Broken Kayfabe

Broken Kayfabe originated from fragments of text, personal writings, research, and archive material, including letters and 1980s local newspaper snippets from Haifa. These elements were shaped into narratives and characters, written largely in screenplay format. The characters were developed collaboratively with a cast of non-actors, whose lives and personalities deeply influenced the stories. This project has been evolving for over a decade, with alternating locations and featuring an ever-changing cast. Actors often portrayed variations of the same role, blurring the line between scripted narratives and reality.

The project centers on three storylines. The first follows Peti and Lucy, two emotionally unaware teenage girls whose self-destructive actions lead to their downfall. They work at a knockoff Israeli fast-food joint and idolize The Von Erichs, a professional wrestling family. The second storyline recounts the real-life tragedy of the Von Erich brothers, five all-American wrestlers coached by their father, Fritz. Within a decade, four of the brothers died prematurely—one of illness and the others by suicide. The third storyline sees Peti awkwardly integrated into the Von Erich family, struggling to define her place.

The term “kayfabe,” taken from wrestling jargon, refers to the crafted personas and scripted events designed to enhance the spectacle. This concept parallels the interplay between fantasy and reality in the project’s narratives, as Peti and Lucy navigate emotional and moral complexities while uncovering harsh realities and secretive relationships.