Tel Aviv-Yafo - Israel’s cultural insignia

Since its inception Tel Aviv-Yafo, the first Hebrew city in the land of Israel, has been a focus of modern, original creativity. Today the city is a national center of rich, innovative and popular culture which serves not only the residents of the city, but the entire country.

The “Cameri” Theater

The “Cameri” Theatre, The Tel Aviv municipal theatre was established in Tel Aviv in 1944. During its sixty years of existence it has stages more than 400 productions – both original and translated – and these have played to a combined, cumulative audience of more than 20 million. In December 2002 the Cameri’s new and permanent home – an advanced structure with sophisticated lighting and sound facilities which was built at a cost of NIS 120 million – was inaugurated. Covering a built-up area of some 11,000 sq. meters (approximately 110,000 sq. ft.), the structure has three separate halls with a combined seating capacity of 1,600. The building was designed by two architects: the late Yaakov Rechter and his son Amnon.

A Surge of Development in Cinema and Museums

There are 47 movie theaters in Tel Aviv Yafo, with a combined seating capacity of about 8,900 and an annual attendance rate of about a million and a half.

Eretz Israel Museum - Tel Aviv

The Eretz Israel Museum - Tel Aviv is a multi-disciplinary institution which presents the history of the Land and its culture in an extensive permanent exhibit, as well as temporary exhibits on a variety of subjects – such as archaeology, ethnography, folklore, Judaica, cultural history and local identity, traditional crafts and functional arts. The museum’s pavilions are scattered throughout a spacious courtyard with the ancient archaeological mound of Tel Kassile, at which excavations revealed valuable findings, protruding at its center. The museum houses reconstructed, operative ancient production installations, including wine presses, an olive oil press and a flour mill, along with a “craftspersons’ marketplace” which presents the traditional work implements that were used in the Land of Israel and throughout the region. There is also a sophisticated Planetarium with its “Journey to the Universe” program, and a museum shop offering a unique selection of locally produced gifts and ornaments.

The Tel Aviv Museum of Art

The Tel Aviv Museum of Art presents a variety of permanent and temporal exhibits at its home on Shaul Hamelech Boulevard and in the Helena Rubenstein Pavilion, next to the Mann Auditorium. The permanent exhibits include some of the best works of Israeli art and sculpture from the 20’s until today, European paintings - impressionism and post-impressionism - from the 16th to the 19th centuries, as well as European and American works of the 20th century. The museum’s graphic collection includes more than 20,000 prints and sketches. Among the museum’s outstanding works are a unique selection of early painted reliefs of Alexander Archipenko and works by Chagall, which he donated to the museum before its establishment. Helena Rubenstein’s well-known collection of miniature rooms is on permanent display in the pavilion which bears her name.

Museum of the Jewish Diaspora

The Museum of the Jewish Diaspora, situated on the Tel Aviv University campus, has gained honorary distinction throughout the Jewish world as the first museum of the history of the Jewish people and its contribution to human creativity and culture over a period of more than two millennia. The Museum permanent exhibition brings the story of the Jewish People throughout the Diaspora to life through drawings, video clips, films, reconstructed models and other means. The exhibit focuses on various subjects – including “The Jewish Family life cycle", "the community", "the faith", and "the return to Zion".

Other unique Museums

Tel Aviv Yafo is also a home to a verity of smaller, specialized museums, such as Beit Ben Gurion (The home of David Ben Gurion, Israel’s first prime minister), Beit Hatanach (The home of the Bible), The Haganah (defense) Museum, The I.Z.L. (the Irgun Zva’I Leumi – National Military Organization) Museum, Beit Hasofer (author’s house), Beit Reuven, The Jabotinsky Museum, etc. Each of these smaller museums is a virtual treasure-house of artifacts. Beit Bialik – The house of the national poet, for example, displays the books, furniture and belongings of Israel’s national poet. Bialik’s personal library of more than 3,000 books has been preserved, and the museum’s archives contain thousands of manuscripts, including the most extensive collection of his writings.

Street Sculpture

A municipal sculpture project was recently completed in which some 60 sculptures and other artistic creations by Israeli artists have been put on display since 1988 along boulevards and in parks, streets and public squares, joining the 36 works that had previously been positioned. The 96 works were fashioned by 63 artists, thus ensuring a wide range of stylistic variety.

Dance and Opera

The Tel Aviv Performing Arts Center host a verity of Opera, dance and music productions of the highest level by Israeli and overseas artists. The new Israeli Opera was established in 1985 and, in the mid-90’s, it moved from the Noga Theater in Yafo to the Tel Aviv Performing Arts Center, while expanding the scope of its operatic activity in Israel. The opera fosters the development of new generations of Israeli opera of performers and opera lovers in cooperation with a wide spectrum important overseas opera companies. In celebration of 20 years of activity, the New Israeli Opera is presenting a particularly festive season including Felici, Fidelio, Samson and Delilah, Wozzeck, A journey to the End of the Millennium and Rigoletto. The members of the company are invited to visit the home of the National Opera Company of China and the Helicon Opera Company of Moscow.

The Suzanne Dellal Center for Dance and Theater

The Suzanne Dellal Center for Dance and Theatre was inaugurated in 1989 as the life’s work of the Dellal family to commemorate their daughter Suzanne. The center is Israel’s most vibrant hub of activity in the field of dance, serving as a home, stage and presentation platform for choreographers, artists and dancers. It includes three performance halls, rehearsal studios and open spaces and stages for outdoor performances. Events at the Suzanne Dellal Center include Dance Eyropa – a festival of contemporary dance with dance troupes and srtists from Europe; Macholohet (Passionate dance) – 6 weeks of performances by dance troupes and independent artists from Israel and abroad; Kesem Shel Agada (A Charmful Legend) – a celebration of summers’ end for children and families; Hasifa Benleumit (International Exposure) – performing Israeli dance.