Acting out a distinct identity

Khashabi Ensemble Theatre, Haifa. “Establishing a Palestinian arts space in this neighbourhood  forms a vital part of our aim to revive and recreate Palestinian identity. We will work closely with our community to develop unique artistic projects, empower young Palestinians through artistic workshops, and develop unique methods to engage new audiences to enjoy and be inspired by the arts.” Creating space – our space to create.

In Haifa, a Palestinian subculture yearns for identity

By Bao Yen, Palestine Monitor
March 25, 2016

In the neighbourhood of Wadi Salib, audiences cluster in a small theatre in an old building shrouded by industrialized structures in the downtown port area of Haifa. The theatre, known as Khashabi, is sometimes used as a cinema, and within the scope of the Haifa independent film festival (HIFF), it serves as a main venue.

One of the films shown at HIFF is “Dégradé” directed by the Palestinian twins Arab and Tarzan Nasser, born and raised in Gaza. The duo came to the premiere of their film in Haifa, but not this time. This however, does not hinder the audiences, internationals and Palestinians alike, who attend the movie session.

The film is mainly set in a beauty salon, rotating around the stories of thirteen women. There are dramas, there is small talk, there are bits and bobs of the politics, all clouding the presence of war. Against the backdrop of the 2014 Gaza war, the film places focus on the individuals, rather than the brutality of the war.

“Dégradé” is among the featured films selected to be shown during the six days of Palestinian films organized by HIFF. The films look into the reality of lives under the occupation through different angles, ranging from satire to the documentary of Palestinian refugees. But most of these films have something in common: they were made by Palestinians narrating Palestinian lives.

This is no ordinary film festival either. In fact, the Haifa Independent film festival is the first Palestinian film festival held in Israel.

“We [Palestinians living in Israel] had always been consumers of Israeli entertainment, and we did not have the means to express ourselves,” Ayed Fadel, one of the organizers of the film festival tells the Palestine Monitor.

“We are boycotting the Haifa international film festival, and we are making our own film festival here,” Ayed adds.

Scene from Dégradé

The organizers of the festival, all young Palestinians living and working in Haifa, have an ambitious goal. Its mission, as the statement reads, is to “contribute towards the development of cinema and enhancement of the film industry in Palestine.”

So far, the festival has been well-received by the local Palestinian community. Many of the films were even given for free by the directors themselves.

All of the films chosen are specifically independent of Israeli governmental and institutional funding. The idea is to avoid political pressure, as happened with the cases of various Palestinian arts and cultural projects funded by Israeli government.

In 2015, for example, the Haifa Municipality decided to freeze financing for the Al-Midan theatre, the largest Arabic-speaking theatre in Israel, following the controversy over one of its plays.

Performance of ‘A Parallel Time’ by the Al-Midan theatre in Haifa. Photo by Oren Ziv.

The play, “A parallel time”, tells the story of a Palestinian prisoner convicted of killing an Israeli soldier. Though fictional, the synopsis closely follows an actual event: the case of Walid Daka, a Palestinian man who was sentenced to life for the kidnap and murder of an Israeli soldier in 1984.

The play had been staged to the Arabic-speaking audience many times without rumpus, but a decision to subtitle it in Hebrew was enough to cause a public uproar. The family of the murdered Israeli soldier then protested outside the theatre, while Israeli media labeled the play as an act of “glorifying terrorism,” spurring the Haifa municipality to open an inquiry into Al-Midan’s activities.

“The problem is the Israeli government, they cannot hear another narrative. They cannot understand that it could be that we are talking about Palestinian prisoners as humans, and it was really important to try to talk not about the politics, but to find the humanity in the prisoners,” Bashar Murkus, director and playwright of A parallel time, tells the Palestine Monitor.

A scene from Dégradé

Up until now, Al-Midan theatre is still shut down, awaiting funding. The theatre’s budget cut came in the context of a discussion of a “loyalty bill” that would authorize the Israeli Ministry of Culture to halt funding and impose fine levied on institutions that oppose to Israel and its national symbols.

Lack of space and more importantly, freedom of expression in state-funded projects, prompts young Palestinian artists like Bashar Murkus to seek alternatives.

Together with a group of artist friends, all theatre professionals, Murkus founded the Khashabi Ensemble Theatre in the historic Wadi Salib in 2011.

“After having both good and bad experiences with other theatres, we understood that what we actually need is a place to work, a place where we can do our own research, and a place where we can be really independent”, says Bashar.

The theatre refrains from accepting any governmental or institutional funds. It is the hardest way to work, but it is “a healthy way to make art”, Bashar adds. Khashabi, however, receives much support from both locals and internationals. After five years into operation, the theatre has become the playground for Palestinian local artists to perform.

Many other cultural activities among the Palestinian communities in Israel also took place here, one such as the Haifa Independent Film Festival.

Bashar says the Ensemble already has plans for the following season. The next topic aims to explore the concept of “Identity”, and the idea is to bring Palestinian artists from all over, from Gaza, from the West Bank, from Palestinian refugee camps in Lebanon, from abroad, to come to Haifa and engage in a dialogue about what constitutes a Palestinian identity.