Choreographies that Inspire

Israeli Folk Dancing Videos

Videos by Orly Sela

Early in the 20th century when Jews first started to return to their homeland after hundreds of years in exile, immigrants from many different cultures brought a variety of folk dances with them. These included Russia, Yemen, Poland and Romania. Together in their new home, they created  a new language in dance.

I started my folk dancing journey when I was still in kindergarten and these dances have been a part of me since I started walking. I first danced with my mother, my family, and with other kids who grew up in the same village and went to the same school. Later in life, I studied to become a dance instructor and focused on the healing and therapeutic impact of dance on people with Parkinson’s and other cognitive challenges. Early on I learned that the work of one of Israel’s folk dancing pioneers, Rivka Shtoorman, influenced many in the field of dance. Her work inspired me to modify her (and others’) dance routines for work in seated positions as well as movement for standing and when movement is limited.

Israeli folk dancing is a unique phenomenon with large groups of men and women who enjoy dancing together several times a week in organized activities. Particularly in Israel but in many more countries including the US, dance routines include dancing in circles, rows and couples with new routines being created for songs old and new every year. It is my hope that you too will discover the magic in Israeli folk dancing.

 

Variety of Instructional Dance Videos

Videos by Katie Bound

Walking on Sunshine Choreography

  • 0:00 to 0:14: Introduction

  • 0:15 to 3:43: Breakdown of the Steps

  • 0:15 to 0:22: Overview of Steps

  • 0:23 to 1:18: first heel tap combination

  • 1:19 to 2:03: shuffles with toe heel*

  • 2:04 to 2:49: second heel tap combination**

  • 2:50 to 2:59: shuffles with toe heel*

  • 3:00 to 3:43: second heel tap combination sped up**

  • 3:44 to 6:22: demonstration of steps performed with music

 

A Rockin’ Good Way Choreography

0:00 to 2:09: Breakdown of the Steps

  • 0:09 to 0:27: step, shuffle, step, step

  • 0:28 to 0:58: step, lift your foot in the front, step, step

  • 0:59 to 1:19: combination of the first two steps - step, shuffle, step, lift your foot in front, step

  • 1:20 to 1:33: step, shuffle, step, step

  • 1:34 to 1:49: step, tap your foot in the back, step, step

  • 1:50 to 2:09: combination of the previous two steps - step, shuffle, step, tap your foot in the back, step 

2:10 to 4:41: Demonstration of Steps Performed With Music

*****I refer to shuffle in the video as shuffle but also as brush, brush. A shuffle is a brush forward and then a brush backward.

Basic Tap Steps Compilation