‘Mount Olympus’ in Jerusalem: 24 Hours of Sensory Intoxication
Jan Fabre’s pretentious ‘Mount Olympus’ was the curtain-closer of this year’s Israel Festival, an act of theater as an endurance sport.
Michael Handelzalts
'Writing Theater Critiques Isn’t a Job – It’s a Way of Life': Haaretz's Theater Critic Steps Down
Michael Handelzalts, Haaretz’s veteran theater critic, has written reviews of about 4,000 performances. Now, after 42 years, he is bidding farewell and exiting the stage
Tel Aviv Theater Review: 'The Odd Couple' With a Feminist Twist
The Ikea version of a play: ready for self-assembly from pre-existing parts.
This Tel Aviv Production of Shakespeare's 'As You Like It' Is a 100-minute Celebration
A highly tasteful production of a Shakespearean comedy that entices the eye and will stay with those who love life and theater after the curtain falls.
'In the Tunnel': Two Israelis and One Palestinian Stuck in an Existential Limbo
How depressing to discover that satire in Israel is timeless, as the Gesher Theater production of ‘In the Tunnel’ makes clear.
'Homeland': A Welcome Escape From Trump's World
The fictional world of 'Homeland' may parallel reality, but at least you can be sure it will be over, with no real harm done.
'Scandal': Where TV and Reality Cross Paths
Those plotting the current season of ‘Scandal’ have promised the show will sail close to the wind of actual events
Opinion The Stone One President Placed on the Grave
Why should the president of Poland place a stone from Warsaw Ghetto on Yoni Netanyahu’s grave? And who will guard that celebrity stone?
'Bright Lights': The Intertwined Yet Starkly Different Lives of Debbie Reynolds and Carrie Fisher
'Bright Lights,' an HBO documentary about Reynolds and Fisher's complex mother-daughter relationship, exposes the pain underneath the glamour of show business.
A Reality TV Star Becomes President, a Governor Becomes a Reality TV Star
Only a few days to go before Trump opens in the biggest reality show of them all.
'Lost in Yonkers,' Found in Be'er Sheva
Israeli theater rarely mounts productions for actors, but Neil Simon’s 'Lost in Yonkers' has a lead role that’s tailor-made for one actress.
Danish TV Show 'Dicte' Tracks a Reporter With a Knack for Stumbling on Crimes
'Dicte', a Danish crime series, proves that Americans have finally warmed to subtitles.
The Game Is Afoot: New Season of 'Sherlock' to Be 'The Darkest Ever'
With megastar Benedict Cumberbatch back in his role as Holmes, and Martin Freeman as Watson, the eagerly anticipated fourth season of ‘Sherlock’ is set to air on New Year’s Day in Britain.
Theater Review: 'The Adventures of Humit' Transcends the Shallow Glitz of Israeli Shows for Kids
This stage production, based on a story by an iconic Israeli writer, offers a deep experience that is far removed from the raucous spectacles so often served up to kids.
'This Is Us' Tackles Age-old Nature-nurture Conundrum
‘This Is Us’ explores what a family is all about – a conglomerate of egos learning to live separately and as a collective, hurting and healing, hating and loving, laughing and crying
Reverse Discrimination in Three Shakespearean Plays
In a stunning London theater project, an all-female cast make a feminist statement about interpreting the Bard’s timeless, yet immediate masterpieces.
'Funny Girl' at Tel Aviv's Cameri Theater: Maya Dagan Is the Embodiment of Fanny Brice
Maya Dagan dives into the lead role of ‘Funny Girl’ as if it had been written just for her, and reminds us of what a marvelous comedienne she is.
'Mozart in the Jungle' Season 3: A High-brow Yet Bingeable Soap Opera
‘Mozart in the Jungle,’ now starting its third season, proves that you don’t have to pander to popular tastes to achieve popularity.
Rare Hebrew Production of Egyptian Play Offers Perspective Israelis Aren't Used To
'Sa’dun Almajnoon,' a production of the Arab-Hebrew Theater of Jaffa, depicts the 1967 war as the watershed between hope and sanity, and madness and despair.
'No Offence': Police Procedural Meets Zany Sitcom Where Women Run the Show
A female detective who doesn’t mince words is the hero of this British show from the creator of 'Shameless.'
Theater Review: 'Tel Aviv Winter' Presents Love in Eight Scenes
‘Tel Aviv Winter,’ a play that deals with relations between men and women, doesn’t coerce viewers into being amused. Instead, it allows them to float on the wings of imagination.
'Shadow World' Paints a Vividly Depressing Picture of the International Arms Trade
A documentary film now on Yes VOD brings the world arms trade out of the shadows and makes for an eye-opening viewing experience.
Escape Post-election Drama With British Royalty Series 'The Crown'
In 'The Crown,' a young Queen Elizabeth II discovers that the monarch does not have as much power as it appears.
Powerful Israeli Play Looks at Jewish-Arab Tension - From Both Sides
'The Admission' begins with hopeful coexistence and evolves into a violent struggle over memory and history. Not an easy experience for viewers, but an important one.
Jude Law Plays a Rule-flouting American Pontiff in 'The Young Pope'
'The Young Pope,' a series set in the Vatican, reflects a phenomenon that was evident in the U.S. presidential campaign: the inability of a well-entrenched system to deal with an individual who refuses to play by the accepted rules.
The Two Fantasies of 'Westworld': Playing God and Violence Without Consequences
HBO's Westworld explores what happens when a seemingly controlled world - a Wild West theme park - runs amok.
Can Sarah Jessica Parker Shake Off Carrie in HBO's New Series 'Divorce'?
Will Frances and Robert find happiness in untying the knot? A new HBO comedy series tackles the woes of holy deadlock.
This Israeli Show Should Be Picked Up for an American Remake
In 'Metumtemet,' an aspiring actress goes undercover as a high school student to help the police get to the bottom of a drug and possible sex scandal.
TV Critic No Pussyfooting Around the 'P' Word, Even for Donald Trump
With the yellow-haired monster mouthing it on the open mike, it was all too clear that the healthiest candidate was not talking about a kitten, posing a Hamletian conundrum for newspapers that want to be read by families, children included.
CSI Meets Oz in HBO's 'The Night Of'
In the miniseries, an American student of Pakistani origin finds himself accused of murder after a night of love and drugs in New York.