Hanoch Rosènn (www.PrinceOfMime.com) [known abroad as Eno Rosènn]
Born in London and raised in Jerusalem. Rosènn began formal studies at Jerusalem’s Teen Stage at the age of 15. Television journalist Amos Arbel introduced Rosènn to pantomime during his course, opening a door for Rosènn that heralded the beginning of a fruitful relationship with the art.
When as a teenager down to his bottom dollar on a trip to Europe with a friend, Rosènn decided to make some instant money by miming on the streets of Munich Upon his return, while still in high school, Rosènn created a one-man mime show that he performed for enthusiastic audiences at Jerusalem’s Pargód Theater. Rosènn was hooked, and before enlisting in the IDF for his compulsory service, he took some time off and traveled to Paris in order to study pantomime with Etienne de Creux, Marcel Marceau’s teacher, known as the Father of Modern Pantomime, as well as others, among them Ella Jarozchewich.
Upon his induction into the IDF, Rosènn was the first soldier in IDF history to be officially listed as “Job: Pantomime”. Three years of performing for IDF troops sharpened both his desire and ability to bring this classic art close to the soul of the Israeli audience. During his final year of military service, Rosènn was appointed House Director of all IDF entertainment troops, responsible for blocking and choreographing all shows.
Continuing to develop his art after his discharge in 1980, Rosènn created a mime show debuting at Tel Aviv’s Teatrón haMadregót [“Stairsteps Theater”], and performed it throughout Israel. Concurrently, he appeared in the musical Plantor: Man from Outer Space, and in the popular TV program Shnáyim beRósh Echád [“On the Same Page”] wherein Rosènn portrayed the beloved Panto / Fanto / Fento / Pento, which made Hanoch Rosènn a household name in Israel and brought his work wide recognition. In a natural followup, Rosènn directed and starred in the play Panto / Fanto / Fento / Pento, winning the coveted David's Harp Award for 1984 Best Family Show of the year.
Since then, Rosènn has staged several one-man shows, among them diburìm zeh lo haKól [Hebrew play on words for “Talking’s Not Everything”] and al titpós otì beMilá [“Don’t Hold Me to My Word”], which performed off Broadway. In general Rosènn frequently appears around the world, where the media has dubbed him “the Prince of Mime…the heir-apparent of Marcel Marceau”. Rosènn presently performs selected numbers from his shows, including his most recent one, shomèr al zchút haShtiká [“Right to Remain Silent”].
Rosènn traveled to the United States in 1985, where he continued his artistic studies, performed in various venues and entered a commercial mime competition wherein he won Best Mime in New York.
The following year he returned home to develop his one-man show Al Titpós Otì baMilá [“Don’t Hold Me to My Word”], performing it nationwide over 1,000 times to much acclaim. By 1987 he was back in New York, this time performing in a six-month Off-Broadway run.
In 1989 Rosènn formed a partnership with the Haifa Theater to produce, write, and star in the musical “Peter Pan”, combining his pantomime art with incredible stage effects to achieve a smash hit that ran in Israel for nearly two years.
In 1992 Rosènn created and performed shovrìm et machsóm haKól [“Breaking the Sound Barrier”], his new show combining mime with gigantic props and video clips, to rave reviews, after which he brought it to the Edinburgh Festival, Singapore, and further afield.
In 1994 Rosènn went on to stage his next one-man show, bidúr leLó milìm “Entertainment Without Words”, performing it over 500 times in Israel and at dozens of festivals worldwide, including in Argentina, Brazil, China, Colombia, France, Germany, Italy, the Philippines, Singapore, Switzerland, Taiwan, Thailand, and the USA.
That same year Rosènn directed his third-year acting students at Beit Zvi Acting School in a play he wrote, Story of a Sperm. Winning national recognition, Story of a Sperm was picked up by Beit Lessin Repertoire Theater, launching Rosènn’s directing career and building his name as a specialist in directing “grand shows”, extravaganzas, spectacles, musicals, pop stars, and mega theatricals.
In 1996 Rosènn wrote and directed the successful stage production of The Jungle Book, which won the Best Musical Production that year. He subsequently directed other successful musicals such as “Tarzan and Jane” and galgalèi haKèsem [“The Magical Wheels”].
In 1997 Rosènn directed the Festigál, a family musical extravaganza for the holiday season that became an enormous success, bringing in audiences of over 400,000 in just five weeks. Festigál is performed in 6,000-seat arenas with a cast of 100 performers including acrobats, TV stars, dancers, actors, and musicians, and combining music, dance, acrobatics, special effects, flying, fire, water, giant screens, and video effects.
Since that huge success, Rosènn continues to direct Festigál annually, each year with a different theme, story line, and performers. He has subsequently directed 11 different shows of that kind.
Along with these, Rosènn directs the circus-style WOW! combining acrobats, dancers, jugglers, musicians, and comedians from around the globe. WOW! is a fast-moving, stunning spectacular performed Las Vegas style nightly in a 600-seat theater in the resort of Eilat. WOW! as directed by Rosènn has a new incarnation every year; with different themes and performers each run, it is now in its 10th successful sellout season.
Rosènn also directed the Israeli feature film hit “Superboy”, all the while continuing to perform his one-man shows around the world, including his 1998 run with the Costa Rica National Symphony and the Colombian Philharmonic Orchestras, performing a stage piece that he created based on Saint-Saëns’ Carnival of the Animals.
ln 1999 Rosènn created shomèr al zchút haShtiká [“The Right to Remain Silent”], written in the spirit of the new millennium and combining new mime techniques with theatrical props, lighting and sound effects, impeccable timing, and physical mastery, which Rosènn performed around the world for over 10 years.
In 2009 Rosènn created Speechless! especially for the Israel Festival. Speechless! combines the experience and knowledge Rosènn gained throughout his work as a director, as well as new techniques and theatrical technologies with the art of mime and silent movement, bringing to the stage never-before-seen visuals, marking a new era in the art of mime. The use of LED screens with a live performer on stage in 3D technology brings a new and stunning experience to the stage.
Speechless! won Show of the Year at the Israel Theater Awards, got rave reviews, and was performed in Israel, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Croatia, Ecuador, Germany, Mexico, Panama, and Peru. It is now on its way to tour China, France, the Netherlands, Taiwan and more; look for it on New York’s Broadway in 2012!
Directing
At the beginning of his career as a director, Rosènn directed Peter Pan, which won the prestigious David’s Harp Prize. In cooperation with the Haifa Theatre, he produced and jointly arranged the musical Peter Pan in which he also starred. In cooperation with Beit Lessin Theatre, he arranged and directed The Jungle Book together with Ephraim Sidón, which won the Theatre Award. Also at Beit Lessin, Rosènn wrote and directed Story of a Sperm, which began as an experimental project for Beit Zvi Acting School. In addition, he directed:
• The top Festigáls, whose unprecedented success in 2005-6 is owing directly to Rosènn
• The feature film Super Boy
• Servant of Two Masters at Beer Sheva Theatre
• WOW! at Isrotel Auditorium in Eilat for five years running
• Speed and the Magic Wheels, Hanukkah 2003
• Tarzan and Jane (musical), Hanukkah 2004
• Rita’s spectacular 2006 English show, One, which sold over 100,000 tickets
Rosènn is married to Rucha and is the father of Gali, Daria, Dorìn, and Dean.
