This year, a number of exciting and special projects have been added to the Balabasta program:
Can't live with or without you – Portraits in motion of the market people: Highly respected director and artist, Bizi Goldberg, has been a regular feature in the Machane Yehuda market for months. Armed with a camera and some good intentions, he has wandered the alleyways getting to know the place and its occupants. He also created and ran a number of workshops for local residents and merchants.
In an ad-hoc studio that was constructed in the market along with photographer Gilad Baram, Goldberg will seat the veteran market merchants on a wooden chair, point a camera at them and ask questions. Some of questions will be historical in nature, others contemporary, but all will be genuine questions and the answers will be recorded.
The result will be a series of live portraits in which the merchants and market employees at first appear to be frozen. The illusion will soon be shattered, however, as small detectable movements become apparent such as smiling, opening of the eyes and the lowering of their head, all of which slowly reveal the individual charm of the subjects. Right next to them, the answers to the questions they gave during the filming will appear on screen.
The sum of these different artistic elements will be a fascinating mix created, in black and white which takes the vendors away from their market stalls and places them firmly in the world of artistic creativity.
Blooming balconies: A concealed courtyard that is used for parking and unloading merchandise will be converted into a beautiful communal garden surrounded by fragrant balconies. Together with the residents who live above the courtyard, the Balabasta team will fill dozens of garbage cans with earth, compost and multi-colored plants. The team will help the residents with the entire renovation process and at the end go up to the apartments themselves to hang plants from the balconies. In one simple cooperative action, an abandoned space will be turned into a floral paradise.
Giant puppets: Following the hugely successful reception the giant puppets received last year, Balabasta is again working with artist Adam Yachin to re-create this larger than life experience. Balconies and gardens will be filled with colorful, giant birds as part of a progressive art project that will develop with each weekly event. According to Yachin, for whom this is particularly significant as he has been searching for birds in the market for years, the market will be a celebration of art and color.
The market rooftop: Following the excitement generated by the rooftop concerts at last year's Balabasta which forced passers-by to stop, look up and spend at least some time watching a performance above, we will re-create this experience with a great rooftop line-up.
In addition, graduates of the School of Visual Theatre, as well as other additional local artists, will take over the roofs and balconies above the market to create a breathtaking visual experience with massive artistic pieces; there will be two English-language walking tours at each Balabasta event, and all this against the backdrop of Adam Yachin's giant birds—in short, a heavenly Jerusalem!
English-langauge walking tours
Come tour with Shuki in the shuk!
An experiential tour for children in and around the market stalls.
5:30pm
6:30pm
Warding off the "evil eye!"
A tour through the market alleyways.
6:00pm
8:00pm
Meeting point for all tours is at the main entrance to the market on Agrippas and Machane Yehuda Streets. Look for signs for the tour!
