In the past, I was never interested in birds. My interest began in 2019 after I read an article about the annihilation of the songbirds in Israel and got stronger during the Corona days. Because the subject of extinction and climate change grips me, the article touched my heart. In its wake, I began watching birds in my surroundings, keeping a log in which I wrote down all of the songbirds I saw and how many of each there were. The subject deepened during the first lockdown- March and April 2020, because, for the first time in my life, I had time to be outside and to watch the birds. I learned to recognize their calls- the Titmouse, the Blackbird, the Hoopoe and the Honey-sucker, for whom we planted bushes in our garden whose blossoms produce nectar they like to drink. As such we were able to broaden (by a bit) the local area in which they live and give them an additional food source.

 

I started to follow the changes in the seasons throughout the year, for example, the mating season in which they begin to sing; I learned to differentiate between the males and females and tracked the appearance of each new bird. I completely fell in love with birds. I think birds are a mirror to our society, to quote, “The birds reflect the environment, they are in a bubble of our environment state. Complex biology points to a healthy environment and sparse biology is a sign that the environment is in a problematic state. The invasive species thrive in a monotonous, polluted, extreme environment. If the environment is not good for biological plenty, it is certainly not good for humans.”

[Amir Balban- Co-Founder of the Bird Observatory in Jerusalem]

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We created and performed the 'work in progress' at the end of the Residency in SE.S.TA - Centre for Choreographic Development in the Czech Republic at Žďár nad Sázavou – May 2022. We are intending to premiere on 30/12/2022 at 'From Jaffa to Agripas Festival' in Jerusalem. Before that, we will pre-premiere with the piece at Hamekarer Gallery in Tel-Aviv in December 2022.

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Choreography: Maayan Liebman-Sharon

Co-Dancers and musicians: Itamar Galina and Harel Kay

Original music: Barak Olier

Melody and lyrics: Harel Kay

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