International Dance Day 2021

“In 1982 the Dance Committee of ITI founded International Dance Day to be celebrated every year on the 29th April, the birthday of Jean-Georges Noverre (1727-1810), the creator of modern ballet. The intention of International Dance Day is to celebrate dance, revel in the universality of this art form, cross all political, cultural and ethnic barriers, and bring people together with a common language – dance” – www.international-dance-day.org

Dance: Dawn/Ayman Safiah and Raymond Haddad

On this day Bethlehem Cultural Festival would like to pay tribute to the life of Ayman Safiah, a 29 year old renowned dancer, choreographer, teacher and artist who passed away in May 2020.

We share below the link to Ayman Safiah solo piece Dawn.
It was published posthumously, and is being shared here with gracious permission from his family. 

DANCE: False Awakening/Stereo 48

After an exhausting day at work a Palestinian girl falls asleep and get stuck in a vivid dream about awakening from asleep while in reality she is still dreaming, And we dive with her in a group of dreams that take us on a journey into her subconscious mind, which might give us an opportunity to know a little about her reality. 

Stereo48 is a Palestinian young organization working in the field of performing art and particularly contemporary and theater dance, it has been founded since 2014 by a group of break-dancers from the city of Nablus ,Our mission is to enhance the performing art scene in Palestine. We aspire to achieve our mission through several programs. Vary between producing theatre dance performances. And giving hip-hop workshops and classes in the refugee camps, believing in the positive impact of this culture in people living in marginalized areas, Moreover the Dance Competitions Program which focuses on expanding and spreading the culture of dance and hip-hop organizes dance competitions for professionals to engage in friendly contests. 

Website: www.stereo48.com

Dance: Dabka/Shoruq Dance

Shoruq Organisation is an NGO established in 2012 in Dheisheh Camp, Bethlehem.

DANCE: 3 x 13/ Yaa Samar! Dance Theatre

Produced by Yaa Samar! Dance Theatre and Created by award-winning Director Eimi Imanishi and Choreographer Samar Haddad King, 3 x 13 explores the singularity of the individual and the universality of the human experience. 

To watch: https://3x13film.ysdt.org

The making of the film:

About YSDT: 

Yaa Samar! Dance Theatre (YSDT)’s mission is to create invigorating performance and education programs that expand access to – and promote understanding through – the arts.

YSDT believes art should be liberating, transformative, and accessible to all. The company operates out of the United States and Arab World and is committed to uniting diverse artists and audiences in the creative process.

VISUAL ARTS: Tayseer Barakat, “The Dance” (2015, acrylic on canvas) 

The dancing man and woman in the work of Tayseer Barakat are expressing their joy, not for meeting , but by movement and music, and we can almost hear the harmony from behind the strains of color. Kandinsky was the artist who developed the theory of the innate relationship between color and musical melody. Tayseer Barakat here also converses with color to reflect the music of life in the painting.

VISUAL ARTS: The Hotel Manager, 2018 “Mexican Dance”, from the Walled Off Hotel collection. 

Concept: Palestinians and Mexicans have in common colored traditional dresses and walls. The spirit of life and love are stronger than oppression and unjustified restrictions… we dance to live !

Concept, design and supervision by The Hotel Manager

Painting execution by Wael Abu Yabes