About us
Bat Dor Beer Sheva is a professional dance school, one of the largest in Israel and the only one of its kind in the south of the country.
The institution was established in 1975 at the initiative of Mrs. Aliza Wolf in collaboration with the Beer Sheva Municipality, the Ministry of Education and Culture and the Bat Dor Tel Aviv Association for the Art of Dance. It was registered as an independent non-profit organization (NPO) in 1995.
The School is located on the main road connecting Ben-Gurion University, Soroka Hospital and the city’s public cultural center, which includes City Hall, the Center for the Performing Arts, the Municipal Conservatory, the Beer Sheva Theater, and the Goodman School of Acting and the Performing Arts.
Bat Dor Beer Sheva has six studios, spacious lobby areas, a classroom, library, physiotherapy and treatment center for dancers, teacher’s lounge, dressing rooms and offices.
Our teaching staff consists of teachers and pianists specializing in classical ballet, modern dance, jazz, dance history and music. The classical ballet teachers are qualified teachers from the Royal Academy London R.A.D or graduates of schools in the Former Soviet Union.
The modern dance teachers, some of whom are themselves choreographers, employ different teaching methods with an emphasis on the Martha Graham method.
The curriculum is expanded in the School’s senior division. In addition to classical and modern ballet, the students also study about twelve weekly classes of 1.5 hours each of various styles of contemporary dance, classical and modern repertoire, the repertoire of the Kamea Dance Company, jazz, creative dance, and the history of dance. These classes offer the dancers professional training that will prepare them to later join a professional dance company after graduating.
Bat Dor Beer Sheva Dance School is dedicated to the promotion of excellence and tailoring the dance classes for mastering techniques specific to boys or girls.
VISION OF THE BAT DOR BEER SHEVA DANCE SCHOOL
“I founded Bat Dor Beer Sheva so that every boy and girl could learn and experience the world of dance in the most professional manner” (Aliza Wolf, founder, 1975).
The School imparts persistent and meaningful learning with the belief that the fundamentals of classical and modern ballet are key milestones for producing dancers at a caliber fit to join professional dance companies in Israel and internationally, applying the highest standards in dance education. The School empowers its students and fosters excellence through creativity, perseverance, a sense of one’s ability, self-discipline and the aspiration to harness each student’s unique abilities and potential.
The School offers an educational and nurturing environment for each student in cooperation with the student’s family and the formal system of education. It also provides a supportive social environment and medical response when necessary.
The School works in collaboration with other cultural and artistic organizations to jointly bring the student to a high level as well as introduce new horizons by exposing the student to a cultural-artistic experience.
MILESTONES IN THE HISTORY OF BAT DOR BEER SHEVA
1973 Dance classes are held for different age groups in the building that was then Beer Sheva’s cultural center. All the teachers come from Tel Aviv, and the artistic and administrative management is run by Bat Dor Tel Aviv.
1975 Official establishment of the School. The School moves to a building at 16 Yad Vashem Street. The building has one standard dance studio, dressing rooms and an office. Classical ballet, modern dance and jazz are taught to children, teens and adults.
1977 Royal Academy of Dance (RAD) exams are held for the first time for Bat Dor’s Junior Division:
1982 RAD intermediate exams are held for the first time for the School’s Adult Division. These exams are intended for the School’s Adult Division. From this point forward, students continue to be evaluated at other high levels, and Bat Dor Beer-Sheva becomes an evaluation center for all children of the Negev who train according to the RAD method in the professional division.
1985 RAD exams for boys are held for the first time in Israel in the School’s professional Boys Division. Close to 25 boys of varying ages study at Bat Dor Beer Sheva during this period. Many of them come to the School after scouting for gifted children from disadvantaged inner-city neighborhoods as part of a neighborhood rehabilitation program.
1993 Shimon Kalichman, an 18 year old student, participates in the Genee International Ballet Competition in London, and is awarded a silver medal. He is the first and only student in Israel to win a medal in this competition.
1995 Bat Dor Beer Sheva Municipal Dance School becomes the Bat Dor Beer Sheva NPO.
1997 Aliza Wolf, the School’s founder, retires, and Daniella Schapira is appointed to direct the School.
2002 The School moves to its new premises at 13 HaShalom Street, Beer Sheva. The magnificent building was built thanks to the generous donation of Larry and Lillian Goodman of Chicago, USA, and the Beer Sheva Municipality’s Department of Education headed by Andrei Uzan.
Choreographer Tamir Ginz and Daniella Schapira form the Kamea Dance Company. The dance company is largely comprised of the School’s graduates and offers a professional horizon for the students of Bat Dor Beer Sheva. The Kamea Dance Company is the first professional dance company in the capital of the Negev.
2003 The Larry and Lillian Goodman Bat Dor Beer Sheva NPO is awarded the Beer Sheva Prize for Excellence in performing arts for its youth division headed by Ruvik Danilovich.
2006 The program for professional dancers is established. The goal of the program is to impart technical, artistic and intellectual tools for gifted students following their military service, who have not received training at a level enabling them to pursue a professional career in dance.
2013 Completion of the construction of the second floor of the Bat Dor Building. The Cebrin Goodman Home for the Kamea Dance Company was built thanks to another generous donation from the Goodman Family Foundation, Mifal Hapais – Israel National Lottery, and the Beer Sheva Municipality. The center now has seven studios bustling with activity throughout the day.
2014 Daniella Schapira, executive director of the non-profit organization and principal of the School, retires after leading the School to major achievements in the field of dance.
Merav Zimand is appointed executive director of the non-profit organization and heads the institution, which includes the Bat Dor Dance School and the Kamea Dance Company.
Gali Ronen, a graduate of Bat Dor Beer Sheva and a senior teacher at the School, is appointed principal of the School.
2015 Or Abuhav, a graduate of Bat Dor Beer Sheva, formerly a professional dancer and senior teacher at the School, is appointed principal of the School.
2019 Merav Zimand retires from her position as executive director of the non-profit organization, and Idan Avisar is appointed in her place.