Folk Dance

Israel folk dance emerged as an amalgam of Jewish and non Jewish folk dance forms from many parts of the world. The early pioneers brought with them native dances which were adapted to their new milieu. For several decades the Romanian dance, the hora, typified the new life being built in the Land of Israel: Its closed circle form gave equal status to all participants, simple movements enabled everyone to take part and the linked arms symbolized the ideology. Alongside Israeli folk dance, and influencing it are the traditional dances of the different ethnic groups, which reflect the pluralistic nature of Israel's society.
 

The Inbal Dance Theater, established (1949), bases its repertoire, which often deals with biblical subjects, on authentic movement material suggested by the dance, music and poetry traditions of Yemenite and other oriental Jewish communities. It is the oldest of Israel's professional dance companies and has performed in all five continents.
 

Since its opening in 1989, the Suzanne Dellal Center for Dance and theater has become the focal point of dance activities in the country. The Dance Library of Israel and the Israeli Dance Archive in Tel Aviv serve as centers for study and research, publish books on dance and the Israel Dance Annual.
 
 

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