Alternate entertainment

The Sounds of Childhood Festival in Holon is a prolific funfest for the whole family.

By ORI J. LENKINSKI
The Sounds of Childhood Festival 521 (photo credit: Courtesy)
The Sounds of Childhood Festival 521
(photo credit: Courtesy)
These days, everybody has a smart phone to play games on, even elementary school pupils. It seems that kids today spend more time in front of a screen – be it a computer, telephone or television – than away from one. For the 11th consecutive year, together with the Holon Theater, the municipality of Holon invites kids of all ages to give their screens a break and enjoy some alternate entertainment during Succot.
The Sounds of Childhood Festival is a multi-genre, three-day happening that includes both ticketed and free events for the entire family. The festival will be filled with performances from morning until night.
Directed by conductor and composer Gil Shohat, the festival boasts theater, dance, music and opera. The central event in this year’s program is called Songs of Childhood. It is a montage of beloved tunes for young ones sung by a variety of well-known artists such as Tal Mosari, Galit Giyat and Dafna Dekel.
For the past several years, the Fresco Dance Group has unveiled its joyous children’s productions during the festival. In collaboration with the Holon Mediatheque Theater, Fresco’s artistic director Yoram Karmi has breathed new life into Kipling’s classic tale The Jungle Book. This production, like Fresco’s previous shows, is a blend of engaging plotlines and beautiful dancing.
Tararam Kids will also premiere a new work called The Power of Wishes. This energetic show is a combination of drumming, choreography and audience interaction.
Another highlight of this year’s program is the opera The Cat’s House, which tells the story of a wealthy feline whose generosity stops when it comes to her destitute family members. When the cat’s house is burned to the ground, her perspective shifts, allowing her to finally accept the love and support of her nieces and nephews. Based on a Russian story, this production was composed by the beloved and missed Sarah Fagan.

The Sounds of Childhood Festival (Tzlilei Yaldut) will run from October 16-18. These are just a few of the many performances at this year’s festival. For more information or tickets, visit www.hth.co.il