NOTED ISRAELI DANCER YA'ARA MOSES TO TEACH AT CONNECTICUT COLLEGE THIS FALL

NEW LONDON, Conn. -- Ya’ara Moses, a celebrated former dancer with Israel’s world-renowned Batsheva Dance Company and the Batsheva Ensemble and a co-founder of Israel’s Maria Kong Dance Company, will be a visiting lecturer at Connecticut College this fall.

Ya’ara Moses is also a leading teacher of Gaga, the movement language developed by Ohad Naharin, Batsheva’s artistic director, and is the co-founder and artistic director of Hasadna’a, a dance workshop in Tel Aviv for professional dancers from around the world.

She will be in New London from Aug. 25-Dec. 23 through the Schusterman Visiting Israeli Artists Program, which will bring an unprecedented 14 Israeli artists for residencies at top universities across the United States during the 2016-2017 academic year.

The program, an initiative of the Israel Institute, a D.C.-based academic institute aimed to enhance the study of modern Israel, brings Israeli filmmakers, choreographers, musicians, writers and visual artists for residencies at top universities and other cultural organizations in North America. The Charles and Lynn Schusterman Family Foundation founded the program in 2008 to foster interactions between the artists and their communities, exposing a broader audience to contemporary Israeli culture.

“What makes The Schusterman Visiting Israeli Artist Program unique and so effective is that it allows members of the host community and the visiting artists to connect in a variety of settings, from formal to informal, over a significant period of time, rather than the more traditional one-off experience,” says Marge Goldwater, the program’s director.

“As we look back on the last eight years, we see that the success of the residencies has prompted host institutions to find ways to bring Israeli cultural leaders to their communities after the Schusterman artist has left.”

Since the program launched, there have been 68 residencies featuring 78 artists at colleges and universities across North America. To artists have included a recipient of The Israel Prize, Israel's most prestigious award; an Emmy nominee; recipients of Israel's highest literary awards, and many winners of multiple Israeli Oscars.

“The Schusterman Visiting Israeli Artists program is the bridge between the Israel Institute's academic and cultural programming. These visiting artists provide more than just classes that teach skills; these artists provide a window into the heart of Israel,” said Ariel Roth, executive director of the Israel Institute.

“Cultural education provides insights into the fabric of a society in the way that other courses cannot and the understanding of students enrolled in these classes is deeper and more enriched as a result.”