“You Turned My Mourning into Dancing” (Psalms 30:12)

We all remember the image of thousands of people dancing on November 29, 1947, in the courtyard of the National Institutions and in Magen David Square in Tel Aviv. With the announcement of the United Nations General Assembly Resolution 181 – the Partition Plan and the decision to establish two independent states, Jewish and Arab – people burst out spontaneously in joy and hora dancing.

This image is a direct continuation of the development of Israeli folk dance, which began in 1924 when the artist and dancer Baruch Agadati (Kaushansky) created an Israeli version of the Romanian hora. This version differed slightly in character from the later Israeli hora: in Agadati’s hora, arms were interlinked, feet were bare and light, and the direction of movement was counterclockwise, while the Israeli hora moves clockwise.

This hora paved the way for additional creators – Gurit Kadman, Rivka Sturman, Ze’ev Havatzelet, Lea Bergstein, and others – who knew how to connect culture, pioneering spirit, joy, renewal, life values, and biblical stories into communal dances that would later be known as Israeli folk dances.

Sadly, this image has become a sweet nostalgic memory that is slowly disappearing from the world.

This is a call and a plea to save what, for nearly eight decades, constituted Israel’s authentic, original, representative, and true cultural export: Israeli dance / folk dance for the stage.

As someone for whom this subject flows through his veins and is a central part of his life, I feel obligated to write and to shed light on the grim and alarming state of our dances for the stage. I will even go so far as to say – before its final demise – that what we are witnessing is a “cry for generations” over the loss of this original and important cultural enterprise!

This is not merely my personal opinion, but the view of many people who are active, write about, and are deeply involved in the field.

Over the last decade, Israeli dance has changed its face and is now almost entirely drawn from modern dance and styles that are only marginally connected – if at all – to the original style, the ethos, the values of the Jewish people, Zionism, tradition, and Jewish identity. This causes Israeli dance to lose its role as a flag-bearer of folklore, Israeli culture, and uniqueness in the world. As a result, festival directors around the globe refrain from inviting Israeli dance companies to perform, claiming that what is presented no longer appears as “Israeli folklore” and does not meet the criteria of what is considered folkloric dance.

Education in Israeli dance for youth and children is also deficient and has strayed far from its uniqueness, Jewish values, Zionism, and Israeli-Jewish culture.

What Is Israeli Folklore and How Did It Develop?

Israeli stage dance and folklore form an original Israeli cultural pyramid. Its base consists of folk dances for the general public, followed by the Dalia Dance Conferences held in 1944, 1947, 1951, 1958, and 1968, initiated by the “high priestess” of dance and Israel Prize laureate, Gurit Kadman.

The Dalia gatherings attracted huge numbers of dancers and audiences and became a milestone in Israeli dance. It was there that the first folk dances were created and performed, and where Israeli stage dance companies took shape. These companies later became an important cultural export and an authentic Israeli representation at state events and international festivals.

And the pyramid continued to grow:

Between 1975 and 1987, dance festivals at Tzemach on the shores of the Sea of Galilee were added, initiated by Tirza Hodes, Yonatan Gabay, and Bracha Dudai, alongside many other activities.

In 1968, the Frenchman Henri Coursaget invited influential figures in folkloric dance from Syria, Egypt, Lebanon, and Israel to establish CIOFF, the International Council of Organizations of Folklore Festivals and Folk Arts, which still operates today to promote meetings of high-quality dance companies and preserve folklore.

Shmulik Bialik was elected from Israel as president and honorary member of the organization and initiated the “Folkloriada” – an international event similar to the Olympics – which continues to this day, and attracts delegations from around the world. One Folkloriada was held in Haifa, bringing great honor and positioning Israeli folklore at the forefront of global folklore.

In 1976, the IDF Dance Company was founded, similar to the military singing ensembles and orchestra, under the artistic direction of choreographer Gavri Levy.

In 1979, Israel hosted the Eurovision Song Contest in Jerusalem. Gavri Levy’s “Shalom” Dance Company was chosen to perform the artistic segment broadcast live worldwide. Following its success, Levy directed spectacular Maccabiah and HaPo’el events broadcast live to Jewish and general audiences, incorporating numerous dance companies from Israel and abroad in their finest Israeli folkloric creations.

In subsequent years, the finest authentic folkloric dance performances became a staple of Independence Day celebrations, including the torch-lighting ceremony at Mount Herzl. The peak of Israel’s folkloric representation occurred in 2000 at the central Millennium celebration, broadcast live from Haifa. This large-scale folkloric performance included children’s dances as a tribute to the world’s children, ethnic and peace-themed performances, a tribute to Israel’s Arab neighbors, and a salute to Jerusalem – the capital of the Jewish people.

In 1980, under the initiative of Yossi Talgan, Arik Katan, and then-Mayor of Jerusalem Teddy Kollek, the representative folkloric dance company of the Jerusalem Municipality – the Jerusalem Dance Company – was established, with Yonatan Karmon as its artistic director.

