Author: zaraAn

Country: Republic of Kalmykia, Russian Federation

Director: Nadbitov Vladimir Petrovich

 Art Director and founder: Nadbitov Piotr Timofeevich

The State Dance Theatre of Kalmykia “Oiraty” has become a popular and beloved creative collective in a short time.

Petr Nadbitov is the creator and director of “Oiraty”.

In the post-Siberian history of Kalmykia, when the problems of culture were pushed into the background, the group did not experience very many events that could be attributed to the phenomena of art.

The “Oiraty” Dance Theatre was founded in January 1990 as an independent and professional creative team that brought together artists from various ensembles, including amateur art groups, and graduates of choreographic schools.

The repertoire of the dance theatre “Oiraty” is a true gem of dance art. In addition to the classic collection, which includes such popular dances as “Chicherdyk”, “Ishkimdyk”, “Derbetovsky Tavshur”, and “Damzhg”, the concert program also includes new performances. These differ not only in their original, graphically magnificent interpretation, but also in an experimental approach which accomplishes an understanding of the aesthetics of Kalmyk dance in general.

Participation: in the virtual competition of the festival

Country: Uzbekistan

Director / Leader: Muborak Mirzaeva

The “Sabo” National Dance Ensemble, led by Muborak Mirzaeva, was established in September 2005 in Tashkent, Republic of Uzbekistan. The creative team of the National Dance Ensemble “Sabo” consists of 35 people. In March 2006 its first choreographed show was performed on the stage of the State Academic Bolshoy Theatre. Within the period of its creative activity “Sabo” has produced 24 solid programs. The duration of each program is approximately 2 hours.

Dancers of the National Dance Ensemble “Sabo” have visited with tours to USA, England, France, Belgium, Netherlands, Germany, Switzerland, Spain, Italy, Greece, Taiwan, Thailand, Korea, China, Turkey, Japan, and also almost all ‘Commonwealth of Independent States’ (CIS).

Participation: in the virtual competition of the festival

Country: Hungary

Director / Leader: Miklós Teszáry

The Bartok Folk Dance Ensemble was set up in 1958. Its music and dance repertoire includes the whole, entire folklore tradition of the Carpathian basin. It performs and introduces the different Hungarian and ethnic dances, and dance customs of each ethnological region.

Its costume collection is composed of ‘made-to-measure’ and original pieces. The performances of the group are always accompanied by live music.

The ensemble takes part in Hungarian professional programmes and presentations regularly. Its members also try to get to know the dance traditions that can still be found and to keep them up in the life of their own community. The group organises a ‘dance-house’ weekly, where it introduces and teaches these traditions to all those interested.

Awards:

1. Second prize at the Hungarian National Choreographer Competition 2019
2. Outstanding Level Award Ensemble in Hungary, 2019

Media channels:

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Nemzetk%C3%B6zi-N%C3%A9pm%C5%B1v%C3%A9szeti-Sz%C3%B6vets%C3%A9g-IOV-Magyarorsz%C3%A1gi-Tagozata-876814952664197

Participation: in the solo/couple competition of the festival

Country: Poland

Director: Zbigniew Romanowicz / Tomasz Chmurski

“Jawor”, of the University of Life Sciences in Lublin, was founded in 1960. For the first 50 years of its activity, the Ensemble has developed four dancing groups and two musical bands, extended its repertoire, given concerts, and achieved multiple successes.

For more than half a century of its activity, the Ensemble has represented Polish folklore, appearing in over 5000 live concerts, making more than 125 trips abroad, and visiting over 60 countries on all continents.

Awards:

1.   2nd place at “Cheonan World Dance Festival 2015” in South Korea, 1st prize for the most beautiful costume
2.   1st place at International Folklore Festival “Carpati 2017” at Pitesti in Romania
3.   1st place at Intercultural Folklore Festival “Zagłębie i Sąsiedzi” in Dąbrowa Górnicza
4.   Audience award at International Folklore Festival “Flower of The Sun” at Siaulai at Lithuania
5.   Silver Medal “For Merit to Culture – Gloria Artis” (2010)

Media channels:

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/zpit.jawor

Instagram: @zpitjawor

Website: https://up.lublin.pl/edukacja/student/dzialalnosc-studencka/jawor

Participation: in the solo/couple and the virtual competition of the festival.

Country: Kabardino-Balkarian Republic Russian Federation

Director: ENEEV Magomet Huseevich

Chief Balletmaster: GOROEV Zhambulat Khakimovich

The State Folklore and Ethnographic Dance Ensemble “Balkaria” was founded in 1988. Based on the achievements of national choreography, the ensemble has created a true national folk art of the Karachais and Balkars.

The ensemble collective, soon after its creation, became widely known in Kabardino-Balkaria and began to travel with concerts to other republics, territories and regions of the Soviet Union. In recent years, the ensemble has toured in the North Caucasian republics and the Transcaucasus.

The ensemble not only perceives folk material, it improves it, polishes it, and works it out, creating works that reflect the new that is born in the life of peoples of different nationalities in the language of choreographic images.

The ensemble has successfully toured all over the Russian Federation, Japan, Turkey, Kazakhstan, Portugal, Spain, France, Swiss, Belgium, and Italy.

