This week, Israel's national theatre, Habima, will bring its production of "The Merchant of Venice" to London, as part of the Globe Theatre's multi-linguial Shakespeare festival. The following is a review of the Palestinian contribution to the same festival: Ashtar Theatre's Richard II. It originally appeared in Hebrew in the Tel Aviv culture magazine Achbar Ha'ir. Once upon a time, in a distant land, I had a good friend named Inge. She was Danish and lived in Denmark, but looked like a Native American princess and loved to rebel against Danish values. I had the honor of joining her for…

The first major theater hall in a West Bank settlement will open on November 8th. The Ariel Culture Hall, located in the settlement of Ariel (south of Nablus) will host major productions of leading Israeli theaters, including Habima, Israel's national theater, and Tel Aviv's city theater, The Cameri. According to Haaretz, The Ariel Culture Hall will have 540 seats, and 40 million NIS (11 million USD) were spent on its construction. The Hall will open with the Israeli adaptation of Piaf, a play by British Pem Gems on the life of the famous singer, performed by the Beer Sheva Theatre.…