Profession Comm. 8

Israel affaIrs, 2017 VOl. 23, NO. 6, 1086–1105 https://doi.org/10.1080/13537121.2017.1360047

© 2017 Informa UK limited, trading as Taylor & francis Group

Cultural policy in dance: the embodiment of Jewish tradition in early childhood dance education in Israel

Sari Katz-Zichrony

Orot Israel ‒ academic College of education, elkana, Israel

ABSTRACT Teaching dance in early childhood education in the national-religious community (NRC) is a relatively new phenomenon in Israeli society. This article describes teaching practices that religious dance teachers create and use to bridge the divide between Jewish tradition and dance. The research is based on an ethnographic observation of dance classes in schools. Through analysis of a typical class, this article illustrates how the teachers have formed a unique dance class structure: the dance midrash.

KEYWORDS National-religious community; early childhood; dance education; Jewish tradition; Midrash, pedagogical practices

Living abreast of the times while leaving tradition out –

Is like a rootless tree that can be swept away by any wind.

Living by the rules of tradition without adapting to contemporary life –Is like a tree with roots but barren of flowers and fruit.

Menahem Ussishkin, a Zionist leader (1863–1941)1

At the start of the school year at Orot Israel College of Education, a teachers’ college affiliated with the national-religious community (NRC), Rabbi Shlomo Amar, then Chief Rabbi of Israel, presented a lecture on a Jewish subject. In reply to a question from a dance student as to whether the study and pursuit of dance were permissible by religious standards, Rabbi Amar said that if dancing was modest and in adherence to the restrictions laid down by the Halacha ‒ the Jewish law, then it was not only permitted but pure and served the God. Rabbi Amar further mentioned biblical figures, such as Miriam, Moses’ sister who led dancing by the people. Each one of the examples cited by Rabbi Amar corroborates the religious idea that as a Mitzva ‒ a religious duty imposed by God ‒ dancing is permissible. The anecdote reflects the dilemma and the

CONTACT sari Katz-Zichrony [email protected]

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ongoing tension over the years between tradition and secularisation, between religious studies and secular studies in general, and between art studies and dance studies in particular.

Orot, where the above interaction took place, is a national-religious col- lege inspired by the philosophy of Rabbi Abraham Yitzhak HaChohen Kook (1865–1935) (‘Rav Kook’),2 the most prominent spiritual leader of the NRC, whose theories had a tremendous impact on the formation of the Jewish nation- al-religious outlook. The college’s statement of intent asserts that Orot graduates should become:

Educators inspired by faith. They shall believe in schooling which is not merely disciplinary and universal but also particular and inspired by faith, one which imparts the sense that the core of their educational work should be a religious mission.3

The students of Orot are oriented towards teaching in the public state-run religious school system called Hemmed. The Hemmed educational system is inspired by Rav Kook’s ideas and embraces the strategy of inclusion ‒ stretching the boundaries of Torah studies so as to incorporate all areas and levels of gen- eral studies as well.4 The Hemmed curriculum is designed to impart in-depth knowledge of the written tradition, the Oral Torah and the Halacha, and seeks to enhance the individual’s commitment to the community’s religious culture, and to form a foundation consisting of a common set of values.5 Further to these guidelines, and according to the Hemmed educational view, imparting general knowledge is conducive to nurturing faith and religious observance.6 Regarding the study of the arts, Rav Kook remarked that the Jewish tradition regards the Temple as the most noble and consummate artistic work ever cre- ated. That is to say that the pinnacle of art and aesthetics is found in sanctity; thus, the pursuit of art ought to be integral to sanctity, and artistic works, which convey emotional experiences, are not the objective per se but rather are used for embellishing the values of sanctity.7 These ideas and guidance were also echoed in the words of Rabbi Amar.

The training of dance teachers and early childhood dance education are relatively new to the NRC and Orot. It resulted from a growing awareness of the lack of cultural-artistic involvement among the ranks of the NRC. In line with the college’s statement that the religious, Torah-based studies should be integrated into the world of academic disciplinary knowledge; and following the increasing interest in culture and art education shown at the Hemmed, where the study of dance began to be incorporated into the curriculum, in 1998 the college opened the Department of Movement and Dance. This new artistic department posed an unfamiliar challenge for the college dance students who go through a process of professional dance training involving art and the body, but at the same time are expected to adhere to their religious faith and practices, such as not exposing the body ‘immodestly’ in public.

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According to the records of Israel’s Ministry of Education and Culture, over the past decade there has been a significant rise in the demand for dance classes in early childhood education in the Hemmed.8 Dance education, as well as dance as an art form, is highly developed in Israel. However, no curriculum has yet been formed for early childhood dance education by the Ministry of Education inspectorate of dance teaching. Each teacher develops a curriculum for the purposes of their own pupils, and explores methods and pedagogy that conform to the cultural views of the community within which they operate. This is especially challenging for the national religious teachers who are in dialogue with the two cultural systems affecting them ‒ tradition and modernism ‒ and who are required to design dance classes that ‘juggle’ the non-religious field of the art of dance with, at the same time, moving along the path prescribed by their religious society.

This article describes the pedagogical practices chosen by the teachers for bridging the divide between Jewish tradition and the art of dance. The teaching of dance in an early childhood education setting within the NRC is a relatively new phenomenon in Israeli society. The dance learning space within a reli- gious community is innovative in itself and naturally, therefore, sparks various reactions. This has aroused the need to examine the methods of imparting tradition through dance with reference to the inherent conflicts affecting the agenda of the NRC.

In general, dance methods are mostly the consequences of educational phi- losophies and theories, of interactions with meaningful others and each indi- vidual’s culture. Where education serves culture it is called ‘acculturation’ and its aim is to forge the nature and mindset of the individual along the lines of the values and notions of the desired culture.9 The Hemed schools are oriented towards acculturation of a religious lifestyle:

Educating towards a virtuous life, a life of striving for continuous growth and excellence in all spheres; educating towards faith in God imbued with love and awe of God, embracing the teachings of the Torah and practicing the command- ments; educating to adhere with ‘love thy neighbor as thyself ’ and the ensu- ing commandments; educating to love the people of Israel, to assume personal responsibility and engage in society; educating to love our country, respect the spiritual, national and historical value of the State of Israel, and take responsibility for the future of our country by serving it proactively.10

Teaching patterns evolve from the prevailing educational ideology embraced by each educational institute. Lamm calls the teaching pattern deriving from acculturation the ‘formative pattern’. Formative teaching is essentially aimed at forging the features that reflect the fundamental values and notions of the desired culture. Under the formative teaching pattern features are acquired through a process of identifying with historical figures, ideas, stories and with the teacher. Thus, formative teaching is based on modelling and appeal: the teacher and the content imparted represent the desired values and notions.

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From this point of view, quality dance teaching would manage to stimulate the students’ intellect, imagination and emotions, and would arouse not only interest in the content knowledge but even enthusiasm.

Gurevitch has shown how Israeli early childhood centres use dance in accul- turating tradition. In his book On Israeli and Jewish Place he pointed out that dancing and play activities are a pedagogical method for imparting ideological education in early childhood; it is a method that connects us to our way of life and facilitates our acknowledgement of rules, dignity and the freedom to acknowledge ourselves. Dance is a basic existential metaphor connecting us with the past, with our environment, with the knowledge of where we come from and amid what and amongst whom we exist. Dancing combines rhythm and simplicity that respond to the principle of ritual ‒ the ritual of the kin- dergarten’s circle, the family circle and the circle of life.11 This article takes the ‘formative dance pattern’ to mean a method of acculturating not just to Israeli society but Israeli religious society.

The questions guiding the research were: what pedagogical strategies do the religious teachers use to incorporate tradition into their dance classes, and how can a gap between tradition and modernism be bridged?

Methodology

The motivation to explore and understand dance teaching in a religious com- munity originated from my personal history. It started at my grandparents’ religious home, where Rav Kook’s picture was hung on the wall. It is rooted in my professional experience as a dancer and a dance teacher, and in the vari- ous capacities I have fulfilled in the field of dance education. My decision to explore dance teaching in the NRC is associated with the crossroads at which I am situated today: a non-religious dance teacher in a religious college, with strong ties to her religious past.

This research is based on ethnographic research in schools, as institutions engaged in imparting culture and passing it down to their constituencies.12 I found qualitative ethnography to be the most suitable methodology for the pres- ent study, which explores teaching practices that emanate from the worldview of dance teachers of the NRC and the Hemmed school system. These practices cannot initially be isolated, and should be examined within the context of the phenomenon and viewed holistically within the natural environment of the classroom and teachers.13 The study is based on the qualitative constructivist paradigm, which emphasises the holistic understanding of phenomena.14

I observed dance classes taught by 14 early childhood teachers who met the following criteria: (a) a dance teacher who is socially and culturally affiliated with the NRC; (b) an early childhood dance teacher with at least three years of professional experience; (c) a teacher working in an educational institution belonging to the Hemmed.

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I spent two academic years, 2012/13 and 2013/14, observing the weekly classes taught by two teachers. I observed 12 other teachers randomly selected by prior coordination. Some of my observations were held preceding Jewish holidays and festivals, as I assumed these classes would be dedicated to these topics. In addition, I intentionally chose to observe some classes on ordinary weekdays, to find out whether dance classes on such days also incorporate elements of Jewish tradition.

In this article, I have chosen a typical class and one lesson to illustrate the general strategies of dance teaching methods applied by Hemmed dance teach- ers in Israel. The presentation of the class is not in itself my objective; I use it rather as a means for conveying insights that I have come by through my research as a whole. Since it is typical of the other classes I have observed, this class is instrumental for generalising a broader phenomenon. I use my findings from this specific sample class to make a connection with general concepts. Thus, the understanding of an individual instance leads to the cultural context of dance teaching in a national-religious setting.

To achieve an in-depth understanding of the socio-cultural context of the processes taking place in the classroom, I embraced the tool developed by Huss, who proposes a hands-on analysis model for interpreting socio-cultural contexts. In my analysis, the goal was to conceive of the dance class not as being an independent artwork by aesthetic measures, but rather as being the teacher’s/ creator’s way of representing meanings and content.15 Art-based research is founded on the view that the creator’s explanation is the key to understanding their work.16 A dance class is a piece of art, and as such it enables the viewer to interpret the teacher’s subjective experience within a complex context of society and culture.

Huss proposes a model for art-based research analysis that seeks to address both the subject’s experience and the subject’s life context. The model combines two views: the humanistic view which conceives of the art work as an inherent expression – the ‘inside’; and the critical view, which conceives of the art work in terms of discursive structures and power systems. The model consists of three stages: (1) the personal – the artist’s artwork; (2) the collective – the explanation process in the group’s space; (3) the researcher’s social analysis. This allows us to perceive a cultural structuring in the dance class, but also a structuring which opposes this culture, as implied by symbolic and indirect methods.17

I will examine the teacher’s artwork within its context and along the lines of Rav Kook’s philosophy, with reference also to how the NRC structures its discourse.

The dance class constitutes the dance teacher’s personal ‘territory’. The first stage of the three-dimensional model is the artwork created by the teacher using a ‘vocabulary’ of movements and traditional content arranged in a fixed structure. Teaching the class is the second layer of the model, in which the teacher explains their credo and the culture of their community to their pupils

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within the space of the class. The third layer connects with me, the researcher, who seeks to unlock the class’s meaning, being a social and cultural microcosm of the NRC.

It is worth noting that my analysis of a dance class, unlike that of verbal material, was performed simultaneously, during the course of collecting data and observing the class. This is accounted for by the fact that the actual class both reflects and interprets reality, just as the interview that followed the class provided an expansion and an interpretation of the lesson’s content.

Findings and discussion

The movement repertoire of any dance class includes fundamental elements such as basic concepts, structured exercises, series of exercises, structured pro- cedures and sequences, and combinations. The basic concepts are a mainstay of dance classes, and each genre of dance has its own fixed structure of basic con- cepts. In an early childhood dance class (except ballet) no structure is dictated but it is accepted that the structure ‘is approached gradually from its rough, schematic form to the expressive dance’ (11).18 It consists of the following parts: floor work warm-ups; centre floor work; creative dance; and reverence. In other words, floor work warm-up consists of exercises that aim to strengthen the back and the limbs and improve the functioning of the joints. Centre floor work is a continuation of the warm-up exercises, and adds a concentration on proper posture, which is the basis for strengthening feet, legs and back. It enhances the capability to cope with the shifting of weight, fronts, bases, routes and heights. New dance phrases (combinations) are combined within the centre floor work in order ‘to dance’ and express the acquired technique. Constituting the core of the class, creative dance is defined as ‘the interpretation of the child’s ideas, feelings and sensory impression expressed symbolically in movement forms through unique uses of his/her body’.19 Here the teacher suggests particular ideas or feelings they want their students to express through movement. They may provide a stimulus such as a piece of music, a poem, or a painting, which they want the students to interpret and express through the medium of move- ment and dance. Improvisation or choreography is applied in order to develop the students’ creativity. Finally, reverence consists of one dance phrase that ends the class: a thank you curtsey to the teacher and pianist.

