Father’s Daughters

A moving play by HaShachar Theatre, inspired by a true story

Playwright: Gilit Yitzhaki | Director: Uri Gabriel

In early 1940s Iraq, Eliyahu Sayag is a successful businessman and the father of three daughters, living within a thriving and well established Jewish community. But during the Jewish holiday of Shavuot in 1941, as Nazism spreads across Europe, violent attacks against the Jews of Iraq erupt. These events, known as the Farhud, shake the entire community and forever change the family’s life.

In this turbulent reality, a Zionist underground begins to form, working to defend the Jewish community and prepare their future immigration to the Land of Israel. One of Eliyahu’s daughters joins the movement, is captured and imprisoned, and her father must fight to save her, even as the struggle threatens to tear the family apart.

Years later, in Israel during the time of the Gulf War, Eliyahu’s teenage granddaughter tries to break free from the limits of home and follow her own dreams. Yet she soon discovers that the stories of the past continue to shape the family’s life across generations.

Written before the dramatic events of recent years, the play resonates strongly today, reminding us how stories of displacement, loss and hope continue to echo in the present.

Cast and Creative Team:
Eliyahu: Uri Gabriel | Julie: Gilit Yitzhaki | Miriam: Sharon Malki Shemesh | Mazal: Irit Suki | Dahud: Itamar Zandani | Sigal: Nofar Hiyon | Set Design: Valentina Stets | Musical Adaptation: Uri Gabriel | Music Editing: Efi Shoshani | Lighting Design: Gregory Rivenzam | Stage Management: Sagie Almozlinu

Photography: Dalia Gal:Sverdlin