Itzik Galili
What Itzik Galili chooses not to articulate in words, he expresses through dance. For him, dance is the most truthful and precise way to reflect the world around us and to speak about life itself. Now in his sixties, the Israeli choreographer defines the core purpose of his work as creating a space for shared experience and deep emotional connection with the audience. Galili possesses a distinctive artistic vision that seamlessly fuses dance with cinema, theatre, and original musical composition. Each of his works presents a true challenge for performers. Demanding exceptional virtuosity and a certain boldness from dancers, Galili creates performances of such physical intensity that audiences quite literally find themselves on the edge of their seats — his ballets are a corporeal experience not only for those on stage, but for those watching as well. At the same time, he consistently foregrounds the individuality of each dancer, allowing their sensitivity and emotional depth to fully emerge.
Critics have described Galili as a "master of the architecture of bodies in time and space." He began his dance career with the Israeli company Bat-Dor, and two years later joined the legendary Batsheva Dance Company (a DANCE OPEN participant in 2017). He made his choreographic debut in 1990 with Double Time. International recognition followed in 1992, when he received a prize at the International Choreographers' Competition in the Netherlands. Just two years later, after only four years of independent choreographic work, Galili was awarded the Phillip Morris Arts Award for his contribution to Dutch culture.
In 1997, in Groningen (the Netherlands), Galili founded his own company, Galili Dance, which quickly gained international recognition and toured extensively in the Netherlands and abroad. In 2009−2010, he became a co-founder of the Contemporary Dance Dansgroep Company in Amsterdam.
To date, Galili has created more than 60 original works, including Between L (1995), See Under X (1997), Below Paradise (1997), Until with/out Enough (1998), and The Drunken Garden (1999). He has collaborated with many of the world’s leading dance companies, among them Dutch National Ballet, Netherlands Dance Theatre, Scapino Ballet Rotterdam, Les Ballets de Monte-Carlo, Batsheva Dance Company, and Stuttgart Ballet, among others.
In 2001−2002, Itzik Galili received the Dutch National Choreography Award, presented for sustained and outstanding contribution to the development of dance in the Netherlands — an honour previously bestowed on figures such as Hans van Manen and Jiří Kylián.
Since 2011, Galili has been working internationally as a guest choreographer on major dance projects worldwide.
Critics have described Galili as a "master of the architecture of bodies in time and space." He began his dance career with the Israeli company Bat-Dor, and two years later joined the legendary Batsheva Dance Company (a DANCE OPEN participant in 2017). He made his choreographic debut in 1990 with Double Time. International recognition followed in 1992, when he received a prize at the International Choreographers' Competition in the Netherlands. Just two years later, after only four years of independent choreographic work, Galili was awarded the Phillip Morris Arts Award for his contribution to Dutch culture.
In 1997, in Groningen (the Netherlands), Galili founded his own company, Galili Dance, which quickly gained international recognition and toured extensively in the Netherlands and abroad. In 2009−2010, he became a co-founder of the Contemporary Dance Dansgroep Company in Amsterdam.
To date, Galili has created more than 60 original works, including Between L (1995), See Under X (1997), Below Paradise (1997), Until with/out Enough (1998), and The Drunken Garden (1999). He has collaborated with many of the world’s leading dance companies, among them Dutch National Ballet, Netherlands Dance Theatre, Scapino Ballet Rotterdam, Les Ballets de Monte-Carlo, Batsheva Dance Company, and Stuttgart Ballet, among others.
In 2001−2002, Itzik Galili received the Dutch National Choreography Award, presented for sustained and outstanding contribution to the development of dance in the Netherlands — an honour previously bestowed on figures such as Hans van Manen and Jiří Kylián.
Since 2011, Galili has been working internationally as a guest choreographer on major dance projects worldwide.
[His productions have the ability] “…to appeal to a broad audience, while the themes he explores are mind-splitting in their depth.”
— www.israelculture.info
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