American entertainer Montana Tucker has released a poignant video featuring survivors of the Oct. 7 Nova music festival massacre in Israel.
The video, part of Tucker's "We Will Dance Again!" initiative, went viral after its release on Tuesday, drawing millions of views worldwide. It features Tucker leading members of Lilach Friedman's Dance Ensemble, who tragically lost four members in the massacre, in an emotional performance at the former festival grounds.
We CAN dance again. Imagine going to a music festival for PEACE&LOVE with your friends. Now,imagine dancing with your friends&all of a sudden TERRORISTS ATTACK,KIDNAP 44 people,& brutally MURDER over 384 people. THIS is the story of the Nova Music Festival massacre- dedicated to… pic.twitter.com/0Peum1buWT
— Montana Tucker (@montanatucker) June 3, 2024
Tucker, a singer, songwriter, actress, and dancer, was invited to Israel by the Combat Antisemitism Movement to create the video aimed at educating the public about the brutal slaughter of 364 people, perpetrated by the Hamas terror group.
"Meeting with survivors was moving, but being on the site for the first time was profoundly impactful," Tucker said. "I want to use my work and social media to share the stories of these beautiful people who lost their lives for no reason."
The dance ensemble, which had won a prestigious international competition in Barcelona with their "NOVA" routine just weeks before the attack, recreated some of the harrowing scenes from that fateful day. Survivors expressed the significance of returning through dance.
"It's incredibly brave of you to come back here and participate in this healing project. This is a powerful response to those who wanted to break you," Tucker told them.
Natalie Sanandaji, a Nova survivor now working with CAM, said "Since Oct. 7, I have been telling the story of what happened here. I'm one of the lucky ones to give a voice to those whose voices are silent."
The performance was the inaugural project of the "We Will Dance Again!" initiative, a partnership between Tucker, CAM, the Lilach Friedman Dance Ensemble, and "Lev Batuach" (A Safe Heart), an organization providing trauma treatment to thousands of Nova survivors.
"This performative dance is important to some survivors' healing process," said Lev Batuach CEO Efrat Aton. "The trauma is still active and rehabilitation is long. As long as the abductees have not returned, real recovery cannot begin."
Sacha Roytman, CEO of CAM, emphasized the importance of ensuring the massacre is never forgotten through creative mediums like dance. "Partygoers simply came to dance, so dance is a fitting way to keep their memory alive and not be bowed by submission," he said.
