Anti-Israel Protest Erupts During Puppet Performance in New York

Photo: Collected

News Desk: An anti-Israel protest took place during a puppet performance in Lower Manhattan, New York. The show, titled “The Cardboard Pizza Puppet Circus,” was created and performed by a puppet theatre group called Boxcutter Collective.

The production, created to celebrate New York City, was part of this year's International Puppet Fringe Festival. The festival received partial funding from the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs and the New York State Council on the Arts.

Since the October 7, 2023 attack on Israel and the subsequent war in Gaza, Boxcutter Collective has openly expressed its pro-Palestinian stance. In November 2023, the group also participated in a performance called “Gaza Monologues” during the International Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People.

According to the New York Post, the August 13 performance took an unexpected turn about 15 minutes after it began. What started as a show about New York City reportedly shifted into a platform for protest against Israel.

The incident has angered many Jewish residents. A Jewish woman from Brooklyn, who attended the performance with her four-year-old son, told the New York Post that what began as family entertainment eventually turned into what she described as a strongly anti-Israel political performance.

The show's promotional material had advertised dancing skyscrapers, giant pizza rats, flowers fighting fossil fuels, a live brass band, and the Statue of Liberty.

Speaking anonymously, the woman said that while watching scenes about pizza rats and parallel parking, the performance suddenly began accusing Israel of bombing hospitals.

The hour-long show attracted around 200 audience members. In one scene, eight performers recreated a humanitarian aid flotilla at sea, prompting audience members to cheer and chant anti-Israel slogans. The woman also said another segment criticized U.S. taxpayer money being sent to Israel.

She questioned why a play about New York City included anti-Israel political messaging, asking whether hostility toward Israel had become part of the city's identity.

The woman said she remained silent during the performance because she feared the crowd would turn against her if she spoke in support of Israel or criticized Hamas. She added that her family had fled the Soviet Union to escape antisemitism and that she now fears seeing a new form of antisemitism in New York.

Festival founder and producer Manuel Moran told the Jerusalem News Syndicate (JNS) earlier this week that organizers may not have been aware of the performance's controversial political content in advance.

Moran said that, as with many festivals, organizers do not always know every detail of a production beforehand. He added that while the festival supports providing artists with a platform, the artists themselves are responsible for the content of their work.

He also noted that the festival had invited an Israeli troupe, Hanut Theatre Company, as well as a Yiddish cultural performance, but the Israeli group was unable to attend because of visa complications.

According to the report, the New York Post said it sought comment from Boxcutter Collective, the International Puppet Fringe Festival, the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs, and the New York State Council on the Arts, but did not receive responses.