After knocking out the leading lady, breaking his hand in a fencing match and slapping Desdemona so hard she stomped off stage, Othello has been suspended.

The Haifa Municipal Theater, while conceding that the impromptu stage violence was brought on by lead actor Giuliano Mar's "total immersion in his acting," also canceled performances yesterday and today.

The actor insisted that leading lady Maya Maoz was simply too wimpy for the role. " I slapped her as part of my role and she left the stage in the middle," Mar told the Maariv daily.