"The Invaders' Fear of Memories, is both an urgently needed piece of history and an extraordinary work of art. With gorgeous, stirring songs in Ukrainian, Yiddish, Hebrew and Arabic woven throughout, The Invaders' Fear of Memories' confronts us with the tragic cycles of history in which we are still caught. It could not be more relevant in today's violent world.”  – Jo Salas, Author and co-founder of Playback Theatre, New York.

‘The Invaders’ Fear of Memories’ is a solo theatre piece based on the life and diaries of Yousef Nachmani - a Russian Jew who migrated from Tsarist Russia to Ottoman Palestine in 1907. Nachmani became Director of the Jewish National Fund in the Galilee, playing a central role in the forced displacement of thousands of Palestinians. The play looks at the origins of settler-colonialism, ethnic cleansing and apartheid in modern day Israel. It explores themes of loyalty, violence, ideology and grief. “The Invaders’ Fear of Memories” is performed by Benjamin Rivers, the great grandson of Nachmani. The play spans 4 decades with Rivers moving between 12 different characters.

Written and performed by Benjamin Rivers
Guest actor, Sara Ellis Holland (formerly Sara Cooper)
Directed by Linda Wise

DATE
Wednesday 13 March 2024

TIME
5:45pm arrival
Doors close at 6pm

VENUE
University Studio Theatre
Next to the Stanley Burbury Theatre
University Centre, University of Tasmania
Sandy Bay Campus, nipaluna/Hobart

POST PERFORMANCE REFRESHMENTS AND DISCUSSION
After the performance, refreshments will be served followed by a Q&A and discussion with Dr. Adel Yousif, Benjamin Rivers and other speakers, moderated by Sanaullah Shah.

TICKETS
Entry by donation.  All proceeds go to The Freedom Theatre, Jenin, Occupied Palestine
Seats are limited.  Pre-booking is required.  Register HERE. 

SOCIAL MEDIA
Facebook event notice here
Instagram post here.

ORGANISERS/PARTNERS
> Tasmanian Students for Palestine
> Tasmanian University Student Association
> Tasmanian University Union Muslim Society
> Friends of Palestine Tasmania
> Hobart Playback Theatre

ABOUT YOUSEF NACHMANI 
Yousef Nachmani was born in 1891 as Yousef Agranovsky to a Jewish family in Oleksandria, Russia (now Oleksandria, Ukraine). At the age of 15, Yousef, along with his father and brother, were arrested by Russian authorities for their involvement in Poale Zion, a militant group that advocated Zionist ideology. In 1907 Yousef fled to Ottoman Palestine where he joined an urban commune in Jerusalem whose members included David Ben-Gurion and other future Zionist leaders. In 1911 Yousef moved to the Galilee, where he became an early member of Hashomer, a Jewish defence organisation responsible for guarding Jewish settlements in the Yishuv. Yousef later went on to become a senior officer in Haganah and then Director of the Jewish National Fund in Eastern Galilee. In this role, Yousef acquired Arab lands for the Jewish National Fund, often secretly and with the assistance of Arab collaborators. From 1935, Yousef began a diary that documented his own involvement in the expulsion of Palestinians from their homeland. Yousef Nachmani is the great grandfather of Benjamin Rivers.

TITLE
The title for this play, ‘The Invaders’ Fear of Memories’, is a line taken from ‘On this Land’, a poem by the Palestinian poet, Mahmoud Darwish.