Shimon Braun

Shimon Braun was born in Poland 1938 - survived the Nazi occupation by escaping to Russia where at the age of seven he drew his first memorable painting, a factory that he copied from a Russian newspaper. During his school days, he drew his teachers, friends, and classroom situations. After the war, he returned to Poland. By the time he was in the fifth grade, he passed through five different schools, five different languages in five different countries. In 1949, he immigrated with his family to Israel. Shimon was an officer in the Israeli army. His higher education was in Wingate University in Israel for physical education. He became Israel's Gymnastic Champion in 1956, and was an internationally known dancer and choreographer. Batsheva Rothchild was the managing director and sponsor of the Batsheva Dance Company, and under the Artistic Direction of Martha Graham. He was a soloist dancer in the company and after work he always painted. In Israel, Shimon created the Jazz Plus Dance Company. They starred weekly on Israeli television and were the most popular dance company in Israel. He choreographed the movie "Kazablan" working with Menachim Golan, it was distributed by MGM. In the U.S., "WAVES" was the brainchild of director, Shimon Braun whose choreography blends elements of jazz dance, gymnastics, modern dance, ballet, martial arts, and the exciting energy of street dance. One of the most compelling aspects of this amazing troupe is their ability to evoke enthusiastic involvement from audiences all over the world. In New York, WAVES danced to a standing ovation from the audience and was hailed as a "Phenomenon" by the New York Times. And according to the London Times, WAVES gives the audience the feeling you could almost do it yourself. WAVES have also been described as Witty, Outrageous and Involving. In the words of choreographer Shimon Braun, "Individuality is the hallmark of jazz dance. He is currently working with his life partner, wife and artistic collaborator of more than thirty-five years Meghan Braun on a memoir titled Waves, A Choreographic Journey of survival, and Triumph. December 2020