Staging and Stagers in Modern Jewish Palestine

This case study describes the work of the people responsible for creating festive lore and its system of ceremonies and festivities -- an inseparable part of every culture. In the case of the new modern Hebrew culture of Eretz Israel (modern Jewish Palestine) -- a society of immigrants who left behind most of their traditional folkways -- the creation of festival lore was a conscious and organized process guided by a national ideology and aesthetic values. This creative effort in a secular national society served as an alternative to the traditional religious system, adapted the ceremonies and festivals to a new historical reality, and created a new festival cycle that would give expression and joy to the values and symbols of the new jewish society.

Shoshana Sitton is a senior lecturer at the Levinsky College of Education at Tel Aviv University.