House

House tells the story of a West Jerusalem House during a quarter of a century through the stories of its successive inhabitants, Arabs and Jews, Palestinians and Israelis. From his documentary trilogy – The House (1980), A house in Jerusalem (1997), News from Home News from House (2005) – Amos Gitai is back to theatre by summoning these human destinies in a theatre creation that goes up the course time.

On the stage theatre, the history of this House becomes a metaphor and an artistic dialogue between actors and musicians from all over the Middle East, with different languages, origins and musical traditions, willing to try to express together the memory of the past and the possibility of reconciliation.

In the Middle East more than anywhere else, the artist's gesture is similar to that of the archaeologist. It is a question of taking into consideration the strata, memories and histories in order to approach contemporary human situations.

Amos Gitai

Gitai wants this house to become something very symbolic and very concrete at the same time, to become a character. One of the most beautiful things happens: people look at the same thing and see different things. And that vision moves them. In the half-collapsed house, real hallucinations take shape.

Serge Daney, Libération, 1 March 1982