Israeli theatre adds new dates after Edinburgh boycott

A Jerusalem theatre company prevented from performing in Edinburgh by an ant-Israel backlash during the Gaza conflict has revealed plans to tour the UK.

Incubator Theatre, whose play ‘The City’ is performed through rap, fell foul of pro-Palestinian protesters during the Edinburgh Festival Fringe who targeted the artists because they received Israeli state subsidies.

Now, a programme of additional UK dates has been revealed, with shows in Glasgow, London and Leeds.

It comes after boycotters succeeded in blocking an Incubator performance on 30 July, in scenes described by the theatre company’s publicity manager John Stalker.

“I witnessed first hand a level of menace, intimidation and coercion that I had previously thought impossible to witness on the streets of Edinburgh,” he said.

“A 14-year-old girl was yelled at so loudly and at such close quarters that the transfer of spittle from a protestor was evident.”

Those behind the new tour said they were “defending the freedoms that artists of every other nationality visiting the UK take for granted”.