“SurFace” by Nofar Sela (Shifting Perspectives @ TT)

“Who am I?” she asks, standing in contrapposto, her left arm raised above her head, folded from the elbow. “Have you been in me?” she continues – as Israel. “SurFace” is a guided tour through the prejudice and pain probably everyone of us has when it comes to making one's mind about the politics of Israel. Some more than others, of course. Especially those who have been born in Israel but have now left. There were quite a few of those in the audience and this gave the performance earnestness that an audience consisting only of tourists (to be) would never have managed. Nofar Sela, using lumps of coal to draw on white paper and conducting short interviews with the audience members doesn't really preach anything, although her sadness regarding the status quo that has been the same for far too long is silently there. Did I somehow change my mind in the end? Not really, but I suppose this was the point – to show that nothing is as black and white as the silhouette of Israel drawn with lumps of coal on a paper-floor.

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