\u201cI never had this plan in my mind,\u201d said choreographer Noa Wertheim, reflecting on her dreams as a young dancer at the start of her career. Yet a friendship with a fellow member of the Jerusalem Tamar Dance Company quickly developed into both an artistic and romantic collaboration, she explained in a Skype interview alongside her now-husband Adi Sha’al.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe just wanted an excuse to meet in the studio. That\u2019s the real story,\u201d she said, both of them laughing. What began as a duet between her and Sha’al in 1992 has not only developed into one of Israel\u2019s leading contemporary dance troupes, but a new way of life, a community of environmentally conscious artists.<\/p>\n
This weekend (Oct. 29-30), 12 dancers in the Jerusalem-based Vertigo Dance Company will make their Boston debut, performing \u201cVertigo 20\u201d at the Shubert Theatre as part of the Celebrity Series of Boston.<\/p>\n
Created in 2012 in honor of the company\u2019s 20th anniversary, \u201cVertigo 20\u201d is a compilation of past works, a walk through history with pieces of choreography from the original duet to present repertoire. Through the creation process, however, \u201cVertigo 20\u201d took a shape of its own. \u201cJust the people who know the company very deep can recognize which [choreography] belongs to what,\u201d said Sha’al, general manager and co-artistic director.<\/p>\n
The piece is a celebration, Wertheim explained, but an element of contradiction adds an emotional depth to the theatricality of the work. The dancers are dressed as clowns, but the atmosphere remains sophisticated and heavy, she said, describing a poetic moment of 20 white balloons filling the stage.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe question of choice, the game between heaven and earth bothers me a lot,\u201d Wertheim said. \u201cWhen you dig and find the nice place of the unknown, and you try to put it in a visual, physical way, it is art for me.\u201d A philosophical uncertainty is apparent throughout her work, perhaps inspired by her strong connection to Kabbalah, a mystical Jewish philosophy. At one point, the dancers sit on shelves of metal. Their feet dangle over the edge, she explained, the space between them and the floor symbolizing that between our world and the world to come.<\/p>\n
The music by Israeli composer Ran Bagno, the company\u2019s musical director, only emphasizes the profoundness of the piece. \u201cWe see the flavor, the atmosphere the piece needs,\u201d Wertheim said, \u201cand then he decides the instruments and starts writing.\u201d Incorporating music after she begins the choreographic process might seem unconventional, but neither Wertheim nor Sha’al have followed a traditional path.<\/p>\n
Both of their careers began late \u2014 around the age of 21. \u201cNoa because she\u2019s coming from a religious background, and it was not considered modest enough,\u201d Sha’al said. \u201cMe personally, dance was not for men in this country.\u201d<\/p>\n
However, after completing Israel\u2019s mandatory military service (two years for women and three years for men) and volunteering an extra year, the artists found their way to dance. Their original duet, \u201cVertigo,\u201d stems from Sha’al\u2019s firsthand experience as a pilot in the air force. \u201cWe took this feeling of dizziness, or vertigo,\u201d Sha’al said, \u201cand we projected it from the world of flying into dance, into relationships.\u201d<\/p>\n
In a way, relationships lie at the root of the couple\u2019s work. Nine years ago, Wertheim and her three sisters created Eco-Art Village, an eco-friendly, tribal community that unites individuals of diverse populations, those with different religions, cultures, abilities, and more. The sisters live together with their families (Wertheim and Sha’al have 3 boys) at the Village, which overlooks the Valley of Elah, where David once defeated Goliath.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe are focusing quite a lot on three pillars, which is art, human, and nature,\u201d Sha’al said. \u201cI think what is unique about Vertigo is this holistic way of thinking.\u201d<\/p>\n
The Village is not the first time Vertigo Dance Company has explored social innovations. In 2001, the troupe performed \u201cThe Power of Balance\u201d by choreographer Adam Benjamin, a work that unites company members and physically challenged individuals onstage. Due to the show\u2019s success, the company developed an integrated dance program by the same name.<\/p>\n
Another branch of Vertigo is its International Dance Program, where students from around the world, ages 18-25, study Wertheim\u2019s style of contemporary movement called the \u201cLanguage of Vertigo.\u201d Offering more than dance training, the program also encompasses the ideology of the company, and the artists live where they work \u2014 at the Eco-Art Village.<\/p>\n
This way of life, a life of artistry, collaboration, sustainability and community, is what the couple aspires to share with audiences around the world. \u201cIt’s very real for myself, this family oneness,\u201d Wertheim said. \u201cThe life and the art is one. I don\u2019t separate it. I go to the studio, and it\u2019s part of my life, part of my family.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"