BATSHEVA DANCE COMPANY

Biography

The popularity of the Batsheva Dance Company has grown to such an extent that it is now considered one of the most renowned and acclaimed contemporary dance companies in the world. Together with Batsheva_The Young Ensemble, the company brings together a total of 34 dancers from Israel and abroad.
As Israel’s largest dance company, Batsheva carries out extensive outreach activities throughout the country, presenting numerous performances every year. Including international tours, the company stages more than 250 performances annually, reaching over 100,000 spectators.
Widely regarded as one of the leading choreographers of the contemporary scene, Ohad Naharin was appointed artistic director in 1990. Through his adventurous curatorial vision, he propelled the company into an entirely new artistic dimension.
After more than thirty years leading the company, Naharin stepped down as artistic director in 2018, while continuing to serve as resident choreographer. In September 2018, Gili Navot assumed artistic leadership of the company.
Naharin is also the creator of GAGA, an innovative movement language that has deeply enriched his choreographic invention and revolutionized the company’s daily training practice. Gaga has since spread internationally, embraced both by professional dancers and amateur practitioners worldwide.
Batsheva dancers actively participate in the creative process and are encouraged to express their individual artistic voices through the annual project Batsheva Dancers Create, supported by the The Michael Sela Fund for Cultivation of Young Artists Batsheva.
The company was founded in 1964 in Tel Aviv by Baroness Batsheva de Rothschild, who appointed Martha Graham as artistic supervisor. Since 1989, the company has been based at the Suzanne Dellal Centre in Tel Aviv.