The Stage for Shared Life
We laughed, we cried, we spoke a little Arabic and most importantly we understood — we are brothers
The Stage for Shared Life
We laughed, we cried, we spoke a little Arabic and most importantly we understood — we are brothers
By the Numbers
The Need
Why This Program Is Needed
“Why now?”of Jewish students reached age 18 without ever truly meeting a Druze person
Paragraph In today's Israel, entire communities grow up side by side without truly knowing each other. This gap doesn't close on its own — it requires deliberate, thoughtful and sensitive intervention. Our program bridges worlds through theater, dialogue and shared creation.
Active classes across the country, from north to south
99% — average satisfaction from facilitators among teachers and principals
3 — average years of accompaniment per class — real continuity, not a one-time workshop
What Makes Us Unique
What Sets This Program Apart
“The only program in Israel connecting Jews and Druze through theater and drama”Shams
Shams Zaher, founder and CEO of Al Shams Theater and Center, is the man behind the vision. An Israeli Druze, a licensed drama therapist, a psychotherapist and a reserve military officer — Shams is not only the one who built this program, he embodies it. When he stands in front of a Jewish classroom holding the Druze flag, he is not lecturing — he is telling his own story. The life of his community, the heroism, the covenant. From the moment he decided to put theater in the service of shared life, there was no turning back.
Linda
Linda is a Druze group facilitator from the world of drama — and in the classroom she is nothing like what you expect. No lecture, no slides. She walks into the room, opens up a space, and within minutes there is no longer "us" and "them" — there is a class exploring together. Through games, drama exercises and objects she brings from home, Linda reaches places a lecture could never get to. She doesn't teach about the Druze — she makes students get to know one of them.
Safaa
Safaa is the driving force behind Part B of the program. A licensed nature guide with a master's degree, a tour guide and group facilitator — a Druze woman who decided that the best way to tell her community's story is to take students straight into the heart of it. The tour Safaa built was not born from a curriculum. It was born from a deep love for the land, the culture and the identity. From a desire to reveal what cannot be taught in a classroom — the scent, the color, the pain and the pride of a living, breathing Druze village. Every stop on the tour was chosen with care. Every story she tells — is real.
Part A
A Live Encounter with the Druze Community
Two Druze facilitators come directly to the classroom — a drama therapist who also serves as a reserve military officer, and a Druze group facilitator from the world of drama. For two academic hours, students don't just hear about the Druze community — they experience it. Through artifacts, traditional clothing, photographs, games and drama exercises, students are immersed in Druze culture, history, faith and heritage, and in the unique covenant of life between the community and the State of Israel.
Part B
An Experiential Tour of a Druze Village
Students arrive at a Druze village for a tour of up to four hours that weaves together joy and emotion. They explore the village's unique cultural sites — traditions, sacred places, traditional food and more — alongside an encounter with the painful side: a military cemetery, monuments to fallen community members, and stories of heroism and grief from Druze families. This is not just a field trip — it is an experience that touches the heart and stays with you.
Yaarit
Social Coordinator - Comprehensive School, Ashdod
The program is highly recommended and has contributed greatly to the social and values climate of the school.
Book Now