Janice Rebibo

Janice Silverman Rebibo (born 1950) is an Israeli poet who began writing in Hebrew in the mid-1980s while studying at Hebrew College in Boston , the city of her birth. As of 2007, four books of Rebibo's Hebrew poetry have been published in Israel and characterized as a bold blend of two rich poetic traditions. Her poems and short stories have also appeared frequently in literary supplements and journals since she began living in Israel in 1987. Using allusions , humor and eroticism , much of Rebibo's poetry shows how relationships are shaped by language, culture, religion, and politics. Her first Hebrew poems appeared in 1984 in the literary supplement of the Hebrew language newspaper Davar on the recommendation of Israeli poet Haim Gouri . Zara in Zion: Collected Poems 1984-2006 by Janice Rebibo, published in 2007, includes Hebrew poetry from her three earlier books and new work previously published in Israel's literary journals, as well as a chapter entitled Zion by Itself containing poems Rebibo has written in English. Rebibo has translated Hebrew poetry into English, notably for poet Natan Yonatan . Her poems have been set to music and recorded. Hazman Ozel (time is running out) , music by Gidi Koren , was released in 2009 by NMC on a live performance DVD by The Brothers and The Sisters . She has also collaborated with composers on texts and librettos. Here Comes Messiah! , a monodrama for soprano and chamber orchestra by Matti Kovler, libretto by Janice Silverman Rebibo and Matti Kovler, was premiered at Carnegie Hall with soprano, Tehila Nini Goldstein, on May 9, 2009 at the Osvaldo Golijov and Dawn Upshaw Young Artists Concert. She has also edited and translated prose for novelist, Yizhar Smilansky ( S. Yizhar ), Toronto filmmaker Avi Lev , Prof. Moshe Bar-Asher at the Academy of the Hebrew Language , and for other leading Israelis in literary criticism , linguistics , business, and technology. In addition to her literary work, Rebibo directed an innovative school-pairing program to promote tolerance , friendship, and cooperation in Israeli society.¹