In 1988, at the peak of the “Golden Age” of Israeli dance and folklore, the Karmiel Dance Festival was founded, again initiated by Tirza Hodes, Yonatan Gabay, Bracha Dudai, and others. This festival is unique worldwide in its scope, character, and number of participants having begun under the artistic direction of choreographer Yonatan Karmon and with the strong support of then-Mayor of Karmiel, Baruch Venger.

The “Karmiel Festival” became a magnet for young and veteran creators, integrating the younger generation, including children from the age of six, presenting original Israeli dance works, and creating an unparalleled intersection of folk, ethnic, artistic, Israeli, and international dance. The festival inspired dance companies of all styles and positioned Israeli folklore and folk dance at the summit of world culture and folkloric festivals.

The Karmiel Festival hosted leading dance companies from around the world, including the Korean National Ballet, Mazowsze (Poland), Ballet Folklórico de Chile, the Georgian National Ballet, and others. Participation in Karmiel was considered a peak artistic achievement and great honor. The festival set one of the highest artistic standards in the festival world and created a unique platform for cultural integration, international connection, and a bridge to world peace.

At the Karmiel Festival, the folk dance movement flourished and even produced young folk dance choreographers who today serve as leaders in the field of folk dance sessions in the country.

The Israeli Stage Dance Competitions and the Folk Dance Competition provided fertile, stable, and challenging ground for choreographers, most of whose works were created for the festival, and who continue to present them to this day.

The threshold conditions for participation in the main evening performances and competitions of the festival were uncompromising, demanded and refined by the artistic director, Yonatan Karmon. Karmon required folk dance/choreography combined with steps from the folkloristic genre – skipping, mayim steps, run-run-jump, and most importantly, changing structures in the field and more.

Although it was necessary to “professionalize” the movements similar to the best folklore groups in the world – the Moiseyev Company, the Mazowsze Company, the Georgian National Ballet, and more – after all, we were performing on a professional stage, and it was still necessary to adhere to the texture, movements, and structures of folkloric dance.

The festival was broadcast on radio and television during peak viewing times and was even reviewed in leading newspapers by the best dance critics in the country, such as Tikva Hotar Yishai, Ruth Eshel, Aryeh Yas, Miri Krymolowski, and more, and was often described as a groundbreaking festival with three days of sensory intoxication.

Decline in Recent Decades

In recent decades, authentic folkloristic dance has been gradually pushed aside. Year after year, we are increasingly aware of the influences of global dance – jazz, hip-hop, modern, ballet, and more. By 2025, we hardly see any folkloristic elements on stage. Moreover, there are explicit statements by creators claiming that there is no longer any point in presenting works from “the past”. Contemporary dance is overshadowing and displacing authentic Israeli folklore, the folk dance intended for the general public.

On stage, the authentic Israeli style in movement, steps, choreography, music, and even the style of costumes – all of which could be called “Israeli folklore” – gradually retreated. This is evident in state ceremonies, including Independence Day torch-lighting events, and especially in major dance festivals. Festival directors around the world have told me explicitly that they are not interested in inviting Israeli dance companies because what they present is not perceived as original Israeli folklore but rather as modern dance.

 

The New Dances in Dance Sessions

In the past, prior to the age of the internet and social media, there was some professional oversight

of new dances before they were widely taught. Today, in the age of instant communication, every song that is played on the radio is immediately “claimed” and registered online, and the person who registers it alone may choreograph it, without guidance or standards. Many new dances are overly complex, illogical in structure, and lack repetition, making them inaccessible to broad audiences such as children, tourists, and casual dancers.

Early folk dances, simple and accessible, have been pushed into a side category labeled “nostalgia dances”. Few leaders regularly incorporate these dances in their dance sessions.

The processes described here are slow processes. They cannot be observed on a day-to-day basis, but only over time, with the perspective of hindsight.

In summary and in conclusion, I say, as in the title, “You turned my dancing into mourning” – because that’s what I felt.

In the field of folk dancing for the general public – reform is needed. It appears that the majority of the dancing public is interested in dancing the newest dances choreographed to the newest songs without any connection to creating a long-term culture. Here I expect the dance leaders to chart a path and not to bow to the pressure of the dancers.

Most of the dancers today are in their 50s and 60s and older. The new generation of dancers who might continue folk dancing is very small, and it is doubtful that they will embrace “nostalgia dances” if they were not raised on them.

There is a need to concentrate on rebuilding a national folklore and restoring the authentic folk dance education for youth and children, such as through programs like “Beit Sefer HaRoked”.

In the Field of Dance Troupes – today folklore is being pushed to the margins and the troupes that preserve true Israeli folklore can barely be counted on the fingers of one hand. We no longer have even one representative national troupe that can honorably represent Israel. The concept of the “hora” has lost its value.

I believe that the only chance to restore this reality is through the establishment of a professional, national representative dance troupe that will honorably present the folklore, culture, and values ​​of Israel.

 

I have every hope, faith, and a strong desire for us to preserve as much as we can of the path we experienced from our teachers and mentors like Yonatan Karmon, z”l. I very much hope that someone will rise to the challenge, show concern for Israel’s authentic culture, properly fund a central dance company, restore the honor of Hebrew song, Israeli dance, and Israeli costume, and thus, for me, fulfill the verse from Psalms:

“You turned my mourning into dancing.”!