Media channels:

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ensemble_balkaria

Participation: in the virtual competition of the festival

Country: Guam (US)

Director: Vincent Reyes

Inetnon Gef Pa’go is an award winning program under the Guam Department of Education, Historic Inalahan Foundation, the Guam Visitors Bureau, and the private business community, whose mission it is to promote awareness and pride in Chamorro heritage through performance arts.

Rabon and his successive students, as well as others indirectly influenced by his work, have choreographed many other dances and written many other songs for dances. He and his followers have developed dances around three historical periods: Ancient Period, Spanish Colonial Period, and Contemporary Period.

The group performed in New Zealand, Australia, Hawaii, Washington D.C., Japan, Korea, Macau, France, Belgium, Bulgaria, Romania, Netherlands, Italy, Turkey , Saipan, American Samoa, Taiwan, Fiji, Philippines, Beijing, CNMI, Palau.

Media channels:

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/inetnongefpagopage

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/inetnongefpago

Participation: in the virtual competition of the festival

Country: Rwanda

Director/Art Director: Landry Munyaneza

Director of international affairs: Thamar Niwemukiza

The INYAMIBWA CULTURAL TROUPE artists, are determined to use their talents in music, dance, drama, and other related art to educate, entertain, and inform the need to maintain and preserve their culture and morals in simpler and appreciative cultural expressions, oral, and visual traditions.

Inyamibwa Cultural Troupe, referred to as ICT, is a group of performing artists based in Kigali, Rwanda and is built on gender balance. ICT was founded on 14th of July, 1998 in Rwanda at University of Rwanda, Huye Campus. This group was formed after the creation of an association of students that had survived the tragedy that took place in the country in 1994, where a million innocent people were massacred (Genocide 1994). The aim of this group was to preserve the love, unity, and dignity that existed once in the country and re-boost the hope in those survivors that have lost all their relatives.

The group is large and is composed of 105 members from all regions of the country, since the majority are university students and few are alumni from the group who once took part when they were still in school.

Media channels:

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/InyamibwaKigali0208Huye04082013

Participation: in the virtual competition of the festival

Country: Guadeloupe French

Director: Jocelyn Martial

Artistic Director: Sandra Mathias

The group has existed since 1978. It represents the Guadeloupe’s heritage through its dance and its music, which is the GWOKA. It uses drums for the sonority with which they have 7 well-defined rhythms. Each rhythm has a particular meaning that they translate through dance (emotions, sensations, vibrations, communications).

Awards:

1. Jul/2003 Paris Festival
2. Feb/2019 Encuentro mondial Peru’s festival
3. 2019 Gwoka’s Festival GUADELOUPE
4. Nov/2020 Virtual festival CIOFF Maroccо
5. Dec/2020 Virtual festival Argentine

Media channels:

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/espace.ajsf

Instagram: espace Ajsf

Participation: in the virtual competition of the festival

Country: Armenia

Director: Albert Kiziryan

The national dance ensemble ‘Geghard’, winner of numerous awards at international festivals, was created in the Republic of Armenia in 1981. The founder and invariable art director of the ensemble since then has been Albert Kiziryan, the people’s artist of the Republic of Armenia.

All dances are performed with highly professional skill, and the choreography of each dance expresses the true national colourings of its time, the national style and spirit, and the true face of Armenian dances.

The specialists, in this respect, are stating that the talented dancers and musicians of the group are managing to transfer to the contemporary audience ‘the three thousand year old folklore dancing art of Armenia’.

The diligent creative work, the skills honed to perfection, the constant search of new forms of expression, and their colourful reproduction have brought to the ensemble deserved fame in France, Syria, Iraq, Jordan, Lebanon, Bulgaria, Romania, Poland, Belgium, Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia, Georgia, Russia – Moscow, Saint-Peterburg, Greece, Turkey, Germany, Italy, Algeria, Spain, etc.

Media channels:

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Armenian-Folk-Dance-Ensemble-Geghard-118986414838852

Participation: in the virtual competition of the festival

Country: India

Director: Rakesh Prajapati, Shreya Shah

OmShiv Performing Arts Trust was established in 2018. The Academy’s main purpose is to spread Indian culture to the whole world through the wonderful language of dance. It belongs to Gujarat, India. India, the land of unity in diversity.

The group have participated in various dance competitions at the National and International levels. It also conducts training sessions for poor and differently-abled children which is necessary for the holistic growth of the society.

The dance forms like Hudo, Rass, Garba, Panihari, Tipani, Sudpa, Chirmi, Kalbeliya, Tera taal, Haryanvi, Bhangda, Lavni, and Bihu are just a few of their specialties.

Awards:

1. Winner of AIAA (All India Artist Association) in 2018
2. Winner in Mohan’s Carnival, India – February 2020
3. Winner of Mohan’s Carnival, India- February 2019
4. Runner-up of AIAA Dance and Drama Competition 2019
5. Winner of virtual Festival at Bailando Tulpec, Mexico 2020

Media channels:

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Omshiv-performing-arts-trust-107489781203503

Instagram: https://instagram.com/shreya_omshiv

Website: https://www.omshivperformingarts.co.in/om-shiv

Participation: in the virtual competition of the festival