The hit Israeli series returns after 50 years: "We kept the central characters"
"Shchunat Chaim," which became one of the most recognizable children's series on Israeli television, returns to the stage in a renewed version. The familiar characters remained, the plot was adapted.
Almost 50 years after it first appeared on screen and became one of the most beloved children's series in the history of Israeli television, "Shchunat Chaim" returns in a new version. This time, the legendary series from 1976 will be presented as a stage production by the Israeli Hour Theater.
The new adaptation is directed by Eldar Gohar Groisman and written by Hadas Calderon together with her creative partner, Oded Ehrlich. The creators sought to preserve the spirit of the original series while adapting the plot for today's young audience.
According to Calderon in an interview she gave to Maariv, the new version is indeed different from the one broadcast on television five decades ago, but the central characters have remained an integral part of the story. Among others, Hezi from the grocery store, originally played by Aryeh Elias, the instructor Sasson, played by Sasson Gabai, and Hanani, the street sweeper played by Yaakov Bodo, will return.
"There is quite a bit of difference between what aired on television in '76 and what we are presenting in the new stage version," said Calderon. "We kept the central characters," she added.
The new production seeks to connect the children of the seventies and eighties, who grew up on the original series, with today's generation of children through a message dealing with the power of community, friendship, and mutual responsibility.