The classes observed, adapted and followed the basic structure of a modern dance class with the addition of a Midrash story (legend or story from ancient Jewish texts) and the creation of dance accordingly. This addition changes the nature of the class that combines religious, traditional and moral values, turn- ing it into a unique structure that follows the requirements of Rav Kook and the Hemmed.

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Warm-up floor work

Amos Oz, in his book The Story Begins: Essays on Literature, says that every beginning is a contract; every beginning implies an intention and has a method embedded in it; every beginning ushers in something which is unique while at the same time drawing on that which already exists and is familiar. 20

Haya’s (pseudonym) dance class took place in the first month of the Hebrew year when the High Holy Days occur. The students sat down on the floor; they recited the instructions and performed the movement

Stretching and stretching y-a-w-n-i-n-g

Stretching and stretching y-a-w-n-i-n-g

‘MODEH ANI’ we say, and quickly get up

We wash our hands, and are ready.

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Haya performed the movement, whispering in my ear: ‘This is how we start each class, a repetitive exercise that marks the beginning of the class, stretching the back, curving it and bending’. I identified a dance phrase that corresponded to the laws of the regular dance class warm-up, but, unlike and in addition to them, this is an exercise applied as a pedagogical practice based on the integration of the material world (the body) and the holy (knowledge of the commandments). The movement phrase enacted by the body reflected the sequence of actions that take place upon waking up in the morning. In Hebrew, Modeh Ani means ‘I am thankful’. These are the first words of a Jewish prayer that observant Jews humbly recite every morning upon waking up, while still in bed, and then they wash their hands as a symbol of purification before starting another day of work in the service of God. Indeed, the teacher’s instruction targeted two goals at one and the same time: referring to knowledge ‒ namely, the sequence of actions that observant Jews must perform when waking up in the morning ‒ and achieving it through the movement of the body.

The class started with a ‘contract’. The teacher started with the ‘personal’ which is the first stage. From the outset she structured a movement phrase that warms up the back and large joints, as common in any dance class. However, the content of the rhymes recited adds a religious touch – the idea that we fulfil ourselves by adhering to the rules of the Lord, and recite a little prayer of thanks for arising in the morning. This kind of opening presented by the teacher guides the pupils towards their own personal experience of dance and tradition. On the one hand, this is a standard opening of any dance class, but in addition to warming up the back, it also warms up the soul. The images are not the standard aesthetics commonly evoked in dance classes; they reflect the teacher’s role as the creator of a new set of symbols within the traditional context.

Centre floor work

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Continuation of the warm-up exercise: Haya presented a new exercise. The movement motif was ‘height levels’ which would then become part of the cre- ative dance segment and the dance tradition. The text recited is the following (in Hebrew the text is rhymed):

Hello back,

Stand up straight

Now bow your head

Listen to words of wisdom

Get up and go

To your beloved land

Return to your home

And listen to words of Torah.

Rhyming is a common way of teaching at the early childhood stage. Metre and rhyme contribute to a sense of familiarity and control within the represented imaginary world of movement, thus helping the children to connect to it quickly and enjoy it. The rhymed text expresses verbally the body’s concurrent move- ments. The rhymes enable the children to absorb information not only through the teacher’s demonstration but also through the musical rhythm of the rhymes and through the verbal instructions. The movement exercises are performed by following verbal instructions recited with metre, rhythm and rhyme and combined with metaphors or images taken from Jewish tradition. The exercise instructions are articulated with varying degrees of accentuation, speed and vol- ume throughout the sequence; in this manner the verbal text controls the perfor- mance of the exercise in terms of its essence anteacher introduced the Midrashd quality. The verbal instructions, which emphasise the movement content (i.e. they tell the pupils what they should do), also contain theoretical concepts related to movement content, such as parts of the body and spatial concepts, as well as content related to Jewish tradition. This is an experiential teaching method that involves the hearing and kinaesthetic senses, as well as knowledge of Jewish tradition, all presented in harmony between form and meaningful content.

Metaphor is also a common device in teaching in early childhood pro- grammes; metaphors

enable accessing various levels of meaning, connecting different parts to make a coherent and functioning whole. Metaphors are, by their nature, analogies, which means that they draw on concepts from the subject’s domain of meanings [tradition, in this case], and from another domain [dance].21

Here the teacher is using metaphors as a customary teaching tool, but for bringing the values and traditional customs of the NRC into the dance class. In this class, the movement phrase draws on the connection between the worldly, i.e. the body ‒ ‘Hello back, stand up straight’, and the heavenly ‒ ‘Listen to words of wisdom’. It combines movement, rhymes and the instruction to listen to Torah teachings with humility ‒ ‘Now bow your head’.

