Svetlov: The contemporary choreography festival is a significant event in the country's cultural calendar
The Vitebsk Festival of Modern Choreography is one of the most significant events in the cultural calendar of our country. This was stated today in Vitebsk at the grand opening of the XXVIII International Festival of Modern Choreography (IFMC) by the Minister of Culture of Belarus, Boris Svetlov.
"This festival is one of the most significant events in the cultural calendar of our country," stated the minister. He drew a parallel with another prominent Vitebsk event, "Slavianski Bazaar": "The same people are behind them – from the leadership of the regional executive committee, which decides whether or not a particular event will take place, to the inspirers, and down to those who implement and support it all."
In his welcoming address, the minister particularly noted the role of the Vitebsk audience. "Thanks to your tastes and artistic preferences, your attitude towards the events that fill our northern cultural capital, these festivals thrive. And I want to express my confidence that we will do everything possible to ensure that events like this celebration live on for many years to come," emphasized Boris Svetlov, opening the festival.
The festival will run until November 22. The forum plans to showcase performances by leading dance companies from Mexico, Switzerland, Belarus, Russia, Sweden, Poland, Italy, Spain, and the USA, with several premieres expected among them. The forum's events will take place at two venues in Vitebsk (Vitebsk Concert Hall and the Yanka Kupala National Academic Drama Theatre), as well as in Minsk on the stage of the National Academic Grand Opera and Ballet Theatre.
The festival program includes practical and theoretical master classes for dancers and choreographers, open meetings of the international jury, video lectures, and press conferences. The main event of this year's festival is the Belarusian contemporary choreography competition. By the way, this year's festival is held under the sign of the 60th anniversary of the birth of the Russian choreographer, dancer, cultural figure, and founder of the Perm Theater "Ballet of Evgeny Panfilov". The photo exhibitions "Panfilov+Ballet+Ballets" have already opened, with works presented by photojournalist Vladimir Lupovsky (Moscow), Anna Moiseuk (Minsk), and Igor Gusakov (Vitebsk). The painting exhibition "Contemplation of Space" by Viktor Shilko (Vitebsk abstract artist) is also presented. The founders of the festival are the Ministry of Culture of Belarus, the Vitebsk Regional Executive Committee and City Executive Committee, the National Academic Grand Opera and Ballet Theatre, and the organizer is the Vitebsk Cultural Center.
Alena Tikhonova, BELTA.