Celebrate an alternative and dance-themed Shavuot at Vertigo Dance Company’s Eco-Arts Village. [image via: avinatan]
If you’re a vegetarian (or a vegawarian), Shavuot may be one of your favorite holidays. During Shavuot you traditionally eat dairy (and lots of it), so the main meal is a vegetarian.
But if you’re lactose intolerant, that’s no fun at all. Luckily, there’s more to Shavuot than eating a lot of cheese (and cheesecake). For the third year in a row, the Vertigo Eco-Arts Village will be hosting a special two-day Shavuot Hagiga event packed with yoga, dance performances, a Shavuot picnic, Tikkun Shavuot (the traditional study of excerpts from the beginning and end of the 24 books of the Jewish Tanakh), Tai Chi, and workshops.
Located in Israel’s Ellah Valley (between Jerusalem and Tel Aviv), the Eco-Arts Village was founded by the Vertigo Dance Company in order to “foster artistic creation engaged with the environment.” The village often hosts environmental workshops (such as building wind turbines), and what is special about Vertigo is that they are always looking for ways to combine environmental living with creativity.
Check out the clip below of last year’s Shavuot festivities at the Vertigo Eco-Arts village:
If you’re interested in their 2-day eco/artistic Shavuot celebration, here’s a list of events:
Tuesday 18/5
Arrival 14:30
15:30 Vijnana Yoga with Mia Goldstein
16:00 Morning lesson with Noa Dar
17:00 Acro-Yoga with Avner Hochfeld
17:30 Repertoire for dancers / actors with Michal Herman
18:30 Gathering and reception in movement
*Shavuot picnic dressed in white
21:00 “Guf el Guf” a collection of performances: “Subtext” by Nimrod Fried/Tami Group,”Anu” by Noa Dar, “Hahavura” by Michal Herman
22:00 Shavuot night – Tikkun with Baruch Brenner
22:00 Jam contact and dance
Wednesday 19/5
6:30 Tai Chi at sunrise with Nimrod Koren
9:00 Japanese Dance workshop with Nimrod Fried
9:00 Contact Improvisation with Danya Elraz
11:00 Body Voice workshop with Ofri Eliaz
11:00 Movement and texts from the origins with Rina and Baruch
12:30 Workshop with Nadine Bommer
12:30 “Bikurey Yetzira” first creations of young artists and dancers in various stage arts
15:00 “Silent” dance by Arkadi Zaides and talk with the audience
16:45 Connecting with the Heart with Merav Goldenberg
16:45 Contemporary Dance workshop with Hillel Kogan
16:45 “Freedom of movement” – a collection of performances with “Osef Prati” by Sally Anne Friedlander, “Manimation” by Nadine Bomer, “Hakol” by Hillel Kogan
21:00 “Vertigo and the Diamonds” Vertigo Dance Company”
For more information about the Shavuot celebration and to register, click here.
Read more about other ways eco-Shavuot has been celebrated:
Shavuot Eco Activities (For When the Cheese Is All Eaten Up)
Heschel Center’s Online Environmental Shavuot Webinar
Green Shavuot Activities (Because You’re Gonna Need a Break From All That Cheese)
Author: Karen Chernick
Much to the disappointment of her Moroccan grandmother, Karen became a vegetarian at the age of seven because of a heartfelt respect for other forms of life. She also began her journey to understand her surroundings and her impact on the environment. She even starting an elementary school Ecology Club and an environmental newsletter in the 3rd grade. (The proceeds of the newsletter went to non-profit environmental organizations, of course.) She now studies in New York. Karen can be reached at karen (at) greenprophet (dot) com.
I saw Vertigo the other night at the Dan David Prize gala event. Very powerful.