"Pekele": An Autobiographical Solo Show by and Performed by Ganit Prizent Henkin, Directed by Michal Svironi

A multidisciplinary theatrical work combining clowning, physical theater, object work, and storytelling, dealing with childhood loss and bereavement, and confronting the viewer with the childhood experiences that continue to shape the adult personality.

Ganit was one year old when her father was killed in the Six-Day War, and this is the "Pekele" (Yiddish for "the bundle/package") that she carries with her.

"Pekele" is a multidisciplinary theatrical work, written and performed by Ganit Prizent Henkin and directed by Michal Svironi, which combines clowning, physical theater, object work, and storytelling. Through self-deprecating humor and deep honesty, the play examines a life built around a void, confronting the viewer with the humanity of dealing with the consequences of early and formative bereavement, the weight of the past on the present, and the way childhood experiences continue to shape the adult personality. Through visual imagery and precise stage pictures, a 'present-absence' is revealed, hovering over the story.

The show introduces the viewer to the inner world of a woman in her late fifties, as she begins to feel that the Pekele she carries is becoming too heavy for her. Perhaps it's time to check what's inside. She realizes that before everything—or perhaps behind everything—even at almost 60, she is still an orphan, and not just any orphan: in a country like ours, she is an orphan with "status," and her childhood is spent unsure if she is an object of pity or admiration. She hoards objects, she hates partings, she must be successful for her mother, smart like her father, and responsible enough to know to save the best for last.

The work began from a desire to address a collection of very human weaknesses that Ganit Prizent Henkin identified in herself through the character of the Fool: attachment, perfectionism, dissatisfaction, restlessness, and insecurity. And then there was the major topic that was never spoken of—the bereavement she experienced in 1967 (the Six-Day War) when she was less than a year old, an age where there is no ability to process loss and all experiences are very primitive. The experience of loss is one of an immense and inconceivable void.

In the period we are going through today, the knowledge that so many babies and children are undergoing trauma that will be processed throughout their lives strengthened the need to delve into the great wound. Belonging to a generation that did not undergo therapy by default, that did not process loss but rather "stayed strong," gave birth to shame and guilt alongside pride. Is it possible she enjoys the attention? Does she truly recoil from pity? Does she secretly want more fathers to be killed in the next war so she won't be "the one without a father"? Is everyone really looking at her during the Memorial Day ceremony to see if she cries? Is it her imagination, or did someone say "poor thing" again?

What do the lives of those left behind look like? Will a child without a father forever feel weak and defenseless? What does it mean to grow up with a broken person who lost everything? How do you compensate a mother? How heavy is it to be the center of her life, her hopes, the source of her happiness? Bereavement is handled gently in the play. As in life, it is always in the background, surfacing at unexpected moments. Life goes on and we can live it almost fully, but the loss is there, a present-absence, accompanying us like a shadow. All human weaknesses are presented in its light—the attachment to people, objects, and memories; the desire to document, to keep, to lose nothing; the need to be "okay," to prove something, not to fail, not to make mistakes, to make the right decisions, to belong, to be worthy. The longing for something missing that will never be satisfied.

Ganit Prizent Henkin: A mother of three, married and living in the Sharon area, she has worked as a software engineer for almost 30 years and holds an M.Sc. in Intelligent Systems and an M.A. in Cognitive Language Studies. Over the past two years, Ganit has returned to an earlier incarnation of herself, working on personal theatrical works in various workshops, including "Oza'a La'or" at Hayadit Theater and clowning workshops with Michal Svironi.

In the early 90s, Ganit performed and created as part of the "Boi de Mamao" ensemble, a London-based Brazilian ensemble with a unique style combining physical, visual, and grotesque theater that garnered critical acclaim. In this framework, she participated in the London International Mime Festival with the play "Friar Bentibho of St. Anthony," a performance that earned the troupe a return invitation the following year with the play "Tamoyos." She also toured with the troupe in England and Spain. Upon her return to Israel, Ganit taught movement for theater in various settings, participated as an actress/dancer in the Akko Festival with the work "The Shack on the Island," and created and performed in the children's play "The Knight, the Riddle, and the Scary Lady," which participated in the Haifa Festival.

A graduate of Thelma Yellin, she established her artistic language through studies at the Desmond Jones School of Physical Theatre and Mime in London and expanded it with teachers such as Philippe Gaulier, David Glass, Antonio Fava, Philippe Hotier, and others. Toward her 30s, Ganit began studying at Tel Aviv University, but although she started in theater and linguistics, she changed direction to pursue a Bachelor's degree in Computer Science and Cognition and has since worked in the chip industry.

Michal Svironi: Performer, creator, actress, clown, director, and painter. After completing a Bachelor's degree in Theater at the Sorbonne University and practical studies at the Jacques Lecoq School, the Marcel Marceau School of Mime, and Corporeal Mime studies in Paris, she participated in many workshops until she discovered the clown through the French master Eric Blouet—a discovery that changed her life on and off stage. Another life-changing meeting was with Mira Hashimoto—a Japanese master of painting therapy whom Michal met in India and worked with for several months.

Her works have been staged for 19 years in more than 20 countries worldwide and have won international acclaim and awards. She brings a personal and innovative theatrical language, which she calls "Design-Directing," using mixed genres and humor. Her theater is in constant search of ways to express deep psychological processes and turn them into wonderful performative events. Her world is poetic, abstract, surreal, absurd, and provocative. In 2018, she succeeded in finding the language she had sought for years, one that combines visual arts and theater, and since then they create "PAINT-THEATER" events together.

As a performer and creator, Svironi also specializes in audience interactivity and modern clowning, creating for indoor and outdoor shows, combining visual arts, circus, puppetry, cooking, science, and more.

Creators: Written and performed by Ganit Prizent Henkin / Design and Direction: Michal Svironi / Original Music: Yoni Tal / Props: Leonid Elisov / Video: Pavel Dibrov

Saturday night, July 18, 2026, at 20:30 – Hayadit Theater, Pardes Hanna

Friday, July 24, 2026, at 13:00 – Hanut Theater, Tel Aviv

"Pekele": Is an intimate and emotional journey that moves gently between laughter and pain, between shame and pride, between what is said aloud and what remains locked away. It is a journey that evokes identification and compassion, inviting inward reflection—and a contemplation of the "bundle" that each and every one of us carries.

You are invited to watch the video: