Collaborations
Neta Weiner / Stav Marin / Samira Saraya
Dancing in Tongues: developing language(s) of performance
About the course
The course focuses on developing a performance language specific to each performer. It explores the relationship between language, vocal production, and movement and offers training in performance, language as a political tool, and theoretical perspectives on how performance intersects with politics. Students will examine repositories of language memory in their bodies as propulsive engines for their performance languages. The course also provides opportunities to investigate multi-languaging and the politicization of the linguistic public sphere(s) we live in. This course is perfect for those who want to improve their creative voice and engage in cultural work, education and activism.
We will explore various performative and creative traditions, including spoken word, martial arts, contemporary dance, and beatboxing. Throughout the course, we will engage in different creative processes, individually and with partners, and present our work to receive feedback. The course will culminate with each participant creating a short solo piece.
Choreography for The Furies — a Tufts University production presented by the Department of Theatre, Dance, and Performance Studies, directed by Katie Brook. Based on Aeschylus’s final play in the Oresteia, the production explored themes of justice, transformation, and democracy
A multilingual journey to the layers deep beneath Jaffa. The Arabic word for mother is yama. In Hebrew, yama means lake or swamp; in Yiddish, sea. In Biblical Hebrew, yama means west, the direction of the sea. Jaffa, the city between Damascus, Cairo and Jerusalem, was once the beating heart of the Middle East, so in Arabic it is called “The Mother of Strangers.” Neta Weiner digs deep into the city’s 4,500 years of existence and uncovers layer upon layer of truths, lies and faiths. Yama combines martial arts, spoken word, theatre and beat to carve out a story that is part guided tour, part Krav Maga and part ritual prayer — a story that bridges Eminem and the prophet Jonah, Bialik and Fairouz, Huldai and Kazablan. Rooted in the city’s rich and glorious past, this journey unfolds in Hebrew, Arabic and Yiddish, traversing reality while dreaming of a new horizon, for Jaffa and for us. The work premiered at the European Union International Theatre Festival Face to Faith in Gombola, Italy, where it represented Gesher Theatre. Praised by critics as “original, intelligent, and distinctive — an impressively poetic performance” (Yedioth Ahronoth), “a quintessential and fascinating festival event… an abstract and emotional archaeological excavation, both personal and national” (Ynet), and “captivating and delightful, a work that delivers both a punch and a caress at the same time… performed by a virtuoso ensemble” (Israel Hayom), Yama has been celebrated for its poetic force, political depth, and theatrical daring.
Written and Directed by: Neta Weiner
Performers: Samira Traya, Beni Eldar, Roni Ben-Hamo, Neta Weiner
Choreography and Artistic Consultation: Stav Marin
Writing Consultant: Roy Chen
Dramaturgy: Raz Weiner
Costume Design: Tamar Ben Canaan
Lighting and Space Design: Yair Vardi
Special Thanks to: Mor Deree, Adva Weinstein, Beit System Ali
is a live performance and open conversation highlighting creative language's power in building community and fostering social-political change. This musical, textual, and physical event incorporates English, Hebrew, Arabic, and Yiddish, each representing unique and essential cultural roots. It tells the story of the multilingual Jewish-Palestinian arts collective System Ali, exploring the connection between the audience (Kahal) and the community (Kehila). The performance addresses the role of art in facilitating dialogue during conflict and serves as a socio-political tool. Positioned on the thin line between hip-hop and Klezmer, it delves into a case study of the mixed city of Jaffa while envisioning a better tomorrow.
is a collaborative creation by Hadar Ahuvia and Stav Marin, exploring ritual innovation, women’s agency, and embodied expression through movement and voice. Drawing inspiration from Jewish purity laws and feminist re-readings of ritual practice, the work reimagines choreography as a site of counting, connection, and reclamation
