A Must-See Production: October 7 – In Their Own Words

May 28, 2024 by

By Sue Weston and Susan Rosenbluth, Two Sues on the Aisle

October 7: In Their Own Words offers an unfiltered raw account of the events of October 7th. It is told by a group of friends celebrating at the Nova festival who were forced to run for their lives and by residents of the neighboring kibbutzim and moshavim. Written and produced by Irish journalists, Phelim McAleer and Ann McElhinney, the play is based entirely on interviews presented verbatim. This production allows the audience to witness the devastation and heroism of the worst tragedy in modern Jewish history since the Holocaust. October 7: In Their Own Words is a story about humanity, surviving, and fighting back.

The play begins on October 6th a normal day, as various families in the nearby kibbutzim are preparing for Shabbos and the holiday of Simchat Torah. Nearby at the Nova festival participants are dancing. Their celebrations were cut short by the sound of sirens, rockets, and gunfire. October 7:  In Their Own Words shares the stories as told by thirteen individuals who survived. The audience experiences their confusion, fear, and bravery.

Setting the Record Straight

We spoke with Ann McElhinney about what inspired her to produce this play. She was in Ireland on October 8th when someone told her “They turned off the power in Gaza.” She immediately understood that around the world conversations were shifting. Someone needed to share the whole story because there wouldn’t be a war in Gaza without the savage, premeditated attacks of October 7th. While Israel was stunned by the unprecedented attack by October 8th, social media and news reporters were already changing the narrative, demonizing Israel and denying her right to exist.

Phelim McAleer and Ann McElhinney traveled to Israel in November, shortly after the Hamas attack. They conducted interviews, as journalists, getting first-hand accounts from people across the country who witnessed what happened, and whose lives would be changed forever. They used a similar approach to write “Ferguson” a play based on testimony from the the shooting death of 18-year-old Michael Brown by a Missouri police officer.

The Production 

The actors’ words are presented verbatim as they recount their own stories as survivors of October 7th. Some of the intertwining stories include  – Zaki (Jeff Gurner), a religious man from a nearby kibbutz who, when he heard what was going on, drove back and forth to the Nova festival to rescue as many people as he could.  We heard from families that hid in safe rooms for 35 hours with limited water and supplies.

The interviews with festival goers included a combat medic, Shani (Jenny Anne Hochberg) who wanted to stop to help those injured, but her friend reminded her the rule of medics is that you need to save yourself first. We heard from a Muslim doctor, Yasmin (Salma Qarnain), who when caring for the injured, challenges the Hamas terrorists for coopting their religion to justify hatred.

The producers hope to tour the play on college campuses and provide testimonials from the events of October 7th.

Required Viewing

While this play covers many challenging topics, and can be disturbing.  It should be a required viewing for everyone, especially anyone with an opinion on the current Israel-Palestine conflict. It left us speechless. 

Go to October 7: In Their Own Words to purchase tickets or consider donating.

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Two Sues on the Aisle bases its ratings on how many challahs (1-5) it pays to buy (rather than make) to see the play, show, film, book, or exhibit being reviewed.

October 7: In Their Own Words received 5 Challahs

5 Challah Rating

Five Challah Rating

Performances are at the Actors Temple Theatre, 339 West 47th Street.

Runtime –  90 minutes with no intermission.

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