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It should be emphasised that the teacher draws on common pedagogic practices such as the use of rhyming and metaphors for teaching movement phrases, but at the same time she builds on top of them another layer, that of imparting tradition. Thus, she creates a dance class consisting of a multi-level text. Derrida22 and Barthes23 interpret text as consisting of layers; an abstract state which covers previous knowledge and rediscovers it. Text, like fabric, can be woven by warp and woof threads, and can be unravelled and rewoven differently. This explains why any text is multifaceted and conveys its overt significance on the surface level and its profound content in its deeper levels, and there can be an infinite number of ways to interpret or restructure it.

The teacher works on both the personal and the collective levels. Using images and metaphors she continues her explanations, interprets elements from her own life and those of her pupils, and continues towards the collective. The teacher refers not only to her own experience but also to that of her pupils. Each girl in the classroom is directed to apply the collective idea of serving God in her personal body and space. Beyond the personal and the collective levels, there is the level of dance as a secular, artistic profession, covered with the patina of tradition. Multi-layer is one of the methods applied by the teacher for coping with her dilemma, which she tries to resolve within the bounds of the class. Baudelaire referred to artists, who are inherently creative individuals, as ‘men of imagination’.24 Indeed, those teachers who employ their imagination in order to create symbols and metaphors that express and convey their inner voice are ‘woman of imagination.’

Midrash dance – The pas de deux of tradition and dance

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At this point the class deviated from the typical structure. Haya structured the class so that it built upon a previously introduced Midrash story. She made the pupils sit in a circle and told them a Midrash story:

According to one of the halakhic rules concerning Yom Kippur, the atonement achieved during Yom Kippur absolves all offences perpetrated by man against God, such as profaning the Sabbath. However, offences committed against a fel- low man, such as shaming someone in public, slandering, gossiping or causing someone bodily damage, cannot be absolved unless by offering apologies and reconciliation, in the absence of which, not even an abundance of prayers would do. This halakhic rule is the source of the Yom Kippur custom of repenting and telling whoever we have hurt that we are sorry.

When the teacher introduced the Midrash, it aroused the pupils’ interest in learning about the tradition and exploring it through dance. It provided oppor- tunities for the pupils to learn, develop and express awareness of both tradition and body movements. The story is told in order to lend a religious meaning to the next part of the class – that of the pupils’ creativity. We can see that in terms of tradition, Midrash, as another level of explaining text, was related to learning customs and commandments and imparting the values of charity between one another. As for the class structure, the Midrash story was introduced after the warm-up technique, and leading up to the class’s climax; based on the Midrash story, creative movement and expressive dance emerged. In the interview right after the class, Haya explained:

Every month I choose a major event that occurred during that month and use it as a theme for expressive movement. This way I combine a biblical-historical event or Midrash with a modern theme and the body.

This statement reflects the perception of all the teachers whose classes I have observed. Using the multi-layer text they bridge the gap between the physical body and religious norms. This is their way of abiding by Rav Kook’s philosophy and the halakhic rules. Their teaching practices and their explanations during the classes are aimed at exalting God, imparting the commandments and instill- ing personal and social values, including the bond with the land of Israel. This is the way in which the teacher grounds her dance class in the national-religious socio-cultural context. She uses the Midrash story to channel the meaning of dance towards the collective body. She operates within the bounds of the dis- course structure laid down by Rav Kook and the NRC. By incorporating the Midrash into the class structure, the teacher is not just employing pedagogical techniques, she is changing them. But it is precisely through this proceeding that she is able to carve out a breakthrough within the bounds of her community, using a non-verbal medium.

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Creative dance ‒ creating tradition

Once the children have developed internal and external awareness, they can begin to use movement as a way to express ideas or feelings in the next part of the class – their own creative dance. In other words, ‘the creative process creates vocabulary and it is sequenced to form phrases that impart meaning, mood or abstract design … later the phrases are reworked to make a polished product’.25 Movements taken from the first parts of the class form the basis of the creative dance part. The creative movements form the Midrash story and the expressive dance movement merges into a means to encourage and impart faith, tradition, a sense of community and awareness through movement. This practice guides the pupils into a physical, mental, emotional and spiritual state.

