Ukrainian Hopak a favorite in repertoire of BYU folk dance ensemble

by Andrew Nynka

PROVO, Utah - The Brigham Young University International Folk Dance Ensemble is a cultural dance troupe composed of university students whose dances have been included in the Winter Olympic's evening medal ceremonies, presentations at the athletes' village, as well as other Olympic-related venues and activities.

But what makes this cultural dance troupe interesting, according to its artistic director and producer, Edwin G. Austin Jr., is the exceptionally high number of requests the group gets to perform its Ukrainian dances - specifically the Hopak, the national dance of Ukraine, which highlights dancers' ability as they perform flamboyant physical and artistic feats in a type of "show-off" dancing style.

The group also held performances at the Light of the World cultural festival sponsored by the Church of the Latter-Day Saints in Salt Lake City. According to the Mormon Church, the festival was intended to celebrate the different cultures of the Winter Games and, therefore, the group was selected to perform its Ukrainian pieces.

Along with the Hopak, the group also performed the "Poltavskyi Duet," described as "a humorous character dance illustrating the frustrations and antics of a taller woman dancing with an unlikely and possibly unlucky partner."

The ensemble showcased more than a dozen other cultures, including those of Eastern and Western Europe, the Middle East, Asia and North America. Mr. Austin explained: "Audiences will be very familiar with some of the dance styles presented in the program. The Riverdance style of Irish hardshoe, our own American clogging, and Kozak dancing from Ukraine are all perennial favorites."

"We don't just do one kind of dancing, so we have to learn the subtleties of each country," said Sarah Bateman, a recent BYU graduate from Alameda, Calif., and one of the team members that has been doing BYU folk dance for four years.

In order to become more familiar with these subtleties, the ensemble also traveled to Luhansk, Ukraine, in order to become better acquainted with the customs of Ukrainian dance as well as participate in the Luhansk international dance festival.

A last-minute change

The group was set to perform the Hopak at the opening ceremonies of the 19th Winter Games but their performance was changed, eliminating the Hopak at the last minute.

Colleen West, full-time faculty member and costume research and design coordinator for the troupe, explained that the choreography of the opening ceremonies was constantly evolving.

According to Ms. West, organizers had originally intended to highlight Irish and Ukrainian folk dances at the opening ceremonies but later told her that they decided to use the dance ensemble to highlight a western American motif.

The ensemble, established with only four couples more than 35 years ago, has taken part in numerous world folk dance festivals and, according to Mr. Austin, was excited to share its energy and talents at many different Olympic venues.

The troupe, which currently boasts over 40 musicians, singers and dancers, has been touring abroad since 1964. The past four years alone have seen the group in Poland, the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Germany, Switzerland, France, Vietnam, Indonesia, Thailand, China, Australia, Tasmania, New Zealand, the United Kingdom, North America and Ukraine.

Ukrainian program is special

"There's something special about the Ukrainian part of the program," said Ms. West. "People specifically wait for the Ukrainian portion of the presentation and you can see the looks on their faces during the performance - they love the energy and acrobatics of it."

Founded in 1956 by Prof. Mary B. Jansen of BYU, who also brought the Hopak to BYU, the folk dance program, according to school representatives, is currently the largest and most versatile program of its kind in the United States.

Members of the International Folk Dance Ensemble are chosen by audition from among the most skilled performers in a BYU dance program involving more than 200 students. The group is part of the Department of Dance of the College of Health and Human Performance, and members must be full-time students with a grade point average of 3.0 or higher.

Although some of the dancers are dance majors, many major in political science, international finance, linguistics, zoology, health science, law, accounting and many other fields.

Ms. West, who grew up in Edmonton and Calgary, traveled to Ukraine in order to research the costumes, as well as the history and culture of the various Ukrainian dances the group performs.

Her family, the Waschuks, originally emigrated from Datyn, northwest of Kovel in Volyn, western Ukraine, in the early 1900s.

Ms. West's research interests are ethnic costume design; Ukrainian dance, music and costumes; and history of choreography of rhythm tap dance. Along with choreographing the Hopak, the "Poltavskyi Duet" and the "Offering of Bread and Salt," Ms. West designed Poltava-region Hopak costumes for the male and female dancers of the ensemble. She received a research grant from the college to conduct research on culture, costumes and dance history during a folk arts tour of Ukraine in August 2000.

Copyright © The Ukrainian Weekly, February 24, 2002, No. 8, Vol. LXX

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