CENTER Figure-skating stars from the popular Russian television show Ice Age will glide into Tel Aviv on March 18 for a onetime performance featuring Olympic champions. After seven successful years on air in Russia, the ice-skating spectacular is sure to wow the audience with its festive music, colorful costumes and gravity-defying acrobatic choreography. The show in Israel serves a multidimensional purpose – not only as entertainment but also for damage control after “celebrities” from the Russian program garnered criticism last year for their controversial routine that featured a Holocaust-era theme. The pair from that performance – Tatyana Navka, an Olympic gold medalist and twotime world champion, and Austrian-born Swedish ice hockey player André Burakovsky – will take the spotlight in the Stars on Ice show at Tel Aviv's Menora Mivtachim Arena. Tickets are on sale at prices ranging from NIS 164 to NIS 544 and are available at *2207 or www.2207.co.il. Israel says bonjour to French Film Festival The 14th edition of the French Film Festival in Israel is coming to cinema complexes around the country from March 16 to April 5. This year's production will feature films focused on the topic of youth and the joys and pains of growing up, along with often tumultuous relationships between parents and children. The festival will open with Christian Duguay's film Un sac des billes and close with Hugo Gélin's Demain tout commence. Other films featured in the festival are Michel Boujenah's Le coeur en braille, Sylvain Desclous's Vendeur, Jérôme Salle's L'Odysee, Rebecca Zlotowski's Planetarium, Vincent Garenq's Au nom de ma fille, Xavier Dolan's Juste la fin du monde, and nearly half a dozen more. Festival screenings will be in French, with subtitles in both Hebrew and English, and will take place in the cinematheques of Tel Aviv, Holon, Herzliya, Sderot, Haifa and Jerusalem as well as the cultural centers in Savyon and Ashdod. Tickets for individual showings are available via each cinema. The full program of films is available at: jer-cin.org.il/website/modules/films/Program.aspx?id=784. A thousand activists to talk Mideast conflict in TA Some 1,000 activists are expected at central Tel Aviv's Rabin Square on March 17 for a public discussion about solutions to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Participants from both Israeli and Arab communities are invited to the “Congress of the People” event organized by the Minds of Peace organizations in conjunction with the Leon Charney Resolution Center. Spots on panel discussions are limited. Registration is free but required, at: bit.ly/2mesjy5. NORTH Independent film festival takes Haifa In an effort to highlight prominent and emerging artists in Haifa, the city is holding its second annual independent film festival from March 20 to 25. The Haifa Independent Film Festival seeks to create a cultural bridge between the Jewish and Arab cultures in the city by presenting works that are largely from hard-to-reach parts of the Arab world. Taking place at various venues in Haifa, including the Al-Midan Theater, Khashabi Theater, Kabareet and Al Yakhour, the festival's films feature an exposé of works ranging from newly released films to pictures from past decades by Palestinian and Arab filmmakers. The nonstop week of cinema and cultural events will also include filmmakers and experts presenting their work through a series of workshops and master classes. Films on the festival's program include Roshmia by Salim Abu Jabal and Off Frame a.k.a. Revolution Until Victory by Mohanad Yaqubi. A complete directory of films is soon to be available on the festival's website, https://www.haifaiff.com/copy-of-arabic-1/. Hundreds head to Haifa bioengineering summit Hundreds of experts in the field of biomedical engineering gathered on Tuesday in Haifa for an annual summit hosted by the Israel Society for Medical and Biological Engineering. The conference served as a meeting point between Israeli and foreign researchers, doctors and industry representatives and provided a platform for displaying research and groundbreaking advancements in the field. The interdisciplinary gathering touched on various disciplines in the fields of medicine and engineering, including medical devices, imaging, cancer research, tissue engineering, biomaterials, controlled drug releases and neurological research. The event was held in conjunction with the Haifa Municipality, Technion-Israel Institute of Technology, Bar-Ilan University and Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, among other partners. SOUTH Beersheba holding Purim street bash The capital of the Negev is scheduled to host a large street party in its Old City on Friday afternoon. Starting at noon, the outdoor celebration will feature music, artistic displays, acrobatics and food and drink stalls. Musical artists, including Magit Caccon, DJ Yahel, Bubble, the Black Boyz, DJ Erez Jerbi, DJ Guy Pilo and DJ Shlomi Cohen will perform live concerts at the event's epicenter on Smilanksy Street. The street party will end before Shabbat. Admission is free.
Figure-skating stars will take to the ice in Tel Aviv on March 18