Final year students specialising in folk dance at the Hungarian Dance University performed their exam concert in the National Dance Theatre on 2 June. The performance proved to be a great success.
Béla Ónodi, head of the department stressed that the exam concert is always a real celebration, signalling the end of five years. On this occasion, dancers try to present the knowledge they have acquired during these five years.
The exam concert consisted of two parts. The first part presented the history of Hungarian dance to a high standard. The performance was very substantial lasting one and a half hours, and it was based on the programme “Dances of the Hungarian Centuries” by Ferenc Novák. It was enjoyable to see a performance recalling the historical periods, performed by a young and talented year group. In the first part of the show, the evocation of the past ranged from simple circle dances to czardas and verbunkos.
Photo by Pál Csillag
The second part was a series of songs from the repertoire of professional ensembles, taught to the students by their leaders, dancers and HDU masters. In the second part, the students did not only show their talent and knowledge in folk dance, as the training at the university was thorough and varied, and the graduate students were able to show this as well.
“The children were very good. It’s one of the best classes we’ve had in years. They’ve been very consistent and everything has been great with them”, said Ferenc Novák, Hungarian choreographer, director, ethnographer, Kossuth and Erkel Prize winner, Artist of the Nation.
“The first part was really devastating in a good way. We’ve already seen the children, we trust them, we also trust the teachers, but it was good to see that they showed a very broad range of knowledge”, added Zoltán Zsuráfszky, Artist of the Nation, Kossuth Prize winning dance artist and choreographer.
“I’ve known the children from the beginning and I think they have learned the potential of quality dance. You can’t expect an 18-20 year old to come out of university as a mature dancer, because life is going to be the real university. But here they have achieved the knowledge that, combined with experience, will bring out the potential they already have”, claimed Gábor Mihályi, leader of the Hungarian State Folk Ensemble, Kossuth and Gyula Harangozó Prize-winning dance artist and choreographer.
Congratulations to all.
2022/2023 academic year, BA Dance Artist, Folk Dance specialisation:
Szintia Bálint, Virág Fodor, Csilla Géczi, Dóra Hudák, Viktória Kis, Viktória Jázmin Králik, Kinga Ivett Monostori, Kamilla Nagy, Máris Csilla Peszlen, Sára Luca Rimóczi, Dóra Simon, Lili Emma Szappanos.
Tamás Árva, Nándor Besenyi, Adrián Bognár, Mátyás Egyed, Balázs Fülöp, Barnabás Bálint Kiss, András Kovács, András Málits, Benedek Molnár, Márton Csomor Nagy, Máté Székely, Bence Gábor Takács.
