You are welcome in Square Dance Clubs in Russia

Traudel Walz, Deutsch Russische SD Freunde e.V.

We are very proud to announce many activities in all four Russian square dance clubs in 2011. First of all we have got the dates by president of “Onega Wave Dancers” Tatiana Antonova. Her club in Petrosavods at Onega Lake/Karelia near the UNESCO heritage island Kishi was the very first square dance club in Russia, founded in 2004. The members are very busy and eager to offer special programs throughout the whole year. After the graduation in February, an “open house square dance party” is organized every year at world women’s day on March 8th. In Russia this day is a very popular event. After this, the Czech caller Tomas Machalik, his nick name is “Doug”, will visit the club in Petrosavodsk for the second time on the end of March. A special clubnight will be held on April; 29th, the international dance day. The anniversary celebration will happen in October and the best of all will be the favourite Christmas party in December before New Year. The young callers Alexander and Fedor are dedicated to do their job well and a beginner caller Svetlana as well. Some of the members will travel to a special dance in Vantaa near Helsinki on May, 7th. If anybody from Germany could come too, that would be great.

The members of the square dance club in St. Peterburg, the “Palace Square Dancers”, are looking forward to the visit of Tomas, too. They know him well, because of his trip two years ago.

Afterwards the “Palace Dancers” will organize a caller school again by Kenny Reese on April 7th/10th. The highlight in St. Peterburg will be the celebration of 5 years anniversary on September 10th in 2011. Ken Ritucci USA will be the guestcaller and he will offer a callerschool the week before. Sure, Svetlana Stern, caller and president, will manage the organization together with her board and the active members as usual very well. Two square dance groups from Germany, about 50 people, will visit the beautiful town and the special dance in September.

“Sunday Smiling Dancers” will also enjoy the special clubnight by caller “Doug”, who will start his travel on March, 29th in the 1000 year old town Pkov in North-West Russia. The square dancers in Pskov have got a new dancing hall and the beloved caller Katja Erschova is back on stage. Club caller Elena Nazarova will visit the callerschool by Kenny Reese together with some interested people in April. Pskov isn’t far away, only about 300 km east of Riga/Latvia. If you will visit Pskov you will feel a very special hospitality – as everywhere in Russia. In the surrounding of the town you will become a little bit acquainted with the modest life, even nowadays, in the country and sure, you will visit the famous monastery Petschory. You can fly to Riga and then ride by bus or train to Pskov. You are invited heartily as well as in the other clubs too.

Last but not least: the youngest club in Murmansk is far away.

The most northern square dance club all over the world - beyond the polar circle, at the Kola Peninsula - will celebrate the 5th anniversary in 2012. For the celebration in summertime, at the “polarday”, when the sun will shine night and day, the “Polarlight Dancers” have invited already guestcaller Uli Schingen. Uli is well known in Russia by several visits to Pskov, to St. Peterburg and to Petrosavodsk. German Russian SD Friends will organize a travel to this event on May, 27th in 2012/Whitsun. If you are interested, take a note of this date. President and caller Olga Kazakova is keeping contact to Germany by her trips to jamborees whenever she can. Probably Olga will help Eberhard translating and explain in Russian language at the square dance seminar in Kaliningrad in June 2011. So she’s the first Russian caller assisting Eberhard and his German square dance crew.

You will find the Russian clubs in the Directory of EAASDC member clubs.

Information about the nonprofit club DRSDF e.V. : www.deutsch-russische-square-dancefreunde.de