Tel Aviv (Mediterranean Sea), Israel – 2015

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Audience Location

Yarkon River in Yarkon Park

Date and Time

June 20, 2015 at 4:00 pm

Water Locale

Yarkon River

Choreographers

Helena Kovalsky

History of Site and Related Water Issues

The Yarkon is the largest coastal river in Israel, at 27.5 km in length.
In the Mandatory period, the British government granted the Jaffa Electric Company exclusive rights to generate, distribute, and sell electricity in the District of Jaffa. These rights were delivered through the Auja Concession, which was formally signed on September 12, 1921. The Concession had authorized the company to generate electricity by means of hydroelectric turbines that would exploit the water power of the Yarkon River to supply electricity to Jaffa, the smaller neighboring town of Tel Aviv, and other locations within the bounds of the administrative District of Jaffa. Yet the plan to generate electricity by hydroelectric means never materialized, and instead the company designed and built a powerhouse that produced electricity by means of diesel-fueled engines.
The river became increasingly polluted after the 1950s, many blaming this on the construction of the Reading Power Station which is situated near its mouth.
When the rivers headwaters were diverted to the Negev via the National Water Carrier for irrigation purposes, the state of the Yarkon declined. As sewage replaced the flow of fresh water, habitats were destroyed and flora and fauna disappeared. This was exacerbated by continuous discharges of industrial effluents and municipal sewage into the rivers, which allowed algae to multiply.
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In 1988, the Yarkon River Authority was established to revitalize the river. Water quality improved after the construction of modern sewage treatment plants. The river was dredged to restore its original depth and natural flow. Still the quality of the water needs our attention. The swimming is prohibited there and the river has a “dangerous” image in the mind of many israelians because of poisoned water.

Music

Anton Turusov percussion, Tanyr Shaked – flute, Michael Kogan hang-drum, Konstantin Chernov didgeridoo

The Performance

Solo danscer:
Tanya Feldman
Dancers:
Yafit Pascal
Yulia Frydin
Maya Yaschuk
Ronit Haase Soudry
Helena Kovalsky
Alexey Tashaev

Directions to the Site of Performance

Yarkon River in Yarkon Park Tel Aviv

Email for more information

[email protected]