Abstract
The life and work of Israeli choreographer Ohad Naharin are documented in the 2015 film by Tomer Heymann, Mr. Gaga. With nearly a decade of footage from following Naharin’s work with the Batsheva Dance Company, the documentary celebrates Naharin’s life with abundant footage from his choreographic successes. This article explores the ways in which this film, like many dance documentaries, uses dance footage in strategic ways to present dance artists as exceptional. In Mr. Gaga in particular, the national and cultural specificity of the story and footage portrayed in the film require critical analysis to better understand subtle political undertones and bias embedded in the film’s otherwise primarily aesthetic focus.
Highlights
The life and work of Israeli choreographer Ohad Naharin are documented in the 2015 film by Tomer Heymann, Mr Gaga
Mr Gaga, subtitled “A True Story of Love and Dance,” is a documentary consisting of family archives, interviews, and raw footage filmed by Tomer Heymann over an eightyear period of observing Israeli choreographer Ohad Naharin and his work
Described on the official Mr Gaga website as the “story of an artistic genius who redefined the language of modern dance,”[1] the film tells the story of how Naharin—the creator of the dance practice known as Gaga and the former Artistic Director of Israel’s Batsheva Dance Company2—became the worldrenowned choreographer he is today
Summary
The life and work of Israeli choreographer Ohad Naharin are documented in the 2015 film by Tomer Heymann, Mr Gaga. Mr Gaga, subtitled “A True Story of Love and Dance,” is a documentary consisting of family archives, interviews, and raw footage filmed by Tomer Heymann over an eightyear period of observing Israeli choreographer Ohad Naharin and his work.
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