ZORACHKA

Edition 2019
The folk song and dance ensemble ZORACHKA comes from Minsk, the capital city of Belarus. It was founded at the National Center for Children and Youth Creativity in 1963. It is the first and unique Belarusian children and youth ensemble that consists of 3 sections: vocal, choreographic and orchestral, which perform both together and separately. The ensemble studies and updates traditions of Belarusian song and dance as well as musical creativity. It brings back to life ancient rites, customs and games. The traditional Belarusian costumes used by the ensemble members come from different regions of the country and have been created by leading artists. The musical instruments played by the ensemble’s orchestra include accordions, pipes, violins, dulcimers, straws, lyres many others. The ensemble tours a lot not only in Belarus, but also in Ukraine, Moldova, Latvia, Poland, the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Germany, the Netherlands, Belgium, Cuba, France, Italy and Spain, where it has won general recognition. Wherever ZORACHKA goes, it brings a difference in someone’s life, creates a feeling of a holiday of youth and beauty.

The Festival audience will have a chance to watch a programme entitled Belaruskaya Skarbonka, which will be composed of children’s games and dances such as kryzhachok (with pairs dancing in the shape of a cross), podsevanka (a dance performed in autumn, the subject being sifting flour from a new crop of grain and baking a pie), tolkachiki (a dance showing grain flailing), mitus (a dance whose meaning comes from the word ‘mitusitsya’), zayats (a playful dance with jumping over sticks), polka, lyavonikha, vykruntasy, troyak.

Ala Novitskaya is the ensemble leader, Tatsyana Tsarik is the choreographer, and Siarhei Shchuryk leads the musical band, which will be playing an accordion, a violin, a drum and a dulcimer.