Paper Dolls

Synopsis

"You know, Yossi, we couldn't dress like this in the Philippines... wear earrings, dye my hair, put on make up, lipstick. It's forbidden." In Tel Aviv, Israel, a group of Filipino immigrants work as live-in care-givers for elderly Orthodox Jewish men. Six days a week, they provide dedicated support to their employers. But on the seventh day, they transform into a homespun, sassy musical drag act. Meet the Paper Dolls! An extraordinary true story exploring an unlikely collision of cultures and the universal desire to find ?home'.

Our Review:

Michael Coveney - 7 March 2013

Crude, noisy, rough and not quite ready, Paper Dolls is a play (with songs) about Filipino drag queens in Tel Aviv who perform show tunes and disco hits by night and work as carers for old Orthodox Jews by day.

Indhu Rubasingham’s lively production of Philip Himberg’s play, based on a documentary film by Tomer Heymann, sets up so many clashes, cultural and otherwise, that you could re-score the piece for an ensemble of cymbals: there’s the immigration question during the second intifada, the gay club scene in the shadow of the Hasidic area, divided worship at the Wailing Wall in Jerusalem and a tug-of-love over a dying old man between his daughter and his nur...

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Latest User Review

Tina - 17 April 2013:

Just seen "Paper Dolls" and what a really lovely performance. All the cast are really committed and a varied and interesting subject is being played out. For me the part of "Sally" was from the heart and so touching. Well worth a visit....

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