​Sharon Lavi Company​

Prior to its materialization in Barcelona, the project’s roots go back to Israel, where the company's choreographer, Sharon Lavi,  grew up & developed a personal style of tap & dance inside of different choreographic ventures in which he was involved.  These ventures included different artistic collaborations with various artists, however, the specific tap style that would eventually become the company's trademark was developed from a very early age under the mentorship of his teacher, Zvia Brumer and together with his childhood tap companion and friend, Mandy Kol.  In the year 1998, at the creation of the children’s performance, KexevKezev, under the direction of Ellida Geyra, Sharon also met musician-drummer Yaron Engler with whom he raised a new project’s mission statement. A later introduction of a young drummer/dancer, Hofesh Shechter, to the KexevKezev group would also become an instrumentral partnership inside the foundations of the future Barcelonan project.

 

In the fall/winter of 2002-2003, after having moved to Barcelona in the previous season to work with veteran Barcelonan tap and percussion company, Camut Band, and having started to teach in different local dance schools such as El Timbal, Sharon Lavi put together a a young group of local musician-dancers that included himself as well as Laia Molins, Rubén Sánchez, Anna Llombart & Jep Meléndez. Shortly after, Yaron Engler joined them & became the group’s musical director. Together with them, Sharon continued the development of his personal tap language.  Short works such as "Aaj Mera" and the 1st version of "Tukádama" were created. At the same time, Mandy Kol's and Sharon Lavi's emblematic choreography to J.S. Bach's 1st movement of the 2 violin concerto, "El Clásico", was adapted to suite the new Barcelonan troupe. The group called itself TAPEPLAS and rehearsed intensively from a very early stage in the Camut Band studios. Their perfomances for that season included gala participations with the short pieces that were being created and that would serve as a base for works of later years to come.

 

Event	Place	Piece	Month
Barcelona International Tap day Gala	Las Cibeles, Barcelona; Spain	"Aaj Mera"	May 2003
Marató de l'Espectacle	Mercat de les Flors, Barcelona; Spain	"Aaj Mera"	June 2003
Nit de Claqué de Reus	Teatre Bartrina, Reus; Spain	"Aaj Mera", "El Clásico"	July 2003
Tap City - New York City Tap Festival	Duke on 42nd, New York City; USA	"Aaj Mera"	July 2003