Shachar Lavi recalls traumatic Bar Mitzvah to captivate jury in 24 Hour storytelling marathon at Edinburgh Festival
We may not be top notch sportsmen but if there’s one thing Israelis are good at, it’s talking.
And to prove the point Shachar Lavi, a 28 year old music producer from Tel Aviv, won first prize at the Grant’s True Tales 24 Hour Storytelling Marathon hosted by the Edinburgh Fringe Festival.
The contest ,hosted by Grant’s whiskey, pitted dozens of storytellers from all over the world against each other in a grueling contest to pick the best storyteller in the world.
For 15 minutes Shachar Lavi moved the audience as he recanted his traumatic Bar Mitzvah when as part of the ceremony to celebrate his transition from child to adult he saw a lamb he used to play with as a child slaughtered by his grandfather, in his honor.
Shachar says he was afraid the audience wouldn’t go for a Jewish story especially ‘an inhumane one’ but at the end of the day Shachar won the contest and was awarded a 25 year old rare bottle of Grant’s whiskey.
On Sunday he delivered a summarized version of the winning tale.
