REBELS AND PATRIOTS is Coming to The Edinburgh Festival Fringe

Rebels & Patriots is new play from an ensemble of Israeli, Palestinian and British actors. that shines an unflinching light on the consequences of Israeli mandatory conscription into the IDF.

Who's a rebel? who's a patriot? Rebels & Patriots illuminates the critical voice for coexistence under the pressures of politically motivated violence.

"Rebels & Patriots started as notes in the notebook of a soldier in the IDF who decided he does not agree with the army in which he is serving. This soldier was me. It's a piece about the complex political situation in Israel and is a portrayal of the realities of the young people that grow up in the midst of an ongoing bloodied armed political conflict. It's based on my experiences in the army and the experiences of my closest friends who are still in Israel today, and presents the complex attitudes young men have towards service in the IDF and the political complexity of life there." Nadav Burstein

Rising Israeli-Palestinian British theatre company Floating Shed is proud to present Rebels & Patriots. Based on true stories, this a new play following four young people in Tel-Aviv, Israel. This unflinching new work explores in detail the ways that conscription into the Israel Defence Forces-mandatory for every 18-year-old Israeli-affects Israeli young people's lives.

Floating Shed co-founder Nadav Burstein's performance in this show brings an intimacy and knowing to this portrayal of the traumatic consequences of enlistment. The powerful and multilingual show uses physical movement and live music to presciently expose the harsh realities of Israeli-Palestinian coexistence.

Rebels & Patriots follows four friends, and explores how mandatory conscription to the IDF affects them. One wants to get out, one's a pilot, one was never drafted, one's torn inside. This raw, multilingual, physical portrayal explores themes of protest against war, self-harm, and drug abuse and exposes the consequences of army life on the mental health of the teenagers enlisted.

What was once generally viewed by Israeli society as a rite of passage for young Israeli Jews, is increasingly seen - especially by younger generations - as an forced involvement with violence and war. What does it mean to be Israeli and peace-pursuing? How can the critical voice of the young people who want to call for an end to bloodshed, and coexist with their Palestinian neighbours, be heard, when they are stripped of their choice to not fight?

Anti-war protest, toxic masculinity in the armed forces, self-harm, and the brutality of conflict within intimate friendships play out on stage. Unafraid to depict how occupation can manifest itself in an Arab-Israeli body, Rebels & Patriots depicts the awful dichotomy of love for your fellow people under the pressures of politically motivated violence.

Rebels & Patriots is a prescient show and crucial to this time especially in the light of the horrors and violence that have been happening in the region. It shows that there are voices for peace and coexistence. It shows a real, raw story of young men, and presents questions around the Arab-Israeli identity, Jewish reclamation of attitudes towards antisemitism and asks - what are we talking about when we call for change?

It's a story about young men wanting to build a life but being lost in a violent existence.

Rebels and Patriots will be performed at 3pm at the Pleasance Courtyard (Upstairs) from 31st July - 25th August.

Booking Link: https://www.pleasance.co.uk/event/rebels-and-patriots

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