The sixth annual Festival of Spoken Ivrit has come to the UK, bringing “Israel, fun, and the Hebrew language” to children in the Jewish diaspora.

The three plays featured will be performed either in all Hebrew, partly in English, or fully in English, depending on the audience.

Children watch the 'Ouzo and Mozo from Kfar Kakaruzu' play during the Festival of Spoken Ivrit (Credit: Tammy Shefler)

One play written especially for this year’s festival to coincide with the 120th anniversary of the death of Theodor Herzl is Theodor: The Boy Who Dared to Dream. It will follow the father of modern political Zionism having a panic attack just before a speech before the Zionist Congress, taking him back to his childhood, where he discovers his ability to dream.

The Rabbit from Moshi is based on a book by Shlomit Cohen Asif and features colourful puppets and costumes as the rabbi Mamoshi journeys through a forest in search of new friends.

Ouzo and Mozo from Kfar Kakaruzu is a play about communication and understanding, based on the book by the esteemed playwright and satirist Ephraim Sidon. It follows two brothers, who, during an argument, erect a wall between them and stop talking, and after many generations, their descendants continue the practice without understanding its origin.

Actors perform at the Festival of Spoken Ivrit (Credit: Raday Rubinstein)

By the end of the festival, the productions, sponsored by the World Zionist Organisation, will have been performed 68 times across various Jewish schools, synagogues, and communities as far away as Leeds, Cambridge and Liverpool over a period of two weeks.

The three plays will be performed this Sunday, February 4, at London’s Jewish hub JW3. Tickets can be purchased here.

Tali Tzemach, the organiser of the festival, told the JC: “It almost didn’t go forward this year because of the situation in Israel, but we decided that bringing Israel to the Jewish community and strengthening ties between the two groups was more important than ever.

“We choose what content is suitable at this moment very carefully, so there is something for everyone. It’s not just about fun, though it is, [the plays] carry moral messages too. There are big underlying messages for parents and teachers to enjoy, which might just elicit a tear.”

Following the show, a Q&A is being held with actors Harel Morad and Bar Cohen, and the children are presented with small gifts to take home.