Avi Yona Bueno (Bambi) is a prominent lighting designer which holds a long and prosperous career during which he collaborated with notable artists from various fields; musicians, rock bands, theatre and opera directors, choreographers and dance companies, musical theatre, and visual artists from Israel and all over the globe.
Bambi began his career as a lighting designer for leading Israeli musicians and rock bands performing in Israel and abroad, and continued to working with international musicians at concerts and tours. Alongside, Bambi has established his position as a senior designer on the Israeli theatre, opera, and dance stages, and holds positions as resident lighting designer for several notable institutions.
Throughout his prolific career, Bambi has designed lighting for a wide range of performances and artistic events; from mainstream Mega large productions to experimental/avant guard projects. He is the recipient of dozens prestigious awards including best designer of the Year and other prizes and has gained a highly esteemed reputation among the local and international performing arts communities.
Dance
Bambi is resident Designer of the Bat Sheva Dance Company, working with world renowned choreographer Ohad Naharin for the past 31 years and others like Israel Classical ballet, Yasmin Godder ,Sharon Eyal’s L-E-V ,Inbal Pinto Dance Group, in Israel and abroad with other choreographers.
Amongst the international dance companies with which Bambi has collaborated are Alvin Ailey American Dance Company ,Cedar Lake Dance Company NYC, Paris Opera Ballet, Frankfurt Ballet ,Gothenburg Opera Ballet,Culberg Ballet ,Lyon Opera Ballet, Hubbard Street Dance Chicago, Le Grand Ballet Canadian, Ballet Gulbenkian,Atlanta ballet, San Jose Dance company,National Finish Ballet, Royal Danish ,Royal Swedish ,Leipzig Ballet ,Carte Blanche Norway, Texas Ballett,Compania Nacional de Danza ,Chicago Ballet ,LADP,BC dance company,Maintz Ballet,Stutgart Ballet, Dresden Ballete,viesbaden opera ballet,Oslo Ballett, and many many more.
Opera
Bambi is the resident designer of the Caesarea open Amphiteater Opera festival. He designed lighting for more than 60 operas in Israel and abroad, including Nabucco (Gianfranco de Bosio), Cosi Fan Tutte (Jonathan Miller), Alpha and Omega (David Alden), Madama Butterfly Christopher Alden, Cavalleria Rusticana, Pagliacci (Christopher Alden), A Midsummer Night’s Dream (Brigitte Fassbinder), Don Giovanni (Micah Lewensohn), Tosca and Turandot (Hugo De Ana), Macbeth (Jean Claude Auvray), Carmen ,La Cenerentola (Jean Carlo Del Monaco), The Child Dreams, Othello and The Rise and Fall of the City of Mahagonny (Omri Nitzan), Electra (Rina Yerushalmi), Prometheus: The Poem of Fire (the classical multimedia piece by Scriabin),Mid summers Night’s Dream with Ido Ricklin, Salome with Itai Tiran
Outdoor Mega productions in Masada in the desert ,under Masada Mountain Nabucco With Josseph Roshlitz , Aida (Charles Roubau) Carmen with Gian Carlo del Monaco, , Aida and Turandot for Le CHOREGIES In Orange France with Charles Roubau , and Placido Domingo concerts in Spain.
Bambi has worked in prominent opera houses and festivals throughout the world, such as Nice Opera, Köln Opera, Wiesbaden Opera, Tokyo Opera, Opera South, Paris Opera, Madrid Teatro Municipal, CHOREGIES du ‘Orange, Savonlinna festival and many more.
Theater
As most acclaimed lighting designer in Israel, Bambi has worked with the leading Theaters in the country, designed productions at Habima National Theater, Cameri Theater, Gesher Theater,Beit Lessin theater, Beer Sheena Theater……
Bambi is the resident Designer for the outstanding “Itim Ensemble” with director Rina Yerushalmi winner of international awards ,for the past 25 years
Resident Designer for The Gesher Theater for the past 26 years.
