Dear people,
All of us at Gaga are currently in an abyss of sadness, witnessing the ongoing conflict in our region.
At the same time, we do not sink; we work, we research, we discover, we share, and we create. I am grateful that I can continue to share my research and discoveries with you while we know that does not mean that it is business as usual — it is a show of trust in the impact of art and movement in the face of the cruelty, abuse of power, extreme nationalistic sentiments, and ignorance in our region and all over the world.
I believe that artistic expression gives balance to our lives. With the presence of evil forces and so many innocent victims over the course of history, artistic expression always stood as a pillar that gave meaning to people’s lives. Artistic expression and shared movement gives us hope, it connects us to our passion, love, highest skills, delicacy, beauty and compassion.
It should be obvious to all that a cancellation of my choreographic work or of Gaga activity does nothing to help reduce the suffering of people in our region or have an effect on the actions of the Israeli government in the Gaza Strip and the West Bank. Reconciliation is the only solution — a life of dignity for Jews and Palestinians between the river and the sea, with security and prosperity, recognizing national, linguistic, religious, and other differences. We realize that human values have little or nothing to do with national, geographic, and ethnic identities. The belief that inflicting ongoing, immense harm on others and fostering a constant sense of danger is a key to survival, or a sign of strength and power, is a false belief, as years upon years will testify.
As a movement researcher, I am privileged to share my discoveries via Gaga with thousands around the world. We learn to give up old ideas for better new ones. We recognize how much more similar we all are than different. We know that we will always be far from perfect, yet we can produce sublime moments. And we learn that the quality of our actions now will determine the quality of our future.
— Ohad Naharin
Read Ohad Naharin’s interview in Haaretz from December 2023.
