Sadna – Professional dance program, Ga'aton

 

Sadna is a two-year professional curriculum which aims to train graduates aged     18-24, with a previous background in dance from all over Israel and abroad, who have a passion and strong desire to turn dance into a profession. Sadna is a platform for personal growth, a stepping stone towards integration into the world of professional dance in Israel and abroad.  Sadna operates at Kibbutz Ga'aton next to the Kibbutz Dance Company, and is recognized and supported by the Israeli Ministry of Culture.

Background

Sadna was founded in 1977 by Ms. Yehudit Arnon, may she rest in peace, winner of the Israel Prize in the field of dance in 1998 and is the first professional dance training program established in Israel. The students of Sadna study in an environment where they are exposed to professional dancers on a daily basis. The uniqueness of Sadna lies in the professional, dedicated and skilled teaching staff and in its location in Kibbutz Ga'aton which facilitates a deep process of dedication and development. The Kibbutz is in the north of Israel, immersed in nature and tranquility. Residence within Kibbutz Ga'aton and the studio available to the students beyond the hours of activity, allow for the full devotion that is essential in this intensive profession

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Goals and objectives

The goal of the directors is to identify dance students with real potential and train them while providing them with tools to acquire physical knowledge and performance ability at a high professional level, alongside developing creativity and personal expression. Emphasizing the personality and uniqueness of each student, to challenge and expose them to different methods of working, which will prepare them for the world of professional dance in the best possible way.

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The curriculum

includes the following content: Classical Ballet, Modern/Contemporary Dance, Physical Awareness, Improvisation, Repertoire of various companies, and work with variety of choreographers, acting workshops, voice development and theoretical classes on dance history and anatomy.

As part of their second year studies, students are exposed to personal creation through a solo project and a choreography project.

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Artistic Directors

Einav Levy – a former dancer and rehearsal director with the Kibbutz Dance Company. She holds a B.Ed degree from the Kibbutzim Seminary College and is certified in Focusing and the Feldenkrais Methoda, and a graduate of the Course in Management of Cultural and Art Institutions from the Lahav Executive Education part of School of Management at Tel-Aviv University.  Einav was coordinating Sadna for 10 years alongside Yehudit Arnon and from 2006 she took the direction of Sadna.

Yossi Berg – Choreographer, dancer, teacher, founder and artistic director of the 'Yossi Berg and Oded Graf Dance Theater' - the dance troupe he founded with his partner Oded Graf in 2005. Winner of awards from the Israel Ministry of Culture in the field of creation and performance in dance, and is a recipient of the Rosenblum Prize for Performing Arts for Outstanding Artists. Since 2020, Yossi Berg joined as Artistic Director of Sadna.
 

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Teaching Staff

Sadna is taught by outstanding teachers in their respective fields. The schedule consists of a permanent teaching staff alongside a guest teaching staff. The teaching staff brings with it a high and uncompromising professional approach, as well as an openness to the changes taking place in the world of dance. Every year, many choreographers come to work with the students of Sadna.

The teachers: Yamit Kalif - classical ballet and repertoire / Michal Hasson - classical ballet / Ilana Kalif - modern dance / Melanie Berson - modern, repertoire, mentoring / Yossi Berg - improvisation, text, writing and choreography / Yael Cibulski - contemporary dance, Feldenkrais, rehearsal director, mentoring / Shulamit Bar-Gai - physical awareness / Yochai Ginton - Contact-Partnering / Vova Zak - floor-work / Einav Rosenblit - Dance Theory / Oded Graf - 'Solo" project / Dana Rottenberg - Choreography project.

Choreographers and repertoire studied in recent years: Pina Bausch, Matz Ek,     Rami Beer, Ohad Naharin, Sharon Eyal and Gai Behar, Roy Assaf, Yasmeen Godder, Noa Zuk and Ohad Fishof, Inbal Pinto, Emanuel Gat, Gil Kerer, Andrea Martini, Barak Marshall, Yossi Berg and Oded Graf, Mor Shani, Roni Chadash, Lotem Regev, Daniel Agami, Shahar Binyamini, Tom Weinberger, Renana Raz, Annabelle Dvir, Bosmat Nossan, Ofir Yudilevitch, Orly Portal, Idan Cohen.

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