Vertigo explores the body and soul
Refusing to be a puppet of the modern world, choreographer Noa Wertheim cut her strings long ago.
For 30 years, the artistic director of the acclaimed Israeli troupe Vertigo Dance Company, which she founded alongside husband and business partner Adi Sha’al in 1992, has cultivated a holistic approach to living, unhindered by the limitations set by society and largely driven by ego.
In 2007, the couple — together with Wertheim’s three sisters, their husbands and 14 children combined — settled in the rural Elah Valley and transformed an abandoned chicken coop into a learning center they named the Eco Art Village. It is here, overlooking the site where the biblical battle between David and Goliath took place, that the members of the contemporary dance ensemble explore the harmonious interplay of artistic creativity, social consciousness and ecological sustainability.
Driven by these foundational pillars, the artists exist in a community with one another and their surrounding environment, and their performances reflect just that. One of Wertheim’s latest works quite literally brings the earth to the stage, as 10 dancers traverse a soil-covered floor with incredible athleticism. Co-choreographed by her sister Rina Wertheim-Koren, “One. One & One” made its debut in 2017 in celebration of the ensemble’s 25th anniversary.
On July 16, Vertigo will return to Houston to present the
sensory experience, followed by a brief Q&A session, in a free program at Miller Outdoor Theatre. Set to an original score by Israeli musician Avi Belleli, the hourlong piece juxtaposes the realms of oneness and separation, examining one’s inner desire for wholeness while acknowledging the spiritual need for connection with others and to the natural world.
“‘One. One & One’ is exploring, what I call, a small mistake that happened in the evolution of the human being, the development,” Wertheim said. “I think awareness took over and wanted to put light and energy into the self, and this is a big ego problem. Today, people are growing far apart, not dealing with that and living a very fast, materialistic life. I think one of the special things about Vertigo is that we are very spiritual.
We’re exploring the body and the soul; it’s together.”
For Wertheim, life is like a laboratory but one with no use for lab rats. At the ecological village, every person shares in the responsibilities of pioneering social and environmental change by means of cultural and artistic expression. In addition to initiating multidisciplinary collaborations, Vertigo offers performances, master classes and workshops for people of all backgrounds and abilities.
Interestingly, running her own company was never part of Wertheim’s plan. In fact, her religious upbringing even delayed her pursuit of a career in dance. Yet, in 1990, after completing Israel’s compulsory military service, she finished her studies and joined the Jerusalem Tamar Dance Company, where she met Sha’al. Smitten with each other, the colleagues simply wanted to spend more time together, and they did so while choreographing a duet titled “Vertigo.” What began as a 10-minute piece, inspired by Sha’al’s firsthand experience with the spinning sensation as a pilot in the air force, has developed into one of the country’s top contemporary dance troupes by the same name — not to mention, a new way of life.
Over the years, Wertheim has devised a unique language of movement influenced by a variety of dance techniques and mind-body disciplines, from classical ballet and contact improvisation to Eastern martial arts and Jewish philosophy. This weekend, the ensemble will exude its characteristic physicality in a riveting combination of grounded energy, delicate sensuality and explosive frenzy, the dancers always stretching their bodies far beyond their limits and leaving traces of their every step in the shifting dirt.
“The language is part of being connected to what exists. Gravity exists. Alignment exists. The four elements exist,” Wertheim said. “The universe is always working. When we’re connected, everything is working, and when we are not, it’s working in a different way. I think we should connect to our spirituality, our higher self. In Judaism, they say you must correct yourself, but I think it’s better to think that we are in a process of exploration and development. There is no good and bad, only development.”