In this section I will elaborate on the details because it is the peak and the most important part of the class, and also because it includes additional means and stimuli for creativity: the analysis of a painting and a musical analysis. At this point, Haya introduced a movement theme involving height levels learned during the centre floor work, together with the Midrash story. To enhance the emotional experience and the movements performed, and in order to draw the girls into the proper mood for dancing and faith, Haya used a dialogic discourse with visual arts which stimulates sensual, emotive, aesthetic and intellectual experiences, and allows for broad latitude of interpretation.26 She explains: ‘In order to convey the quality of the movement required for the dance we take a close look at the “Yom Kippur” painting.’

The girls were facing a reproduction of a painting titled Yom Hakippurim (the Jewish holiday of the Day of Atonement painted by Maurycy Gottlieb in 1878) which hangs on the wall. Haya reminded them:

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In the previous classes we started rehearsing a dance for a school ceremony. The subject of the ceremony is repentance and prayer; the yearning for God and the wish to be closer to Him. This painting concretises in what way the dance should spring from a close bond with prayer … Look at the supplicating eyes, the gesture of leaning back – we all need to lean on God Almighty, we all need to pray with all our hearts.

Haya continued: We can see in the painting three elevation levels, which is important to note since we drew on them in structuring the choreography … On the lowest level of the painting we see the boys who are not yet 13 years old [13 is the coming of age of Jewish boys, their transition from childhood to adulthood]. The mid-level shows the men who are Torah scholars. The women, who are separated from the men, appear nonetheless on the highest level of the painting.

The girls then prepared for rehearsing the dance. The dance opened with six girl-dancers entering the ‘stage’, wearing white dresses, each decorated with an ornament that looked like a Tallit (prayer shawl). Haya explained that ‘the posture of each girl is at a different height level, and they symbolise prayer and yearning’, and indeed, the three levels shown in the painting were reflected in the choreography which started with low-level postures, went on to mid-level postures and ended with the highest-level postures. The rest of the girl dancers entered: they raised their heads and their hands, looked up, bowed and leaned back ‒ abstract movements that convey flowing and softness. The text of the prayer was ‘translated’ through body language.

Haya used the painting in order to strengthen the commandments, faith and the leaning on God. From this point, the content of the painting was translated into movements: balance and off-balance, leaning, rocking, swaying, drawing routes in space, movements of request and plea, of searching and prayer.

Vaganova defines dances that are inspired by a painting, ‘plastic’ dance, or ‘they were practiced on a particular wide scale in the 1920s, under the influ- ence of Isadora Duncan. The “plastic” dances represented a basic styling of the pictures’.27

In this example, Haya presented the visual art component to encourage the girls to dance according to the aesthetic and emotional elements found in the work of art and incorporate it into the choreography. This kind of reflection, which does not distinguish between the heavenly kingdom and the world of art, conforms to the views of Rav Kook who maintained that engagement in art should be rooted in the foundations of holiness, and the role of artistic creativity is to add beauty to holy values. Using a painting as a ‘visual narrative’ enables us to think of the painting as a mirror of the social and cultural reality. It brings together the viewer’s internal, emotional world and their external reality, and as such facilitates the process of forming an identity.28

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Another detail that must be noted is the choice of music played during the lessons. Haya avoids contemporary music and prefers classical music or Jewish traditional or religious tunes. In this class the song ‘Avinu Malkenu’ (‘Our Father, Our King’) accompanied the dance. Haya explained: ‘I chose this version of the song because it addresses children. Other versions are very slow and the girls with their tiny bodies have a hard time filling up the music with movement.’

This explanation reflects a teaching rationale which resembles that of secular teachers. In the choice of music she is accounting for her pupils’ physical and developmental stage. However, she added: ‘This prayer includes a lot of pleas that all open with the words “Avinu Malkenu” … It is part of the traditional repertoire which is a “must”, that all our children must be familiar with.’ Jensen explained that music can be used to convey content knowledge which we wish to impart and the value of absorbing the tune is that it triggers an emotional response.29 Songs and tunes can potentially integrate content knowledge of various areas, and facilitate the learning process by making it a hands-on expe- rience. Gardner referred to music as the most important partner in dance. He pointed out that the structure of a musical composition will strongly affect the dance. He also related how young children can connect music and body movement naturally.30

It was indeed evident while the girls were dancing that the rhythm of the melody enabled them to ‘fill it up’ with movement. The girls managed to coordi- nate the duration of the tune with that of the movement with ease. The praying expressed by the melody was reflected in the girls’ eyes, which conveyed pious pleading.

