Vitebsk hosts international festival of modern choreography

VITEBSK, 19 November (BelTA) – The 22nd International Festival of Modern Choreography (IFMC) started in Vitebsk on 18 November. According to the modern dance experts, IFMC is one of the most prestigious dance festivals in the CIS. Apart from the performances of famous choreographic groups it includes a contest program. Traditionally, the international contest alternates with the national one. Nine choreographic groups from Minsk, Grodno and Vitebsk are invited to take part in the contest. The jury of the contest chaired by Valentin Elizaryev, the people’s artist of the USSR and Belarus, choreographer, professor of the Academy of Music of Belarus, includes famous choreographers such as Dittmar Seifert, Honorary Chairman of the UNESCO International Dance Council (CID), dean of the directing faculty of Berlin Drama and Dance University, winner of the Golden Mask National Theatre Award of Russia, and Sergei Smirnov, art director of Ekstsentrik Ballet dance group. Assisting the jury will be members of the expert council headed by Larisa Barykina, ballet critic, music theatre analyst, member of the jury of Golden Mask National Theatre Award of Russia. The international jury will estimate the dancers in five nominations: Best Staging, Performing Skill, Artistic Skill, Traditions and Innovation, Postscript. The winner of Postscript nomination will be decided by the jury jointly with the members of the expert council. Attending the festival will be Ulvi Azizov (the Latvian National Opera), the Ballet of Evgeny Panphilov from Perm (Russia), Ekstsentrik Ballet of Sergey Smirnov and dancers and dance bands from Poland, Ukraine and Estonia. The program of the forum includes master classes, displays of films. Organizers of the festival aim at promoting Belarusian modern choreography. They have arranged meetings of the Belarusian dance teams with the representatives of Artbale Polish Association of the Promotion of Cultural Education and Art, Dusseldorf International Dance Fair, the Lithuanian Centre for Information and Modern Dance. Closing of the festival will be held on 21 November. The International Festival of Modern Choreography in Vitebsk held since 1987 was founded by the Vitebsk oblast executive committee, the Vitebsk town executive committee, the Culture Ministry, the National Academic Big Theatre of Opera and Ballet. The organizer of the festival is Vitebsk Culture Centre.

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