Suzanne Dellal Center for Dance and Theater

Suzanne Dellal Center for Dance and Theater Review

The two large whitewashed buildings that make up this attractive complex started out as schools, one built in 1892 and the other in 1908. Both were used for education until the 1970s, though they also served as headquarters for the political force Etzel and the underground military group Haganah, which marched on Arab Jaffa in the 1940s. The square, designed by foremost landscape designer Shlomo Aronson, has hints of a medieval Middle Eastern courtyard in its scattering of orange trees connected by water channels. One side of the square is decorated with a tile triptych, which illustrates the neighborhood's history and famous people who lived here in the early years, including S.Y. Agnon who went on to win the Nobel prize for literature. The halls are open only for performances, but there's a café-bar on the premises. Just off the square on Cheloushe Street is a fun ice-cream shop with outdoor seating called Glidat Savta ("Grandma's ice-cream").