Avinu Malkenu opens various possibilities for expanded and in-depth inculcating of knowledge related to tradition, as well as knowledge pertaining to physical expression through dance. The verbal aspect emphasises and shapes the message conveyed by the prayer; it enables the use of movement images and a unique, expressive language through movement. The tune of the prayer and the move- ments that go with it are a concrete symbol of the inner spiritual world, that of tradition.

The dance class structure with its built-in Midrash story makes for a new piece of art generated by the tension between traditional values and halakhic code on the one hand, and modern universal values on the other hand. The use of the Midrash story serves both levels of this unique teaching method. On the one hand, the teacher facilitated the embodiment of the Midrash story through the body, thereby instilling knowledge of the Midrash and its social consequences (acquiring knowledge of the Jewish tradition); on the other hand, the teacher used tradition in order to ‘legalise’ the teaching of dance in school. This woven text is the teacher’s own creation, forged from her inner self, which is then transmitted to the collective.

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Reverence

Reverence is the elaborate curtsey performed at the end of the dance class, to show the respectful admiration of the pupils for their teacher. It is usually a short dance phrase that concludes the class with bows. In Haya’s class, reverence strays from its original, usual purpose. The curtsey employed does not target the teacher:

Let the Shekhina dwell in the work of our hands and in our dances ... Shekhina is the dwelling of the Divine Presence of God in this world [and has been identified with the feminine aspects of God]. We ask God to bless us and inspire us not only in the big moments, but also as we navigate through the seemingly worldly parts of life.

Haya is taking advantage of this part of the class in order to teach Torah, to glorify and thank the Lord. Reverence is the final sealing of the ‘contract’ signed at the beginning of the class.

Cultivating tradition

A careful review of the lesson reveals that the dance class observed in a religious setting was structured and developed along the same lines as any non-reli- gious dance class. Both have the following main parts: floor work warm-up; centre floor work; creative dance; reverence. The straying from the design of a non-religious dance class is revealed in its structure and the ways the teacher uses accepted pedagogical practices.

The ‘dance midrash’, as I have called it, is a unique class structure in which a Midrash story is added to the standard class structure, fulfilling a dual role: it is both the basis for the dance piece and the element bridging the divide

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between modernity and physicality and Jewish tradition. The Midrash story is a solid methodological tool through which the teacher instils Jewish values and merges tradition with the modern art of dance.

Dance classes taught by NR teachers have a double role: they provide both dance subject matter and a set of guidelines concerning traditional religious aspects. As far as subject matter is concerned, the children learn core principles derived from inherent features of dance, such as: the concept of ‘knowing our body’; body proficiencies; spatial elements; time elements; and creativity. These elements all undergo a process of abstraction and translation and are projected on the processes of teaching and learning of the Jewish tradition.

The dance class observed had two levels: the surface level featured the text of dance, while the deeper level was imbued with tradition. Tzederboim explains that any artistic text consists of two levels: the surface level and the deep level, above- and underground stories. The surface level is open, structured and organised, with all forms and symbols of the artistic medium. The deep level is concealed, containing all the inner content, carrying deep meaning.31

Here we can see how the teacher/artist works with values of the Jewish tra- dition, adapting and elevating them to the level of a symbol fraught with mean- ing and an aesthetic component of the class’s fabric. The use of the Midrash, which is a part of Jewish tradition, and its adaptation into a movement text, is a recurring pattern which informs the observed teacher’s teaching methods. The subject matter chosen by the teacher tells the story of a culture and reveals the process of interweaving tradition with Israel’s non-religious, Western-oriented mainstream society. The teacher creates a new way of teaching, which is also a new piece of art, in order to merge cultures. She does not reconstruct or copy that which is known but, rather, holds on to it as a source of inspiration, and ventures away from it, on her educational mission; it serves her as a basis from which she departs to new horizons, assuming the role of a trailblazer with her own original creation/teaching.

Accepted pedagogical tools such as rhyming, metaphors and dialogues with other art forms are used in mainstream dance classes too, but here they are redolent with wisdom of the Torah, halachic rules and commandments that instil Jewish traditional and cultural concepts. Music and visual art informed the observed lessons, and were used by the teachers not just to further dance education, but to further tradition. Modern music was shunned. Most of the technique exercises were accompanied by instrumental classical music, while the music pieces used for creating dances or for improvising were traditional tunes, revived traditional pieces and/or contemporary Hebrew songs. Using these music genres connects the children to their Jewish roots and inspires them on the emotional level.

