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DEBORAH FRIEDES |
The sign outside the Batsheva studios at the Suzanne Dellal Center in Tel Aviv.
One of the studios in Suzanne Dellal which is used for Gaga classes open to the public.
The Suzanne Dellal Center dressed up for a children’s festival during Passover. Gaga classes for the entire family were a major attraction!
I wanted to post this before leaving for Tunisia, but life was (surprise) a bit hectic. So here it is now:
When I took my first Gaga class in the fall, I was like an infant, tentatively trying out a new way of moving while also beginning to learn Hebrew. Everything was foreign to me, and processing a different framework for dancing in an unfamiliar language was a challenge. Thankfully, my Gaga teachers were willing to pepper their instructions with English, and my Hebrew tutor helped me learn the frequently used terms which I wrote down after lessons. Like a child, I steadily gained more mastery of my body and built up my communication skills; I acquired a physical language and, at least partially, the accompanying verbal language. It’s not always easy to see progress in language acquisition - but when I successfully took two Gaga classes taught almost entirely in Hebrew on April 22, I was floating both figuratively and literally (to float, or “latzoof,” is one of the most common directions in Gaga)!
April 22 was a special day. Besides taking my usual morning Gaga class at the Suzanne Dellal Center, I got to catch up with a friend visiting from abroad who enjoyed her first Gaga class ever. We spent hours dissecting it and continued our conversation with another friend of hers who has danced both here and in Europe, taking on an array of topics. Here’s a tasting of the questions we tackled: What techniques are primarily concerned with the body’s relationship to space, what techniques are more focused on the sensations and movements within the body, and where does Gaga fall in this spectrum? What is unique about the physicality used in Gaga and Ohad Naharin’s work? How has Gaga and/or the Batsheva aesthetic influenced the larger Israeli contemporary dance scene? What are the other training methods used in major contemporary companies today, both here and abroad?
I’ll leave these big questions aside for the time being - they’ll take a lot of time, space, and energy to explore (clearly, even while I write, I’m a Laban-influenced dancer), plus I need to keep you coming back for more! - and for now I’ll continue on with the events of April 22. To cap off my day of Gaga, I joined over 70 people for a special monthly class taught by Ohad Naharin himself in the Batsheva Dance Company’s spacious main studio. By 8 p.m., Studio Varda was packed with a diverse crowd: men and women; 20-somethings and 30-somethings, middle-aged folks, and senior citizens; dancers (including some I recognized as Gaga teachers, Batsheva company and ensemble dancers, and people I’ve met at contact jams) and non-dancers; even a few young Ethiopian students who have been studying Gaga as part of one of Batsheva’s outreach programs. With such a range, I couldn’t help wondering, what are these people’s stories? How did they come to Gaga, and what kept them coming back to classes? Gaga’s ability to attract followers outside of the typical dance class population is truly extraordinary. Not only do participants commit to at least one class weekly, but many Gaga enthusiasts take advantage of the unlimited monthly plan and eagerly take multiple classes per week. When it comes time for Ohad’s monthly class, a huge crowd shows up, and the energy in the studio is absolutely electric. The evening of the 22nd was no different - the excitement was palpable when Batsheva’s artistic director entered the room.
Although at other Gaga classes I’ve met an assortment of new immigrants or foreigners on extended stays in Israel, the population of this class was overwhelmingly Israeli; indeed, when Ohad asked if there was anyone who didn’t speak Hebrew, I was one of (I think) only 2 people who raised their hands. Floating (literally) while he asked if my Hebrew was good enough for him to teach in his native language, I reflected on my morning class and answered “Ken” (”Yes”). Thus I plunged into his most Hebrew-based class yet. We walked, stretched, and shifted our weight from leg to leg. We found circular motions in different body parts, generated movement from the image of balls traveling through our bodies, and gave and received energy from partners far away from us. We grooved, laughed out loud while grooving, and then let the memory of that laughter guide our own personal dances. We shook, moved in slow motion, and then did the two actions together (it’s possible!). And yes, we floated some more.
As has happened to me before in Ohad’s class as well as in several other lessons, there were many magical moments of transcendence during this evening - moments when, as the introductory Gaga handout states, there are “links” formed between “conscious and subconscious movement.” If the verbal cues in Gaga are indeed suggestions rather than the hard-and-fast rules which govern many dance techniques, they are at times picked up by my body and mind with neither resistance nor with a concerted effort to follow them. It’s as if they seep into me through the air, and I respond physically without forcing myself to act in accordance with what I heard. The processing of this verbal information (and, for that matter, of the visual information around me - and perhaps the energetic information flowing through the room) is not purely a conscious one. It’s almost as if I am responding to subliminal messages, despite the fact that the messages are conveyed directly and I know I am receiving them!
I should note that this is not always the case. Remember the first time someone asked you to pat your head while rubbing your belly, and your brain hurt from concentrating as you tried to master that coordination? That still happens sometimes, like when I attempted to shake and move in slow motion simultaneously during this last class. Particular challenges - especially new ones - demand a heightened level of attentive, active exploration. But when I’m just shaking, quaking, floating, or responding to certain other suggestions, it can be a different matter. The wonderful upshot is that through both the conscious and subconscious exploration that Gaga affords, I am discovering a wealth of movement possibilities, physical connections, and dynamic options beyond those fostered by my previous training.
I could go on and on about Gaga, but I’m scheduled to join the Batsheva Ensemble tomorrow morning at 6 a.m. so that I can see them perform Ohad Naharin’s Seder. Since I’m still recovering from the last leg of my Tunisia trip - a 30-hour journey on a collection of planes, trains, and automobiles as well as one ferry from the island of Jerba to the mainland - I should get to sleep early. But I suspect that my journey tomorrow will offer more goodies to share!
Intrigued by Gaga? Here’s some more blog entries on it:
“Going Gaga,” from my own blog after my first Gaga experiences this fall:
http://web.mac.com/deborahfriedes/iWeb/Deborah%20Friedes,%20MFA/blog%20/BC14A38A-F578-4D80-B9FD-0D8A28242991.html
“Ohad-ing It,” from The Winger’s own Matthew Murphy, who discusses Gaga briefly in the context of Ohad Naharin’s choreography:
http://thewinger.com/words/2007/ohading-it/
“Going Gaga for Gaga,” from Evan at Dancing Perfectly Free, who took some Gaga in New York this spring:
http://dancingperfectlyfree.wordpress.com/2008/03/02/going-gaga-for-gaga/
In Israel and want to try Gaga? Besides multiple daily classes in Tel Aviv and weekly classes in Jerusalem, there will be a 2-week intensive this summer from July 13-25 at Suzanne Dellal! More details to follow.
I have to say, dancing has been quite good for my language skills (one of my friends jokes that I know more words for body parts than he does!), and my lack of Hebrew has been quite good for my powers of visual observation. I’ve found I can always get a lot out of dance classes regardless of the language issue, though it’s easier in certain classes than others (a ballet class or another class in a codified technique will always be the most accessible, followed by modern/contemporary classes where the teacher provides combinations/movement phrases; classes that are more based on improvisation and verbal suggestions are much harder to get through). My teachers’ willingess to either give me notes in English, answer questions during class, or talk after class has helped; it would be great if your future teachers in Greece or elsewhere would be as willing and able to help! 
