Osnabruck Trip 2004 (English)
Hoverla Celebrates Cultural Diversity in Osnabruck
During the weekend of September 18th and 19th September, 26 dancers, musicians & backroom staff from Derby’s Hoverla Ukrainian Dance Ensemble performed in Derby’s twin city Osnabrück in Germany. The Hoverla Ukrainian Dance Ensemble, based at the Ukrainian Cultural Centre in Charnwood Street, was one of the star attractions at the International Festival of Cultures in Osnabrück’s Market Place on Sunday 19th September.
The Sunday event launched world cultures with a tryst on the Market Place celebrating this colourful event as the main highlight of Intercultural Week in Osnabrück .
The Ensemble set off by coach from Derby on Friday evening and travelled overnight through France and Belgium. We crossed in to the German border around lunchtime on Saturday arriving in Osnabrück mid afternoon where we were met by Derby’s envoy to Osnabrück Anna Drysdale at the Backpackers Youth Hostel near the city centre. We settled in at Backpackers and then organised a rehearsal for Sunday’s performance in the rear car park of the Youth Hostel. In the evening Anna then escorted us to a local German Restaurant in the City Centre to try out some local speciality dishes.
Hoverla received the invitation from Frau Anke Bramlage representing the City’s Department of Culture in Osnabrück and was given a 35 minute slot to perform for the local people. Five exciting and colourful dances were performed culminating with the most famous of all Ukrainian dances “The Hopak” from the capital region of Ukraine Kiev where all 18 dancers and 6 musicians were on stage. Other dances included a Cossack opener dance routine, a boy’s sword dance called “Zaporozets”, two girl dances from the Central Region of Ukraine “Hrechanyky” & “Poltavka” and a musical item called “Verchovyna” from the Carpathian Mountain Region.
At the end of the final performance, the leader & choreographer Joe Kupranec thanked the Deputy Mayor Herr Jasper and Frau Bramlage for the invitation to take part in this year’s Cultural Festival of Nations and presented both of them with gifts of a tankard and vase with Derby City Council embedded logo. Joe also thanked the head of the Twinning Department in Osnabrück and handed a gift in form of a desk paper weight to its leader Herr Koopmann.
Finally The Derby Envoy to Osnabrück Anna Drysdale was thanked for her efforts in organising accommodation, liasing with City’s Department of Culture, keeping constant dialogue right up to the weekend and generally looking after us all throughout the weekend making the trip a very successful visit to Osnabrück.
In the local newspaper Neue Osnabrücker Zeitung dated 16/09/04 an article featured the Sunday event stating “Groups from Osnabrück and the hinterland characterise an impressive programme from 2 till 8pm. Spanish Flamenco modern dance, fascinating Balkan dances, Russian songs, Thai folklore and modern Oriental dance all belong here. For the first time, two groups from Osnabrück’s twin towns are also represented. The “Harlem Gold Tunes”, an international steel band youth-group from the Netherlands, and the Ukrainian Dance group “Hoverla Ukrainian Dance Ensemble” from Derby will travel over especially for the Cultural festival”.
Joseph Kupranec (Leader & Choreographer)