Practicing Empathy #1

In “Practicing Empathy #1”, the first event in this series, the choreographer creates an environment in which empathy emerges simultaneously as a support, encouragement and response to complex needs. The eight performers immerse themselves in recurrent movements, bodily expressions and songs, revealing emotional landscapes that hint at ​​their networks of relationships and diverse ties to each other. The audience is invited to sit around the performance area on the Schauspielhaus stage.

Yasmeen Godder has been one of the leading exponents of dance in Israel for the past twenty years. Her choreographies often arise from an exploration of questions about coexistence and engage the audience with their precise yet expressive power. In her “Practicing Empathy” series, she and her company have been developing choreographies and events since 2019 which invite viewers to practice empathy. A two-year research period saw the company traveling to various places and coming into contact with diverse communities in Tel Aviv, Bassano del Grappo and Düsseldorf. For a long time, Yasmeen Godder’s work has focused on encounters and emotional connections – between both acquaintances and strangers. The starting point for her sensitive research work has always been her own artistic practice in which the mediums of dance and choreography play a central role.