Lea Avraham

Lea Avraham was born 1945 in Yemen.

She immigrated to Israel with her family in 1949 and settled in Kadima. During her military service, she studied dance with sisters Shoshana and Yehudit Orenstein. In 1961, after her discharge, she joined Inbal Dance Theater as a soloist and choreographer.
In 1975 she left Inbal and joined Batsheva as a dancer. Her dances with the company included Album Leaves, The Green Table, Trek (1975); The Garden of Kali, Rooms (1977); Dreams, Scenes from the Music of Charles Ives (1978); Daughters of Shiloh, Metaphors (1979); Rhapsody, Images (1980).
In 1980, after leaving Batsheva, Avraham returned to Inbal as assistant director and resident choreographer. The dances she created for Inbal include Shabbat Shalom, Wild Rose, Psalm for David, and The Song of Deborah. She remained in this position until 1982, when she moved to the US for a year, supported by a US government scholarship, to teach at the University of Minnesota.
In 1983 Avraham returned to Israel and in 1985 she established the first educational dance program in Israel, at Alon High School in Ramat Hasharon, which she headed until 2012. At the same time she was active as a theater actress and choreographer throughout the 1980s and ‘90s, including in the Cameri Theater, Habima, and Beersheba Theater.
Avraham is still active in Yemenite dance and song fields, and in 1995 she released a record album called Oasis. She continues to create, teach and perform in Yemenite song and dance productions.