As for the plastic art works used by the teacher – most of them were created by Jewish artists and depicted Jewish life or subjects related to the command- ments. The paintings were used as the foundation of the movement creativity

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and also inspired the atmosphere. The Midrash stories, rhyming, metaphors, music and visual art were all assimilated in the movement, all were blended in a typical form and structure and became a unified whole.

The teacher knows and controls the Midrash content which conveys the indi- vidual’s world of meaning. The teacher’s personal ‘dance’ is always a pas de deux danced with the traditional and cultural circles of the society of which she is a member. The analysis of the class enables us to glean information about the rela- tionship between the class and socio-cultural aspects of the NRC, which affects the way the class is structured and the dynamics taking place during its course.

The teacher adapted potential subject matter taken from Jewish tradition and used it to create a piece which expands that reality and allows for using the medium of dance. In this respect she is fulfilling the philosophy of Rav Kook, who, in his annotated introduction to the Song of Songs, asserted that art is a favourable tool for expressing the soul’s impetus for creativity:

Literature, painting and sculpture are set to put into practice all the spiritual concepts embedded at the depth of the human soul and as long as even a single potential drawing is still ensconced at the bottom of the heart, it is the duty of art to release it. (Kook, Prayer Service B, 93)

To reach such a pure level, one must adopt the principles of ‘unified vision’, which reveals God everywhere. This kind of observation of the world that does not separate God’s kingdom and the world of art is the way dance teachers choose to teach. Dance is a valuable resource for the understanding of cultural practices as well as for inculcating cultural values. The national-religious dance teachers observed for this study used aesthetic physical movement to integrate dance into the culture of their particular community, which had long neglected aesthetics in favour of rigorous textual study, while young people who sought art studies often had to abandon their religious practice or give up their art.

Midrash dance as used by the teacher in our sample leads the pupils towards absorption of movement and dance as a source of traditional learning and as an extension of their cultural and communal characteristics. All this is being done by adapting and expanding dance pedagogy so that traditional dance practice as taught in non-religious communities can be used in the national-religious community, bringing back the joyful worship of God described in the Bible, such as the descriptions of how the Israelites sang and danced as they thanked God for the miracles which occurred. The ‘new pedagogy’ of dance integrates the dance tradition with religious tradition to provide expressive and artistic opportunities for members of the community.

Notes

1. Under his influence the Zionist movement actively supported the establishment of educational and cultural institutions.

2. Kook, “Orot HaKodesh”.

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3. Gutel, Chinuch LeEmuna. 4. Ahituv, Al Gevul Hatmura. 5. Dagan, Lebel Menachem. 6. Dagan et al., Guideline for the State Religious. 7. Avihail, “Omanut mitoch Emuna.” 8. Ministry of Education and Culture, Policy Applicable to Preschools. 9. Lam, Bemaarbolet haidiologiyot. 10. Hemed Vision. https://cms.education.gov.il/EducationCMS/Units/hemed 11. Gurevitch, Al Hamakom, 163–79. 12. Creswell, Research Design; Alpert et al., “The Ethnographic Research.” 13. Shkedi, Hamashmaut Meachorei. 14. Patton, Qualitative Research; Creswell, Qualitative Inquiry. 15. Huss, “Shimus Bemechkar.” 16. Ibid. 17. Huss, “Mavoh.” 18. Vaganova, Basic Principles. 19. Lobo and Winsler, “The Effect of a Creative Dance,” 503. 20. Oz, Matchilim Shipur. 21. Levitzki, “Tahalich Bniyat teorya al shmach.” 22. Derrida, Beit Hamirkachat. 23. Barthes, Mot Hashofer. 24. Baudelaire, “The Painter of Modern Life.” 25. Keun and Hunt, “Creative Dance: Singapore Children’s,” 40. 26. Eisner, “Artistry in Teaching”; Tadmor, “The Areas of Educational Culture.” 27. Vaganova, Basic Principles of Classic Ballet, 162. 28. Lalush, “Takiru et hashchuna.” 29. Jensen, Music with the Brain in Mind. 30. Gardner, Frames of Mind. 31. Tzederboim and Shefer, Dyokan shel Oman.

Acknowledgements

The author is grateful to Lauren Erdreich for research assistance and ongoing inspiration.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author.

Notes on contributor

Sari Katz-Zichrony is lecturer at Orot Israel ‒ Academic College of Education.

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