Tzedi Tzarfati & the IPO

a fascinating journey through a remarkable 70-year career that is, in many ways, the story of Israeli entertainment and song itself. From his early days as a young actor, to directing some of the greatest artists, stage productions, and entertainment shows in Israeli culture. Together with the Israel Philharmonic Orchestra, beloved songs will receive special and moving new arrangements, performed by a variety of singers and actors he encountered along the way.
At the age of 10, Tzedi Tzarfati fell in love with the world of stage, entertainment, and theater after being cast in a film. By 13, he was already acting at the Cameri Theatre, where he returned after serving in the Central Command military troupe. By the age of 29, he had appeared in some of Israel’s most successful stage productions, including King Solomon and Shalmai the Cobbler, The Inn of the Spirits, Kinneret Kinneret, and the musical Hair. But at 29, he chose to leave the stage and overnight became one of Israel’s most successful and sought-after directors, thanks to the solo show he created for Chava Alberstein.
Over the years, he directed plays and musicals, entertainment shows, television programs, solo performances, Eurovision acts, children’s productions, and many of Israel’s leading artists. Among the long and distinguished list of milestones in Israeli culture that he helped shape are Spanish Orchard (Bustan Sefardi), Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat, Funny Girl, A Chorus Line, Annie, Oliver!, Lilly Also, Irma La Douce, Kazablan, West Side Story, The Good, the Bad and the Girl, Guys and Dolls, the Naomi Shemer Song Evening by Habimot Ensemble, the Festigal productions, the Children’s Song Festival, and longstanding collaborations with artists including Chava Alberstein, Yardena Arazi, Hakol Over Habibi, Chocolate Menta Mastik, Sexta, Mango, Rivka Michaeli, Gila Almagor, Corinne Allal, Marina Maximilian Blumin, and many others.
Throughout the years, he has received the Rosenblum Prize for Lifetime Achievement, the Milo Award, the AMI Lifetime Achievement Award, the Navon Award, and the title of Honorary Citizen of Tel Aviv.