Jingele o Maidele: a dance allegory
 

Jingele o Maidele, a choreography by Ari Rosenzweig, toured five cities in Denmark in February 2002, culminating in a performance before capacity audiences at the international Dance Marathon at Danescen, Cophenhagen in March.

Hagit and Ari Rosenzweig in Jingele o Maidele

Performed by Ari and Hagit Rosenzweig, the dance portrays two nameless individuals who struggle for space or territory on an empty stage, acting out a narrative which is communicated entirely through movement and mime. Startling levels aggression and happiness. 

'My work on this choreography began with a few elements I have wanted to bring to the stage for a long time', said Ari Rosenzweig. 'I found some old klezmer recordings from the 1930s; some of them beautiful and haunting songs, some lively and happy melodies. At the same time I had this image in my head of two people standing with their hands on their hips holding a long wooden pole. There was a sense of stubbornness, and at the same time a feeling of togetherness in the image. They may be friends, or perhaps brother and sister, but they can also be seen in a larger perspective with connotations of the Zionist dream'.

Danish audiences intrigued
 

The performances were very successful, received by their audiences in just the spirit that their choreographer and sponsor, the European Association for Jewish Culture, could have hoped for. The discussions held after the performances reflected the audiences' intrigued engagement with the story and its meanings. The klezmer soundtrack provoked curiosity and interest too as many of the spectators discovered for the first time a Jewish musical genre and a new dance idiom.

Ari Rosenzweig has been described by the press as one of the most exciting choreographers in Denmark and praised for the tight dynamic structure of his work, for his sensitivity and ability to create empathy in the audience. He is now working on a new choreography, but Jingele o Maidele will, he says, continue to evolve. 'The beauty of dance is that it is a living thing; because it only exists in the present moment, it will always evolve and change with every performance.'

Rosenzweig was pleased with the professional recognition he received as a result of the work's success. The international audience at Danescen in Copenhagen included many dance professionals and a number of theatre directors have approached Ari about the piece. Jingele o Maidele will be performed again at the Modern Dance Theatre in Stockholm in April 2003. Rosenzweig hopes that it may also be shown in other European cities.

Ari Rosenzweig was born in Copenhagen. He trained as a dancer at the Royal Ballet School in Stockholm. In 1994 he went to Israel and joined the Kibbutz Dance Company and later the Batsheva Dance Company. Rosenzweig was amazed by the raw power and passion of Israeli dance; Batsheva's director Ohad Naharin remains his principal inspiration. Ari returned to Denmark with his wife Hagit in 1999 to create his own choreographies. Rosenzweig's recent works Batatablamun, Eager Beaver B and Eager Beaver C established his reputation as an up-and-coming choreographer on the Danish dance scene.

Newsletter Home/First grants awarded for Jewish culture/
Ghetto: a life-affirming new ballet/Jingele o Maidele: a dance allegory/Personal perspectives/The Golem comes to life on a Budapest stage/Introducing the grant winners/ Calendar of performances and exhibitions/Grants for 2003