The International Council of Kinetography Laban (ICKL), an international organization that preserves and develops the movement notation system created by world-renowned Hungarian-born modern dance artist and theorist Rudolf Laban, holds its meetings every two years. This year, the 34th conference was organized in the United States in close cooperation with the Laban/Bartenieff Institute for Movement Studies. Hungary and the Hungarian Dance University were represented at this prestigious event by Henrik Kovács. His report can be read below.
At the conference held in Columbus and Gambier, Ohio, USA, from July 13–19, I conducted a workshop on the depth of notation in the gyimesi féloláhos dance, presented the current institutional background and research programmes related to dance notation in Hungary, and commemorated the recently deceased Dr. János Fügedi by presenting the study he had prepared for the conference. As a great honour, I was invited by the ICKL leadership to serve as chair of one of the conference sessions.
The organization elected me to its higher-level professional decision-making body. Following the evaluation of my submitted materials, I was awarded the Fellow membership status in recognition of my teaching and research work carried out at Hungarian Dance University. From Hungary, only two of us—my former teacher at HDU, Gábor Misi, and myself—are members of the Fellows community.
Over the course of six days, from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., we participated in a wide range of programmes at the conference. In addition to longer and shorter presentations, practical workshops, and sessions addressing issues in dance notation, there was also time for meaningful conversations and networking. As in previous conferences, I also organized a traditional Hungarian dance session (táncház) this year.
After the conference, I visited the local Hungarian community. Following the Sunday church service, I gave a presentation—using videos and a live demonstration—on the diverse types of Hungarian folk dances and the current state of the field. The programme concluded with a traditional Hungarian dance session, táncház. As a gift, I brought magazines signed by the editorial team of Nők Lapja.
At the request of Bocskai Radio in Cleveland, I gave a live 30-minute broadcast reporting on the professional successes of the conference in the United States.
I would like to express my gratitude to Márta-Fodor Molnár and to the colleagues of our university for their assistance in the implementation of the research grant project No. MEC_R_24 149622, awarded by the National Research, Development and Innovation Office of Hungary.
Szendehely, July 25, 2025
Henrik Kovács
