HANNAH/EN

HANNAH — A Musical Documentary Performance

„All the darkness in the world cannot extinguish a single candle, but one candle can light up all the darkness.“

Hannah Senesh

CREATION AND THE ROAD TO THE PREMIERE

At the invitation of the European Janusz Korczak Academy (EJKA) in Munich, work began on the story of Hannah Senesh. EJKA initiated the development of the project: it provided space for research, brought together the creative team, and supported the creation of the first short version of the performance, which was presented at the “Long Night of Jewish Music” festival in 2024. Starting its journey in Germany, the project was able to reach the international stage and continue its development.

The premiere took place on December 9–10, 2025, at Tmuna Theater — one of Israel’s leading fringe theaters specializing in independent and experimental productions.

ABOUT THE PERFORMANCE

This is the story of a loving family trying to survive the “meat grinder” of the 20th century. A story about memory, dreams, the search for happiness, and that very Blue Bird — like in Maeterlinck’s play.

This musical documentary performance is not about the “hero’s journey,” but about the inner world of Hannah Senesh — a world woven from her diaries, thoughts, letters, poems, music, and visual images.

The performance reveals Hannah through music, speech, and visual imagery. Each chapter of her life takes on its own musical embodiment: original songs written to her poems help us hear her voice — alive, sincere, and full of light.

The scenography is built like a living diary. On stage, a scroll unfolds — a carrier of memory, where photographs, manuscripts, dates, and symbols appear. These images flow into large-scale projections, creating the effect of traveling through the pages of her life. The actors literally find themselves inside her story, inside her words and images.

A recurring character — the Blue Bird — appears sometimes as a friend, sometimes as a symbol of a dream or destiny. A borderline image — between reality and parable — becomes part of Hannah’s inner world, embodying the fragile yet indomitable pursuit of happiness.

RELEVANCE TODAY

The story of Hannah Senesh is especially important today, as the world once again faces manifestations of hatred and intolerance. Antisemitism, which accompanie. Hannah in Europe almost a hundred years ago, is resurfacing today — on the streets, in universities, in the media. We encounter the same fears and face the same choices that confronted Hannah and her family.

Her reflections on what it means to belong to a people, to seek one's place on earth, to make decisions in times of war and uncertainty — still resonate sharply and personally. Particularly painful are the parallels between her notes from a Hungarian prison and the stories of Israeli hostages who, like Hannah, spent months in captivity — isolated, deprived of information, under pressure and torture. These parallels create a bridge between past and present; between the girl who so believed in the power of words and the people whose voices today were nearly silenced.

CREATIVE TEAM

The project was created by a team of independent theater artists and musicians.

Beata Fershtman
Set and Costume Designer

Ilya Delyatitsky
Multimedia Artist

Ilya Gerchikov
Lighting Designer

Anton Varaksin and Evgenia Natanova
Composers

Anton Varaksin
Sound Producer

Sofa Chudnovskaya
Musical Director

Evgeny Yanov
Technical Director and Sound Engineer

Maria Lerner
Executive Producer

Yanita Nazarova
Creative Producer

Director: Evgenia Natanova
Director, composer, and musical director, worked with the theaters “Gesher,” “Fulcro”, “Masterskaya”.
Winner of the “Golden Hedgehog” and “Golden Sofit” awards.