Tēmu izklāsts

  • Lad’s dances from Romania

    Lad’s dances from Romania

    Photo credit: Kincsásó Néptánccsoport (Mezőbergenye)

    Story framework:

    The International Kalotaszeg Folk Music and Dance Festival is organized every year in the first week of August. In the year 2018 it was the 28th edition of the festival. The event attracts young people from all over Europe and even from overseas – the US and Canada. Participants can learn different types of folk dances and they can also learn to play a traditional instrument if they would like to. The program also includes excursions, a lad’s (young men’s) dance contest and a folk song contest.

    Mike is from the US, he is 19, and he has decided to travel around Europe before he goes to university. He was visiting Cluj-Napoca in Romania, where he met a group of young men of his age in a local pub. They invited him to the festival in Sâncraiu (Kalotaszentkirály) and, as he likes music and dancing, he accepted the invitation without thinking. During the conversation in the pub it turned out that the young men Mike has met are professional dancers and they are going to the festival to take part in a competition of young men’s dances, called lad’s dance.


  • Finding out more:

    Mike became more and more interested in the event so he started to look for some more information about folk dance festivals, camps and the lad’s dance contest his new friends were talking about.


  • Types of lad’s dances:

    Mike and his new friends arrived at Sâncraiu (Kalotaszentkirály). Young groups of dancers had already started rehearsing and practicing. Mike was fascinated by all the dances and colourful folk costumes he saw. The lad’s dance contest his friends had been practicing for took place on the last day of the festival. There were 12 different groups of men prepared to compete with each other on the stage. 

  • The winning combination of arts and science:

    The lad’s dance contest was won by Mike’s new friends – the young people he met in Cluj-Napoca. They won the competition because of the originality of their dance. They combined dance with informatics, their choreography was based on basic sorting algorithms. This combination of arts and science surely convinced the committee. Do they convince you as well? Watch the young people dancing and listen to the aims of the project in which these researchers learnt how folk dance can help them understand some basic programming.

  • Share with the world – blogging:

    Mike was very proud of his new friends and he enjoyed his stay at the festival. He had a good time and decided to share his new experiences with his friends back home by writing a blog post. Mike started blogging when he set off on his journey around Europe. Romania is the 10th country he has visited so far.


  • Best international folk festivals:

    When Mike has finished writing his blog entry about his experiences at the International Kalotaszeg Folk Music and Dance Festival, he decided that he should include some useful links related to other similar festivals in case his followers or friends are interested in such events.

    Help Mike to find the best international folk dance and music festivals in Romania!

  • The end

    We have learnt about Romanian lad’s dances as we followed Mike on his journey to the International Kalotaszeg Folk Music and Dance Festival. We have also learnt about our own culture and traditions through the tasks. Mike is now leaving for Slovakia, then for Poland. Stick around and follow his blog for further experiences.