International Exposure 2009 will take place from December 9 – 13. Yair Vardi, Director of the Suzanne Dellal Centre: “We can sense the circle of organizations interested in dance and independent creation in Israel growing from year to year, a fact that cannot be taken for granted. This strengthens the realization that Israel is recognized world-wide as a powerful source of original, contemporary dance.”
There is no stronger affirmation of this growing interest than the imminent arrival of dance and festival directors from around the world to immerse themselves in Israeli dance. Among the guests will be: Jean Paul Montanari, director of the Montpellier Dance Festival, Aja Jung, director of the Belgrade Dance Festival, Bruno Heynderickx, artistic director of Carte Blanche (The Norwegian National Company of Contemporary Dance), Rena Shagan, President of RSA, Daniel Banks and Adam McKinney, co-founders of DNAWORKS, Saul Sanders, Joyce Theater Trustee, Arthur Ghukasyan, President of the Armenian festival “High Fest”, Benoit André, artistic director of the Winter Festival in Normandy, and many more.
Those of us who live in Israel year-round can take the opportunity to enjoy the festivities and indulge in a marathon of dance. Some program highlights:
Wednesday, December 9
20:00 Rushes Inbal Pinto & Avshalom Pollak Dance Company
Created in collaboration with Robby Barnett and the Pilobolus Dance Company, Rushes combines the acrobatic virtuosity of Pilobolus with the expressive, exquisitely detailed world of Pinto & Pollak. Suzanne Dellal Hall
22:00 Trout Inbal Pinto & Avshalom Pollak Dance Company
Their latest work: a dark, dreamlike aquatic sequence with live music performed by The Kitchen Orchestra. Yaron Yerushalmi Theatre, Suzanne Dellal Centre
Thursday, December 10
21:00 fling Maria Kong Dance Company
An enigmatic tale of three characters: Federico, Gomiez, Angelica, and the compelling forces and tensions between them. This new dance company is an exciting presence on the Israeli dance scene. Nahmani Theatre
22:30 Mana Vertigo Dance Company
A journey both physical and spiritual which explores the relationship of the individual to the larger framework, the tensions and connections between inner and outer forces. Suzanne Dellal Hall
Friday, December 11
14:00 Rooster Barak Marshall
A dream-like work featuring opera singer Lilia Gretsova, Margalit Oved and 12 dancers, that tells of a man’s search for love.
22:00 LOVE FIRE Yasmeen Godder
Godder’s perspective on classical waltz from Shostakovich to Strauss, a duet with the dancer Eran Shanny created in collaboration with dramaturg Itzik Giuli and the visual artist Yochai Matos. An evocative and visually dense exploration of the culture of romance.
Saturday, December 12
11:00 Big Mouth Niv Sheinfeld and Oren Laor
Exploring through movement the relationship of the individual to the surrounding framework, the tension between the desire for self-expression and the desire to belong. Developed with dancer/choreographer Keren Levi. Suzanne Dellal Hall
15:00 4 Men, Alice, Bach and the Deer Yossi Berg and Oded Graf
Searching for the new man and his mythology, deconstructing every myth and image along the way.
Inbal Hall
Sunday, December 13
21:00 Hora Batsheva Dance Company
11 dancers on an odyssey of movement, to the synthesized sounds of Isao Tomita.
Suzanne Dellal Hall
International Exposure is a project initiated and produced by the Suzanne Dellal Centre, with the Israeli Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and the Israeli Ministry of Culture and Sport – Dance Department.
Detailed information is available on the Suzanne Dellal Centre website.
Image credit: Gadi Dagon
