OFRA HAZA - KEEPING THE FLAME BURNING

Home Biography Music Achievements Gallery Archive News

Tours Kids Roots Forum Kaddish Links Contact

Kids

Ofra always said how much she loves kids, and how much she wanted kids of her own. Through the years she worked on several projects for kids and teenagers:
The Kids From Haim Neighborhood Shirovision For Children Nice Butterfly No Secrets		Songs For Children Cat Shmil Club That's It Magic Queen		Rumpelstiltskin Festigal The Prince of Egypt The King and I

The Kids From Haim Neighborhood

Most popular show for kids and teenagers on Israeli television during the 1970's was The Kids From Haim Neighborhood. Ofra joined the show in one of the episodes; in which, one of the kids wants to go to the cinema before the end of Sabbath, but his father won't let him. Ofra tries to convince the father to let his son go to the movies, because otherwise he would lose the ticket, but also tries to convince the child that keeping the Sabbath is always important. Later on the kids friends come to his home when they realise he wasn't coming, and they sold all their tickets, so no one loses his ticket. After solving this problem they all go back to the house, and Ofra sings with everyone 'To the Candle and Spices', and Ofra's uncle appears on the scene.

On another episode Ofra sings 'The Punctuation Song', an educational song for children, and plays the role of the Point.

The Punctuation Song - Click to watch

Shirovision For Children

Flash Gordon - Click to watch

Every Hanukkah Pashanell made a special show for children called Shirovision For Children. The best Israeli singers appeared on that show every year. Ofra, who signed a contract with Pashanell at the beginning of her career to manage her, accepted his request to perform on the show every year. For this show, Bezalel wrote every year wrote her a new song to perform: Flash Gordon, Super Star, Magic Queen and Signs of Lovers.

Nice Butterfly

In 1982 Israeli educational television had a new program for children called 'Nice Butterfly'. Ofra, who around hat time began her solo career, was asked to perform in two episodes of the show.
On the first one, Ofra teaches two of the puppets how to make flowers using a pencil and a paper, and also set up a stall for selling flowers for lovers, for Sabbath and for holidays.
On the second episode, which was about the holidays at the beginning of the Hebrew year, Ofra tells about Rosh Hashana and Sukkot, and along with the rest of the crew of 'Nice Butterfly' she invites children to their Sukkah and shares apples and honey.

Selling flowers - Click to watch

Sukkot - Click to watch

No Secrets

No Secrets - Click to watch

Another show for children that began filming for the Israeli educational television was 'No Secrets'. The show was aimed at young children, and taught them how to read and write.

On April 1982 Ofra was taking part in one of the episodes of that show. On that chapter, Ofra visits the No Secrets restaurant, and sings a song with them that is aimed at learning how to read.

Songs For Children

Because of her love for children and the success of the children programs she performed in, Ofra decided to record an album dedicated to very young children. Ofra and Bezalel asked the advice of kindergarden teachers and educators, and together with them they chose 30 songs, including songs for playing, songs for mothers and fathers, songs for bedtime, songs for works, songs for a journey, songs for the seasons and songs for Sabbath.

"Songs For Children" - the album

Cat Shmil Club

Hanukkah song - Click to watch

Sukkot song - Click to watch

One of the most popular Israeli TV shows for children during the early 1980's was 'Cat Shmil Club'. Ofra featured on the show twice; first in Hanukkah of 1980, and then again in Sukkot 1983. On Hanukkah Ofra sang, along with other singers, songs for the holiday. On Sukkot she sang 'Alive', the song which she represented Israel in Eurovision Song Contest that year, and also performed a song for the holiday.

That's It

The most popular Israeli TV show for teenagers all through the 1980's was 'That's It'. Ofra was one of the crew's favorite guests. From 1982 to 1987 Ofra was invited 11 times to sing on the show. On one of the shows, teenagers were asked to write to them with their dreams i.e. what is their dream. Some of the teens who wrote that their dream is to meet Ofra were invited to meet her on the show and sang with her Hand In Hand. On Purim 1987 the crew of 'That's It' were looking for singer who could also act, to be with them on a special show for the holiday, and chose Ofra.

Hand In Hand - Click to watch

Purim 1987 - Click to watch

Magic Queen

Click to watch

In Hanukkah of 1985 Pashanell decided not to make another Shirovision, so Ofra decided to make a show of her own dedicated mostly to children, called 'Magic Queen', after the name of one of the songs she sang in the Shirovision.
During the show Ofra sang and did some magic tricks, and hosted two famous Israeli magicians and 22 dancers.
The tour was a huge success especially among children.

Rumpelstiltskin

Also in Hannukah of 1985, Pashanell decided to make a new production of the famous tale of Brothers Grimm - Rumpelstiltskin, with The Pale Tracker Trio (who played with her in the movie Shlager), Zipi Shvit (a very famous actor for children in Israel) and others. Ofra was asked to play the millers daughter.

The new production was broadvast every day during the eight days of Hanukkah, three times each day.

Click to watch

Festigal

The Festigal was, and still is today, the biggest song contest for children in Israel. The best Israeli artists take part in it every year, during Hanukkah.

In 1987 Ofra was asked to take part in the Festigal with a song Bezalel wrote especially for the event - 'Forty', which was written for Israel's 40th Independence Day. Ofra also sang a medley of her songs. During her performances the guards could not keep the children away from her, and some of them got up the stage, hugged her and gave her flowers. Ofra won second place.

The Prince of Egypt

In 1994 Ofra recorded a song for the soundtrack of 'Queen Margot'. One of the producers in Warner company, who produced that time their first animated movie - The Prince of Egypt, that tells the story of Moses - heard Ofra's voice in the movie and was deeply touched by it.

Ofra haza

Ofra was asked to sing the main song - 'Deliver Us' - in all the 17 languages the movie was dubbed to. Also, the producers liked Ofra so much, that they decided to make Moses' mother, Yocheved, in the shape and likeness of Ofra.

'Deliver Us' - Hebrew

'Deliver Us' - English

'Deliver Us' - German

'Deliver Us' - French

The King and I

Click to watch

After over 10 years of recording abroad, Ofra was invited to record a few songs for the Hebrew version of 'The King and I' in 1999.

In the movie Ofra sang the songs of Anna, an English teacher, who comes to Siam to teach the royal children of the king of Siam. Anna is captivated by the charms of the children, and also by the charms of the King, and finds herself helping the Prince to fulfil his forbidden love to the beautiful slave.