Go Figure
Sharon Fridman Company

  Thursday, November 21
  7:30 p.m.
  16 and 18
MUN Theater
 

Choreographer Sharon Fridman arrives at MUN with his latest production, Go Figure, starring two dancers with functional diversity. An invitation to discover the rhythmic and movement patterns of other bodies.

The search for a space where the otherness of the body with functional diversity can express and enhance its nature gives rise to the possibility of creating a duet between dancers Shmuel Dvir Cohen and Tomer Navot. Shmuel has a neurological condition based on involuntary muscle contraction (dystonia). In their work, the focus of interest is not on adapting to an alien, normative movement dynamic, thus overcoming the barriers presented by a situation of dysfunctionality; rather, it is the opposite, the acceptance and celebration of one's own movement, often unpredictable, almost always challenging, and beautiful insofar as it is true, insofar as it is faithful to itself. 

The show, which is super poetic, tries to show how two people can connect when they just want to listen to and support each other. It's so well done that you don't even notice the performers' disabilities; it's more like a surprise for the audience.

Sharon Fridman is one of the most interesting voices on the Spanish and international choreography scene, and has developed his own movement language inspired by the mobility difficulties he has witnessed in his own mother. Thus, 'Go Figure' conveys a message of non-discrimination, equality, and respect for all people, regardless of their physical limitations. 
 

ARTISTIC CREDITS
Direction and choreography: Sharon Fridman
Assistant director: Tamar Mayzlish
Dancers: Shmuel Dvir Cohen and Tomer Navot
Original music: Luis Miguel Cobo
Lighting design: Yaron Abulafia
Set design: Tal Erez
Costume design: Miki Avni
Management and distribution: Lola Ortiz de Lanzagorta (New Dance Management)

SHARON FRIDMAN
At the age of six, he began dancing with the Israeli dance and folklore group Hora Pardes Hanna, thus beginning his lifelong career in dance. Ten years later, he began volunteering at Ilanit, a mental health hospital, where a working group helped patients through body movement therapies.

In 1995, he began studying contemporary dance and dancing with Yehonatan Carmon's company at the Tel Aviv Opera House. He soon joined Ido Tadmor's company as a dancer. In 2000, he began dancing with companies such as the Kibbutz Contemporary Dance Company and the Vertigo Dance Company, where he discovered a new body language known as Contact Improvisation. In 2003, he began working as artistic coordinator and choreographer for the Mayumana company. This is how he came to Madrid in 2006, where he settled and created his personal project: the Sharon Fridman Company.

The technical basis he uses in his works focuses on the relationship between gravity and balance, inspired by his mother, who was born with Arnold Chiari syndrome. From this technique, he has developed a new body language, the INA practice.

He currently combines his work as director of his company with collaborations as guest choreographer, artistic director, and lighting designer for various companies.

SHARON FRIDMAN COMPANY
All of the company's works are based on the INA technique and are performed in many parts of the world. Many of them have received important awards and mentions, such as the Max Award for Best Show for Free Fall in 2015, the Max Award for Best Choreography for Erritu in 2019, First Prize and the Audience Award for Hasta dónde…? at the Burgos-New York Competition (2011), and the Best Dance Show Award at the Huesca Theater and Dance Fair for Free Fall and All ways (2014 and 2017, respectively).

Among its most recent productions, Dosis de Paraíso, premiered in 2020, stands out. In 2022, the company celebrated its 15th anniversary with the premiere of a new work, Exprímeme_Life in process. In September 2023, the full version of the work Go Figure, co-produced by the Oriente Occidente Festival in Rovereto (Italy), premiered, in which two dancers (one of them with functional diversity) seek a balance between form and emotion.
 

SHMUEL DVIR COHEN
Dancer. Body-mind-movement therapist and facilitator of moving meditation spaces. He performs in Sharon Fridman's creations Shape On Us, produced by Vertigo Dance Company and premiered at the 2020 Israel Festival, and the new piece Go Figure.

Shmuel lives with a neurological syndrome that affects his ability to control his muscle activity and movement. He uses a wheelchair and crutches as assistive devices and has turned their use into an art form.
 

TOMER NAVOT
Dancer, creator, dance teacher, assistant director, and musician. His work focuses mainly on partnership and improvisation. Since 2008, he has worked with various choreographers and dance companies, including Vertigo Dance Company, Sharon Fridman, Shlomit Fundaminski, and Anna Halprin. He teaches contemporary dance (release technique), contact improvisation, and repertoire. As a choreographer, he has collaborated with artists such as Marija Slavec and Maya Resheff.

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