Israel's 61st birthday party

CYNTHIA RAMSAY

Israeli world music group Gaya headlines this year's Yom Ha'atzmaut celebration in Vancouver, but, as always, there will be a local community component to the show – and this year's event will also mark Tel Aviv's 100th anniversary.

Israel's 60th birthday took the annual community concert from the Chan Centre for the Performing Arts to the Queen Elizabeth Theatre. The number of people who came to that special celebration, coupled with the fact that the Chan was pretty much selling out every Yom Ha'atzmaut, has encouraged the Jewish Federation of Greater Vancouver, who organizes the event, to move the concert to the Centre in Vancouver for Performing Arts, which seats some 1,800 people versus the Chan's approximately 1,200.

About the new location, event co-chair Stephen Gaerber said he hoped it would accommodate everyone who wants to come because, "We're going to put on a great party." He said, "Gaya's a very contemporary Israeli band. It's not a nostalgia act. This is a band that's still very popular in Israel and performs regularly in Israel. It's a little different than the groups we've brought in the past and we think that it'll be really popular, definitely with the young, and that the older members of the community will love it, too. They're going to play some songs that everybody knows, but they're also going to play some of their big Israeli hits and they've got a great beat. People, we hope, will be really moving to the music."

If'at Eilon-Heiber, director of Federation's Israel and Overseas Affairs Department, agreed. "This year, we had several names [of possible groups], but we had really good reviews about Gaya. Actually, some of the people in Vancouver saw them through Birthright when they went to Israel. [Gaya] performed for Birthright and we were aiming for some younger audience this year and we thought it would be a good fit."

"We try to bring in a group that's going to appeal to the widest possible audience," said Gaerber. "Sometimes that skews to the older, sometimes to the younger, and it depends on who's available. It's been harder and harder to find Israeli groups that are willing to come to North America for Yom Ha'atzmaut. They have a lot of opportunities in Israel.

"This year, we were determined to get Gaya and, actually, they had an opportunity to go to South America and we did what we could to get them to Vancouver because they put on a phenomenal show, from everything we've heard."

Gaerber has been involved with many Jewish organizations and he has co-chaired the community's Yom Ha'atzmaut celebration for years.

"I was determined from the outset not to take money from Federation," said Gaerber about the planning of the celebration. "I didn't want money coming from local organizations or money that would otherwise go to Israel to fund this event. I knew we could do it on a break-even basis by getting sponsors, and that's what we've done. Most of the sponsors from that first year [2002] are still with us, and we've added to that group. Without sponsors, we couldn't put on anything like this."

This year, there are 58 organizations supporting the event.

"I like that it's a true community event, and that's the aim," said Gaerber about why he's involved. "It's an event that we try to make affordable to everybody in the community. Ticket prices are $14, which is far below the actual cost of putting on the show on a per seat basis, but we were determined to make it accessible – and many tickets are also provided through the Tickets to Inclusion program and to students who otherwise couldn't afford to come. We don't want anybody to be turned away because they can't afford it.

"Unfortunately, many events cost a lot of money in the Jewish community and this is one event we want everybody to be able to celebrate – Israel. And that's what it's all about, the celebration of Israel. No matter which group we bring in, really, it's about celebrating Yom Ha'atzmaut, not a concert by a particular group."

Other aspects of the Yom Ha'atzmaut program include some speeches, the Jewish Community Centre of Greater Vancouver's Or Chadash dancers and a display on Tel Aviv, said Eilon-Heiber. As well, a festive Yom H'atzmaut Arvit (nighttime prayers) hosted by congregations Schara Tzedeck and Beth Hamidrash will be held following the concert.

About Israel's 61st birthday and attending the community event, Eilon-Heiber said, "I think that, taking into account the fact that Israel went through a very difficult time this year, it's a way of showing support, especially after the war and now with the negotiation about the soldiers, the captive soldiers – that everything fell down – I think it's a way of showing our support. I think that Yom Ha'atzmaut as a whole is a very important date."

Tickets to the Yom Haatzmaut celebration Tuesday, April 28, 7:30-10 p.m., at the Centre in Vancouver for Performing Arts, 777 Homer St., are available from Ticketmaster at 604-280-4444 or www.ticketmaster.ca. Those unable to afford the admission price can call the Jewish Family Services Agency at 604-257-5151 and ask to be transferred to the Tickets to Inclusion hotline; the recording (in English or Russian) offers information on available tickets.

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