Rami Be’er’s iconic masterpiece returns to the stage ! Renowned choreographer and Artistic Director of the Kibbutz Contemporary Dance Company (KCDC), Be’er is known for presenting a complete vision in his dance works, creating choreography, stage, and lighting design. Performed on Israeli and international stages over the past three decades, Aide Memoire has become a cornerstone of contemporary Israeli dance. Rami Be’er on revisiting the work: “In 1994, I created Aide Memoire. With the passage of time, I now see it as a work that does not refer to a specific moment but is valid for all times. It sends a voice to the past, is relevant to our existence in the present, and warns of the future.”
Aide Memoire will be performed at the Israeli Opera House in Tel Aviv from January 31 to February 2, 2026, and throughout Israel from January 20 to May 7, 2026. Tickets are available on the Kibbutz Contemporary Dance Company website.
Aide Memoire is a work that engages with the Holocaust, emerging from personal experience, yet it is not a historical work. Rami Be’er was born in Kibbutz Ga’aton, the son of Holocaust survivors from Hungary and among the kibbutz founders, and Ga’aton is home to the Kibbutz Contemporary Dance Company. That home in the north of Israel has known much upheaval over the past couple of years, and the dance company like so many others, was forced to evacuate, its studio becoming temporary barracks for soldiers, with tanks standing at the entrance. During that time art made way for necessity as the company focussed on assisting evacuees and the return of the hostages, performing in Hostage Square in Tel Aviv as an homage to Romi Gonen (who was freed from captivity after 491 days), who loves dance. The renewed performance of Aide Memoire symbolizes the return to life with a timeless work that expresses a longing for peace and brotherhood, and the power of art to heal.
In 2009 I visited the KCDC at Ga’aton and the company performed selections from the powerful Aide Memoire in the studio. Rami Be’er’s commentary on the work at that time still resonates: “I am not depicting the Holocaust onstage, or bringing a particular narrative or characters to the stage, but rather allowing the viewer to connect to the Holocaust through dance, and interpret the dance through his or her own inner world of associations. It is a message against violence and racism, a call for humanity and peace. Through art we can say something about our existence, not as a mere slogan, but communicating one to one, through the human body. I believe that a dance should speak for itself through the dancers. They are the heart of the work, their power and spirit. They create a world of unity through which I can express the emotions and sensations. It is not a language of words, numbers and facts, but an abstract language through which one can convey and understand things that are beyond words.”
Performance Dates:
Zichri Hall, International Dance Village, Ga’aton
January 20, 2026
January 22, 2026
January 27, 2026
February 12, 2026
May 13–14, 2026
Israeli Opera House – Tel Aviv
January 31 – February 2, 2026
Additional Venues:
February 16, 2026 – Rehovot Cultural Center
February 26, 2026 – Sherover Hall, Jerusalem Theatre
March 5, 2026 – Ashdod Performing Arts Center
March 10, 2026 – Yifat Performance Hall
March 14, 2026 – Haifa Auditorium
March 25–28, 2026 – Herzliya Performing Arts Center
March 31, 2026 – Ness Ziona Cultural Hall
May 7, 2026 – Yad LaMeginim Theatre, Yagur
