Turkish Delight

Arkan Dance Company places third in international competition

By Kalyna Klymkiw

At the end of June, 28 dancers of the Arkan Dance Company of Toronto, along with 2 artistic directors, 1 wardrobe director, and 2 chaperones, left Pearson International Airport. They were headed for Istanbul, Turkey to participate in the 7th Bykekmece International Culture and Art Festival, which took place from July 1-8.

At rehearsals over several months, Arkan’s Artistic Director Danovia Stechishin Stefura made sure we trained our bodies for the hot climate and perfected our repertoire–for the festival in Turkey was not just a performance, but also a competition. 

 Arkan consists of 40 elite dancers from Toronto’s Ukrainian Academy of Dance. As a touring company, Arkan has performed in various locations in North America and Ukraine as well as in Taiwan, Brazil and China. 

 The festival in Turkey was in Bykekmece , a small city just outside of Istanbul.  Surrounded by a lake and the Sea of Marmara, Bykekmece is breathtaking.  The festival grounds were located right on the seashore, alongside a boardwalk where many shops, restaurants, and clubs stretched along the coast.

 The friendly Turkish festival volunteers and the dancers from the various countries taking part in the festival, including Algeria, Croatia, the Czech Republic, Greece, Latvia, Mexico, Senegal, Serbia, and Russia, were all there to have a good time, and there were many opportunities for the dancers to interact.  Nearly every night of the festival, there was an organized “Country Night” when two or three of the dance groups presented casual half-hour performances.  Then, they would teach the steps from their dances to the dancers from other countries. Ukrayna, as the Turkish people called Arkan, performed on the first country night with Algeria and Croatia.  These evenings were educational and memorable. 

The festival officially began with a series of three parades, over a three-day period. The first was held in Istanbul, where, parading along the cobble-stoned streets, the dancers were greeted by onlookers with warm applause.  We entertained the crowd by performing excerpts from our Hutzul Suite.  At the end of the parade, Arkan, accompanied by their talented musicians, Alfresko, from Ukraine, performed I za hir, which was very well received by the audience.

The rest of the performances were at the festival grounds.  Arkan presented choreographed works by Danovia Stechishin Stefura as well as Rafayil Malynovsky, a National Artist of Ukraine. The repertoire included a Polissian and Hutzul Suite, a girls’ Transcarpathian dance, a boy’s character dance, a fast-paced Bukovynian number, a kozachok known as Pleskatch, and, of course, the traditional Hopak.  Most of Arkan’s costumes were from Ukraine, found by Danovia when she travelled through the country studying Ukrainian folk dance and traditions. 

The festival competition was based on a number of criteria.  Dancers were judged on their performances, costumes, interaction with dancers from other countries, and day-to-day behaviour, monitored by the Turkish organizers.  Arkan was considered one of the friendliest group and among the most entertaining performers.

At the end of the festival we were rewarded with bronze medals, placing third in the competition.  First prize went to the Czech Republic; second prize went to Algeria. 

The festival in Bykekmece was notable in many aspects.  Accommodation, food, and transportation were well provided.  Trips were organized into Istanbul for us to see tourist attractions such as, Hagia Sofia, Blue Mosque, Dolmabahe Palace, Miniaturk and the Grand Bazaar. There was a also a boat cruise on the Bosphorus and a concert by the Eurovision award-winning singer, Sertab Erener.  We were even able to take in a few belly-dancing lessons from our interpreter, Orun, which was a real treat.

The people of Turkey welcomed us warmly and did everything they could to make our tour to Turkey a memorable one.  By the end, many new friendships developed. 

For more information about the Arkan Dance Company or The Ukrainian Academy of Dance, visit ther web-
site at www.arkandancecompany.com, email: stefura@sympatico.ca or call call (416) 255-8577.

Kalyna Klymkiw is a York University student and a member of the Arkan Dance Company of Toronto.