Translated from German:
Wild Daydreams of Israeli Dancers
Kamea Dance Company performed “Wild Awake” at the START Festival on the stage of the Erholungshaus in Wiesdorf

Leverkusen. A secret window into our soul, leading to other worlds—worlds where one can momentarily forget the everyday. On Thursday, the audience at the Erholungshaus followed 14 dancers from Israel’s “Kamea Dance Company” through this window into a surreal daydream in search of happiness.

As the spectators entered the hall, one of the dancers calmly placed candle after candle on a cake on stage. He lit them, blew them out immediately, and the performance began: Trapped in a beam of light from behind, a dancer moved with all her soul, her loose hair swirling around, powerful movements starting from her pelvis transitioning into expressive legwork.

The company hails from Be’er Sheva, in the heart of Israel, and presented “Wild Awake” with choreography by the company founder and choreographer, Tamir Ginz. The dancers growled, screamed, and pounded their chests like animals. However, this did not appear to be an uncontrolled impulse—they moved with clear, deliberate motions full of body control.

An adventure in escapism, “Wild Awake” is a journey that still seeks optimism. A 65-minute surreal thought world revealed hidden hopes, passions, personal memories, unreachable fantasies, and true love. Again and again, the dancers laughed together, hugged, and kissed.

Through style and choreography, many layers of worlds were created. A duet between two dancers felt like a mating dance—successful in the end, as the two rolled offstage after catching each other mid-air several times. Another group danced freely while lighthearted music by Avi Belleli played. What happened here was not an act of escape but one of self-discovery. The Kamea Dance Company inspired new perspectives and broadened horizons.

The show was an aesthetic work full of imagination. Music spanning a variety of rhythms and styles met with a wide range of movement. At the end of the performance, a dancer and a partner entered a box together, as if they could take the “Wild Awake” feeling with them.

“Wild Awake” serves as a reminder that it’s okay to sometimes escape the pressures of reality and lose oneself in imagination. For in these moments of escapism, one finds not only refuge but the freedom to grow. It’s no coincidence that the company’s name, “Kamea,” means a charm for good luck in Hebrew.