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Kol Halev is a community ensemble of multitalented performers dedicated to portraying the rich multi-dimensional fabric of Jewish story, culture and experience through innovative dance, song, script and music. We integrate various styles of dance, from 1940’s-style swing to body percussion, and sing everything from jazz standards to traditional Jewish melodies.
We strive to be inclusive and welcoming, and to accommodate performers of all ages. Though a community group, we aim to present our audiences with professional-quality productions.
Kol Halev’s goal is to delight and educate audiences, and to build positive connections with both the Jewish community and the diverse community at large.
History of Kol Halev
One summer evening in 2006, Sue Cohene, Gwen Epstein and Jordana Dodek were lingering over cups of tea, discussing their love of dance when an idea blossomed, an idea that had evolved from a performance they had created for the first Festival HaRikud. It was a simple, but exciting notion – a dance/theatre troupe with a focus not just on Jewish dance, but on Jewish history and culture.
Sue consulted people in both the Jewish and dance/ theatre communities, and within weeks a ten-person troupe was rehearsing and preparing to perform at the Vancouver Israeli Folk Dance Society’s Entertainment Night during the Maccabi Games. The troupe presented a tap dance piece set to Israeli music, a unique and surprising combination that pleased audience and dancers alike.
Not long afterwards, the Vancouver Jewish Historical Society invited the newly minted troupe to perform at their annual general meeting. Santa Aloi and Cathy Moss volunteered their expertise in creative production and story development, and a great many talented people contributed their skills and passion for performance and production, enabling Kol Halev to move from a creative idea to a lively and growing dance theatre troupe.
Since then, Kol Halev has evolved into an ensemble of multitalented performers and behind-the-scenes wizards dedicated to portraying Jewish culture and history through innovative dance, song and theatre. Kol Halev’s vision is to delight and educate audiences, and to build positive connections within the Jewish community and the larger multicultural community of Vancouver. We welcome performers of all ages, levels of ability, cultural, ethnic and racial backgrounds to create the rich mosaic of Kol Halev. Though a community group, we aim to present our audiences with professional-quality performances.
The Hebrew name, “Kol Halev”, means “Voice of the Heart” and “All the Heart”. The name illustrates the group’s heart-felt and emotional relationship with the organization’s goals and objectives.
Acknowledgments
We wish to thank our Patron Dr. Rabbi Yosef Wosk for his continuing support of Kol Halev.