. She graduated from the Performing Arts School of Acting, and holds a BEd in Directing and Theatre Education from Kibbutzim College of Education, Technology and the Arts. Keila has performed and created in theatres across Israel. She teaches theatre and improvisation in schools, high schools, and various groups, and also DJs.

Yarden Gilboa is a theatre director, actor, and educator. She studied acting and directing at the Sophie Moskovitch School of Performing Arts. She teaches and directs in the acting programs of The Cameri Theatre of Tel Aviv and Kibbutzim College of Education, Technology and the Arts. Her directorial works have been staged at major theatres across Israel. Her independent performance, Freedom of Speechless, was an Israeli-Swiss collaboration, and performed throughout Switzerland and in Berlin. In the past decade, she has continued to professionally train and practice as a creative actress with Itim Ensemble, which was led by Israel Prize laureate Rina Yerushalmi.

Jacki Pearl is a multidisciplinary artist, visual theatre creator, director, and lecturer, specializing in puppetry for adults. She holds an MFA with honors from Bezalel Academy of Art and Design, and is a graduate of the School of Visual Theatre in Jerusalem and the prestigious Mandel Program for Leadership in Culture. Her work has been presented in leading festivals and venues in Israel and internationally, and has received several awards and grants for artistic excellence. Pearl combines poetic imagery with autobiographical, political, historical, and mythological research to explore the wounds of body and society.