Over the past decade, Marin, Saraya and Weiner have collaborated on various art, education and activism platforms, sharing the stage in numerous shows. Weiner and Saraya are part of the multilingual and bi-national band System Ali, born in Jaffa as part of a struggle for housing rights. In their projects and in their course at the Summer Academy, they explore the relationship between language, vocal production and movement to address language and performance as political tools, both in the Israeli-Palestinian context, as well as in relation to gender constructs. They investigate multi-languaging and the politicization of the linguistic public sphere via various performative and creative traditions, including spoken word, martial arts, contemporary dance and beatboxing.
For the public programme, the artists will perform segments of their performances followed by a conversation with the audience. “Beat Midras" is a word play between the Jewish concept of Beit Midrash, a Jewish religious-intellectual discursive space; madāris/madrassa, the Arabic name for an educational institution (secular or religious); and the sonic, rhythmic and musical meanings of the English word beat. The evening will highlight the power of creative language in building a community and its potential to encourage political change. It examines the role of art in facilitating conflictual dialogues, examining the boundaries between text, body and voice while imagining a better tomorrow in Palestine-Israel and beyond.
key data
- Venue
- Museum der Moderne Salzburg, Rupertinum
- Date
- 25. 7. 24, 7 p.m. – 9 p.m.
Stav Marin
Stav Marin is a dancer, choreographer, and performer recognized with the prestigious Ministry of Culture Award. She served as Artistic Director of the Intimadance Festival in Tel Aviv and has worked on numerous dance and theater productions globally. Marin has collaborated with various international choreographers, dance companies, and artists. Her recent work, “Tsena Urena,” premiered at the Curtains Up Festival in 2022. The piece explores themes of tradition and motherhood through Yiddish and Hasidic dance. She is an experienced dance instructor and creative mentor.
Neta Weiner
Neta Weiner is a musician, theater director, actor, rapper, founder, lead singer, and accordionist of System Ali, a multilingual Jewish-Arab hip-hop project. Weiner is also the artistic director of the Beit System Ali social educational movement. He has created several critically acclaimed and award-winning stage works that have been produced for festivals and prominent theaters around the world. Weiner has appeared in several films and television shows as an actor. As a musician, he wrote the soundtrack for the acclaimed TV teen series “Madrasa” (“school” in Arabic). Last year, Weiner released his second solo album, “Pinui Binui,” written in Hebrew, Arabic, Yiddish, and English. Additionally, he has been practicing martial arts for over 20 years and is a licensed teacher of Wing Tsun Kung Fu.
Samira Saraya
Samira Saraya is an actor, writer, director, spoken word artist, and LGBTQ activist. In her early twenties, she began performing as a drag king while working as a nurse. Saraya’s first career breakthrough occurred in 2011 when she landed a lead role in the booming TV show Minimum Wage. Saraya won several awards in theater and cinema, including the Best Script Award for her short film Polygraph of 2018 at TLVFest. Saraya graduated from Tel Aviv University with a degree in directing and debuted with Polygraph in 2020. The film features the first openly lesbian Arab character in cinema.
Over the past decade, Saraya, Marin, and Weiner have collaborated on various art, education, and activism platforms. They have shared the stage in numerous shows and led community campaigns and educational programs.
