Mr. Gaga's choreography speaks to the fluidity of gender

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      A documentary by Tomer Heymann. In English and Hebrew, with English subtitles. Rated PG

      “Movement, in its purest form, is above gender.” So says Ohad Naharin, a veteran dancer and choreographer whose profoundly witty work compares favourably to Pina Bausch’s. Thus, much of his choreography speaks to the fluidity of gender, as well as various standing (and falling) traditions.

      Naharin is now pushing 65, but retirement isn’t likely for the Israeli artist, even if repeated injuries have dampened his intense physicality, or at least transferred it to others in his company. (His choreographer mother is still active at 90.) According to this self-narrated tour, he grew up on a kibbutz and only became fascinated by structured movement as a way to reach his apparently autistic twin brother. Biographical details mostly go uncorroborated in filmmaker Tomer Heymann’s 100-minute doc, so we never know how much of the tale is self-mythologized.

      It is clear, through archival footage and stills, that Naharin was unusually handsome, straight, and old when he moved to Manhattan in his early 20s, post-army, to begin his formal training, with Martha Graham and others. He returned to Tel Aviv in 1990 to run Batsheva, a top modern troupe. Consequently, there’s much excellent footage to collect here, in this breezily assembled film.

      Good thing the work, seen in both rehearsal and filmed performance, is strong enough to survive the dearth of context provided—although some of his dancers do illuminate both the process and their boss’s sometimes difficult personality. There’s an interesting digression into Israeli politics, as Naharin fights for autonomy in an increasingly Orthodox state. On the other hand, we also see him bully his late wife, lead dancer Mari Kajiwara, in some discomfiting scenes.

      Mr. Gaga doesn’t really explain why the demanding choreographer is called Mr. Gaga, but dance fans will still be in thrall to this charismatic figure and his rule-bending art.

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