Draft:Ran Bechor

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Ran Bechor
רן בכור
Born
Ran Theodor Bechor

(1986-05-22) May 22, 1986
Jerusalem, Israel
EducationTel Aviv University (BA, MA)
Occupations
  • Playwright
  • theatre director
  • actor
  • educator
Years active1995–present
Known forCo-founder and artistic director of Adam Theater
SpouseRomy Neumark

Ran Theodor Bechor (Hebrew: רן בכור; born 22 May 1986) is an Israeli playwright, theatre director, actor and educator. He is a co-founder and the artistic director of Adam Theater, a Boston-based nonprofit theatre company for young audiences, and a preceptor in Modern Hebrew in the Department of Near Eastern Languages and Civilizations at Harvard University.[1][2]

Early life and education

Bechor was born in Jerusalem. When he was five his parents divorced, and he moved with his mother and two siblings to Tel Aviv, where the family lived with his grandmother.

He earned a Bachelor of Arts in philosophy and theatre and a Master of Arts in sociology and anthropology, both from Tel Aviv University.[3]

Career

Television and film

Bechor began appearing on Israeli television as a child, with an early credit on the program Gingi in 1995.[4] In 2002 he joined the cast of the Channel 2 drama series My First Sony, adapted from the novel by Benny Barbash and directed by Uri Barbash, in which he played one of the sons of the central family.[5][4] He subsequently appeared in television series including Love Around the Corner, Our Song, Exposed and Pilots' Wives.[6] His film credits include Forever with Mickey Berkowitz (2004), Days of Love (2005) and Testimony (2011).[6]

Theatre

In 2012 Bechor served as a co-artistic director of the Site-Specific Festival in Tel Aviv-Yafo, a programme of performances staged in alternative venues across the city.[7] Between 2009 and 2013 he founded and ran a community theatre for Jewish and Arab youth that operated in cities including Jaffa, Holon and Ramat HaSharon.

In May 2023 Bechor co-founded Adam Theater in Boston with executive director Karin Sharav-Zalkind, after the two met through a mutual acquaintance earlier that year. The nonprofit company, named after Bechor's son Adam, produces theatre for young audiences and families and is affiliated with the Theatre for Young Audiences network.[2][8] In 2024 he directed the company's debut production, a musical stage adaptation of Michelle Knudsen's picture book Library Lion, which premiered at the Boston Public Library.[7][2]

Education

Bechor was head of the theatre track at an educational institution in Shfayim from 2011 to 2016, and a junior faculty member in the Faculty of Social Sciences at Tel Aviv University from 2016 to 2018.[3] He was a fellow of the Mandel School for Educational Leadership in Jerusalem from 2018 to 2020, after which he served as principal of a school for gifted students in Jerusalem.[9][1] Since 2023 he has been a preceptor in Modern Hebrew at Harvard University, where he teaches Hebrew language and culture.[1][10]

Personal life

Bechor is married to the Israeli journalist and former news anchor Romy Neumark, who has also taught at Harvard.[11] They have a son, Adam, born in 2015, and live in Cambridge, Massachusetts.[2]

Awards and recognition

As writer and director, Bechor received the award for Best Play at the Akko (Acre) International Fringe Theatre Festival in 2016 for his play Schreber.[7] His play Uncle Max's Journey opened the Haifa International Children's Theatre Festival in 2014, and he directed the plays Offstage and Minyan.[7]

References

  1. "Ran Bechor". Department of Near Eastern Languages & Civilizations. Harvard University. Retrieved 2 June 2026.
  2. "'Library Lion' Gets Musical Treatment from New Children's Theater". Publishers Weekly. 29 October 2024. Retrieved 2 June 2026.
  3. "Ran Bechor". Center for Middle Eastern Studies. Harvard University. Retrieved 2 June 2026.
  4. "קטינים בבר" [Minors at the bar]. Ynet (in Hebrew). 2 December 2004. Retrieved 2 June 2026.
  5. "מיי פירסט סוני (2002)" [My First Sony (2002)]. EDB – The Israeli Film Database (in Hebrew). Retrieved 2 June 2026.
  6. "רן בכור – פילמוגרפיה" [Ran Bechor – filmography]. EDB – The Israeli Film Database (in Hebrew). Retrieved 2 June 2026.
  7. "Boston Public Library Hosts Debut of Adam Theater's 'Library Lion'". Boston Public Library. 5 September 2024. Retrieved 2 June 2026.
  8. "About Us". Adam Theater. Retrieved 2 June 2026.
  9. "Adam Theater receives $150K grant to bring all Boston Public School second-graders to 'Library Lion'". massnonprofit.org. 1 July 2025. Retrieved 2 June 2026.
  10. "Ran Bechor". Center for Jewish Studies. Harvard University. Retrieved 2 June 2026.
  11. "Romy Neumark". Center for Jewish Studies. Harvard University. Retrieved 2 June 2026.