Mira Awad

Mira Awad (2009)

Mira Awad ( Arabic ميرا عوض, DMG Mīrā ʿAwaḍ ; Hebrew מירה עווד; * June 11, 1975 in Rameh , Galilee ) is an Arab-Israeli actress and singer .

Life

Mira Awad is the daughter of Anwar Awad, a doctor of Christian-Palestinian origin, and Snejana Awad, a Bulgarian and lecturer for Slavic languages. Mira also has two brothers: Alan and Sinan.

Career

After graduating from school, Awad first studied English literature and fine arts at the University of Haifa , but she dropped out without a degree. At the same time she began studying in Ramat HaSharon at the Rimon School of Jazz and Contemporary Music , where she was the first Arab student. She also attended an acting school.

Awad quickly gained prominence on Israeli television when she appeared in the Sit-Com Arab Laboratory as a Palestinian-Israeli attorney. She had other roles in The Bubble , a film by Eytan Fox , and Plonter , a tragic comedy by Yaeli Ronen . She has also sung the theme songs for the films Forgiveness (by Udi Aloni) and Lemon Tree (by Eran Riklis ). From summer 2002 she was seen as Eliza Doolittle in the theater version of My Fair Lady (by Micha Levinson) at the Tel Aviv Performing Arts Center . She also took part in the Festigal festival for children's songs with her song Take the Journey . In 2005 Awad worked with The Idan Raichel Project on the song Azini for the group's second album ( Mi'ma'amakim ). A year later she was seen as an IDF soldier in a Cameri adaptation of Maya Arad's novel Another Place, a foreign city and in the TV drama Noah's Ark as Ruthi. She took part in the 5th season of Rokdim Im Kokhavim , the Israeli version of Dancing with the Stars . Her dance partner was Dani Yochtman and together they reached the semifinals and then the 4th place.

Eurovision Song Contest

In January 2009 it was announced that Mira and Achinoam Nini (Noa) would represent Israel at the Eurovision Song Contest . The song Israels made it to the final and achieved only 16th place, but the two very different women from the Middle East also gained worldwide attention. Mira Awad was also the first Arab woman to present Israel and it was also the first Israeli contribution with lines of Arabic text. (Mira Awad had already tried to take part in the ESC in 2005 with her song Zman (Zeit), but had only reached 8th place in the national final and was denied international participation.) In the following year, Mira was part of the jury, who selected the song by Harel Skaat for the ESC 2010.

Political Aspects

Mira Awad and Noa came under heavy criticism in the run-up to the ESC 2009. On the one hand, the Israelis criticized Noa for the supposedly "ideal" and "peaceful" portrayal of Israel's situation. On the other hand, Mira laughed in anguish at the Palestinians' allegations that she was being used to cover up the actions of the Israeli government. “The government didn't choose to send me to the Eurovision Song Contest. Noa and I agreed because of our eight-year collaboration, ”she said. Both participants saw the ESC not primarily as a presentation of musical performances, but as an opportunity to convey a message to humanity and were not deterred.

Prior to her appearance with Noa at the ECS in 2009, there was also a petition asking Mira Awad not to participate. It failed and both Noa and Mira - as advocates of peace - were subsequently surprised that such a petition had even existed.

It was not the first time that a member of a minority from Israel was sent to the Eurovision Song Contest. In 1998 Dana International won the ESC with her song Diva , making it the first transsexual to win the title. Eddie Butler - a supporter of the Israeli Black Hebrews - represented Israel in both 1999 and 2006.

Like the majority of Israeli Arabs , Mira Awad identifies herself as a Palestinian by nationality and as an Israeli by citizenship. Although she has received harsh criticism, she also has a lot of fans on both sides. Most of all, the Mira Awad debate has exposed the insecure situation of Israeli Arabs, the Palestinians and their descendants.

Before the national elections in 2009 to Awad has supportive of the Israeli Communist Party, Hadash , expressed.

Awards

On November 19, 2009, Noa and Awad were awarded the Haviva Reik Peace Prize by Givat Haviva to honor their work for peace and for better communication between Arabs and Israelis.

Album: Bahlawan / בהלואן / بهلوان

In June 2009 Mira's album Bahlawan (Arabic: "acrobat" or "tightrope walker") was released. This CD contains her most successful tracks, which she wrote herself (in collaboration with guitarist Amos Ever-Hadani):

• After all the rain / Tayomro-e-shita
• Peace of mind
• A word (with Noa & Gil Dor)
• And I am a forest
• Cloud
• Acrobat / Bahlawan
• Daylight and my heart
• Our relationship / Olakatona
• Stay
• My loneliness / Whidati
• There must be another way (with Noa)

Collaboration with Noa

Chart positions Explanation of the data

Singles

There Must Be Another Way (with Noa )   CH 93 05/31/2009 (1 week)

In addition, a joint CD with Achinoam Nini was released on May 15, 2009, with all the songs sung together:

• There must be another way
• Will you dance with me?
• Faith in the light
• A word
• Second chance
• We Can Work It Out

and solos by both artists:

• Cloud (Mira)
• Nanina (Noa)
• After all the rain (Mira)
• Frozen (Noa)
• Olakatona (Mira)
• Dance of Hope (Noa)

In 2002 she worked with Achinoam Nini on their album Now and with her recorded a new version of the Beatles song We can work it out , which was well received by the general public. In May 2004, Mira and Noa performed together at the We Are the Future concert in Rome and sang Noa's song Shalom Shalom this time as a slightly modified version (Shalom Salam). In the series Dancing with the stars Mira and Noa appeared in the sixth episode together with the song A candle in the window .

Web links

Commons : Mira Awad  - Collection of Images

• Mira Awad in the Internet Movie Database (English)
• Interview with Mira Awad at eurofire.blog.de

Individual evidence

1. ↑ Interview with Mira Awad , Maariv , 22/05/2009
2. ↑ Chart sources: CH