Ruth Sagall (; 9 June 1929 – 7 August 2021) was a Polish-born Israeli actress of stage, screen and television. She was a member of the Haifa Theatre after joining it in 1962 and played a lead role in some of the plays staged in the theatre. Sagall also played solo in the plays ''The Woman Destroyed'', ''Available for Proposals'' and ''Leah Goes Out on the Street'' as well as being cast in roles in films and a television programme. In 2002, Sagall authored the book, ''Goya with Freckles'', in which she discusses how she survived the Holocaust.

Early life

On 9 June 1929, Sagall was born in

Katowice Katowice ( , , ; szl, Katowicy; german: Kattowitz, yi, קאַטעוויץ, Kattevitz) is the capital city of the Silesian Voivodeship in southern Poland and the central city of the Upper Silesian metropolitan area. It is the 11th most popul ...

, Poland. At age five, she won first prize in a young talent contest, She was able to survive the Holocaust by disguising herself as a Christian Polish girl. Sagall emigrated to Israel in 1946, when she was 17 years old. She attended Ayanot Agricultural School. In 1956, she began studying acting at the Strandale Bennett Theater School in Toronto, Canada.

Career

In 1962, Sagall moved back to Israel, and she was accepted as a member of the Haifa Theatre in the same year. Some of the roles she portrayed were those where she was a member of the lead cast, such as Eliza Doolittle in ''

Pygmalion Pygmalion or Pigmalion may refer to: Mythology * Pygmalion (mythology), a sculptor who fell in love with his statue Stage * ''Pigmalion'' (opera), a 1745 opera by Jean-Philippe Rameau * ''Pygmalion'' (Rousseau), a 1762 melodrama by Jean-Jacques ...

'' by George Bernard Shaw. Sagall also played Maria in

Anton Chekhov Anton Pavlovich Chekhov (; 29 January 1860 Old Style date 17 January. – 15 July 1904 Old Style date 2 July.) was a Russian playwright and short-story writer who is considered to be one of the greatest writers of all time. His career ...

's '' Three Sisters'', Ranevskaya in '' The Cherry Orchard'' also by Chekhov, the nanny in ''

The Father Father is the male parent of a child. Father may also refer to: Name * Daniel Fathers (born 1966), a British actor * Father Yod (1922–1975), an American owner of one of the country's first health food restaurants Cinema * ''Father'' (1966 f ...

'' by August Strindberg and Gogan in '' The Plough and the Stars'' by Seán O'Casey under the direction of Oded Kotler. She also starred solo in the plays ''The Woman Destroyed'' by

Simone de Beauvoir Simone Lucie Ernestine Marie Bertrand de Beauvoir (, ; ; 9 January 1908 – 14 April 1986) was a French existentialist philosopher, writer, social theorist, and feminist activist. Though she did not consider herself a philosopher, and even th ...

in 1981, ''Available for Proposals'' five years that was authored for her by Arie Yas and ''Leah Goes Out on the Street'' in 1992. Sagall was the director of the children's plays '' Winnie-the-Pooh'' that was adopted from the A. A. Milne books in 1981 as well as ''The Cute Monster'' adapted from the writer

Oded Burla Oded Burla ( he, עודד בורלא; June 23, 1915 – July 26, 2009) was an Israeli writer, poet, and artist. He is considered one of the founders of children's literature in Hebrew. Biography Oded Burla was born in Jerusalem to a Sepha ...

. She wrote a play, ''Flowers for the Feast'', but it was never brought to the stage. Sagall was in the 1967 film ''Women in the Other Room'' and played Tzipa-Leah in ' seven years later. In 1977, she was cast in the role of lead in the film ' directed by

Avraham Heffner Avraham Heffner (Hebrew: אברהם הפנר‎; 7 May 1935 – 19 September 2014) was an Israeli film and television director, screenwriter, author and Professor Emeritus at the Tel-Aviv University. He was a recipient of the Ophir Award for li ...

. That same year, she played Gloska in '. Sagall went on to feature in and as Chives in ''Baba-It'' both in 1987. She portrayed the part of Leah in the 1990 film ''Parents and Sons'', Fence in the television series ' in 1997, the groom in '' Urban Feel'' a year later, Chesha in the 2006 film ''

The Galilee Eskimos ''The Galilee Eskimos'' ( he, אסקימוסים בגליל) is a 2006 comedy-drama film directed, produced and co-written by Jonathan Paz. It was filmed on location at Kibbutz Yehiam and premiered at the Haifa International Film Festival in Sept ...

'' and played Friedel in the 2008 film '. In 2002, she authored the book, ''Goya with Freckles'', which was published by Am Oved. In it, Sagall discussed how she survived the Holocaust.

Personal life

She was married. Sagall is the mother of the actor and screenwriter Jonathan Sagall, and she also had a daughter. On the evening of 7 August 2021, she died in Haifa. Sagall's funeral took place at Haifa Cemetery in Tamar gate on the following day's evening.

Awards

In 1979, she received the Margalit Award for Outstanding Actress for her performance in ''The Plough and the Stars'' and the Actress of the Year Award for the role in ''Fantasy on a Romantic Theme'' the following year. Sagall was awarded the Civic Award for the City of Haifa for "her many years of contribution to the cultural life of Haifa and the entire country."

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Sagall, Ruth 1929 births 2021 deaths People from Katowice Actresses from Haifa Polish emigrants to Israel Israeli people of Polish-Jewish descent 20th-century Israeli actresses 21st-century Israeli actresses 20th-century Israeli dramatists and playwrights Israeli film actresses Israeli television actresses Israeli stage actresses Israeli female dramatists and playwrights Holocaust survivors Members of Aliyah Bet