Resident designer for Bat Sheva Dance Company for 31 years
Throughout his career, Bambi has designed over 250 Theater productions, including numerous musicals such as My Fair Lady, Cabaret, Chicago , Beggers Opera ,and the Producers, Currently design Saturday night fever for Cameri Theater ,
Music- Rock concerts
Bambi designed lighting for concerts by singers and bands such as Nina Simone, Janis Ian, Dizzy Gillespie, Classix Nouveaux, Memphis Slim, Louis Armstrong, Al Di Meola, Chick Corea, Aswad, Boomtown Rats with Bob Geldof, Boney M, The Fixx, Imagination, Stevie Wonder, Five, Julio Iglesias in the Pyramids and the 1999 Eurovision song contest(set and Practical’s).
Bambi has lived in London England from 1982 to 1986 ,As part of his work with the Pink Floyd lighting company, Britannia Row Productions, Bambi has Designed worked and toured Europe with various artists including Meat Loaf, Mike Oldfield, Roger Waters, David Gilmour, The Cure, Psychedelic Furs, Live Aid, The Commodores, Classic Nouevou ,Aswad, Thompson Twins, Go West, and many more.
Other Projects and TV
Additional projects: Bambi has designed lighting for TV music programs with rock guest bands like The Old whistle test, The Tube, in Tyn TV, Multimedia projects, indoors and outdoors Events ,out doors Hugh productions televised and broad cast Live ,TV Music Shows like Liela Gov,Yair Lapid with musicians and bands……..
Lately Designed Hugh ZEE TV Mumbai 25th Anniversary production Twice Gali’s TV stars show, in Tel Aviv arena Macabia Jewish sport event opening and closing ceremonies in Jerusalem Stadium Mesuot Independence day Torch event Mount Hertzel Jerusalem 7 Israeli remembrece day ceremonies Rabin squere
Israeli NINJA Warior
11 Bat sheva and doesens other dance companies works by me broadcasted in Mezzo
Also Mazada Opera nabuko broadcasted in Mezzo
Also designed a Review show in Las Vegas(Winner of 4 awards)
Concerts, Multi diceplenery productions……….
like “Lighting the Skies” Humongous outdoor project with 600 7k Xenon’s 42 high power lasers 24 mega slide projectors ,a Show of 11 minutes happened in 7 cities simoultansly for the Israeli Independence Day
Eurovision Song contest 1999 As Set ,And Practical lights ,and lighting installation /fixtures
Lighting installations and architectural lighting. Among these projects are the Art Installations of Sigalit Landau (The Final Solution), Uri Katzenstein (at the Venice Biennale) and Isamu Noguchi’s 4000sqm sculpture garden in Israel Museum.
Lighting Installations for urban Ciets,Museums,and events
Studio
Bambi has a Studio in Tel Aviv for his Art Lighting installations, and inventing Lighting Lanterns, and installations for “Festival of lights” all over the world
also for creating Light sculpturing and installations for Museums.
Awards
Bambi’s contribution to the field of lighting design has garnered him many awards and nominations. he has received 14 Best Lighting Design/Designer of the year awards by the Israeli Theater Academy,Bambi has an Award from “Thea” for Disney theme park for outstanding innovative light art design in the Wailing wall in Jerusalem,
Golden porkypin award
The Tel Aviv prize for Immaculate achievements in the field of the art of lighting,
The Shapira Dance price for creating a new form of lighting for the Dance,
among many other rewards and honours.
Last year Bambi designed Paris opera Ballet lighting a Full evening with Ohad Naharin ,and Paris’s fashion week Gala ,and a duet with 2 best Ballerinas, Oriely Dauphont Artistic Director of Paris opera Ballet ,And Diana Vishneva prima Ballerina of the Marinski Ballet, and, also designs a theatre production in NYC in La Mama