Israeli Folk Dance
in Portland, Oregon

Recreational Israeli dance is a cultural phenomenon in Israel. This is the now of Israel. New Israeli dances are being choreographed to new music all the time. If you take a class with us, you will be learning older Israeli folk dances because they are often easier to learn than the new dances. Israelis also dance these older dances in Israeli dance sessions today, mixed in with the current dances. Once you learn a few basic steps, you will be ready to begin learning newer dances with a newer beat.

Yes, it goes by both names. In the U.S. people often think of folk dancing as a dance done in traditional costumes to traditional music performed on a stage at a cultural heritage festival. That's not what we do. First off, Israeli folk dance sessions are social dancing--not performances. And secondly, new Israeli folk dances are being created all the time to new Israeli music. We try to keep up with what's popular in Israel. 

Note: If you are referring to dancing done in Israel, then "Israeli dance" is not specific enough to mean this type of dancing, which is called Rikudiyam (or Rikudiyah) in Israel.