Hoosier Strings Jr. Tamburitza representing Croatian Lodge 170 of Merrillville will be one of many groups celebrating culture through dance at the Second Annual Intercultural Dance Festival taking place Saturday, May 7 at 6:00 p.m. in the Pavilion at St. Sava Church, 9191 Mississippi Street, Merrillville, Indiana.
Hoosier Strings Jr. Tamburitza is composed of youth from around Northwest Indiana, including some youth from St. Sava Church in Merrillville, with instruction by John Pruzin. The youth are taught to play Eastern European instruments (Tamburas), sing Slavic songs, dance traditional kolos, and other choreographed routines. The group is multi-cultural and take much pride in welcoming other nationalities into the group to share in the preservation and love of their unique culture.
Hoosier Strings Jr. Tamburitza will be playing instruments, singing, and dancing routines during their performance at the festival.
Performances by Hoosier Strings Jr. Tamburitza and other dance groups on the program from throughout the Chicagoland area will showcase various cultures from around the globe at the Second Annual Intercultural Dance Festival at St. Sava Church. General admission tickets are open to the public and available at the door for $10. Everyone in the community is welcome to attend.
Srbadija Folklore, the youth folklore dance group of St. Sava Church, will be playing host of the event. Serbian cuisine, beverages, and famous bake sale items will also be available for purchase throughout the evening.
For those desiring a more complete cultural experience, a Serbian “Zabava” (open dance party) will be available for all participants and audience members with music provided by DJ Vinko at the conclusion of all the official performances in the program by the featured dance groups.
Scandinavian, Irish, West African, and Serbian are among the cultures to be represented through dance during the official program portion of the festival.
Participating dance groups include (in alphabetical order):
- Bozur Folklore Ensemble, Chicago, IL – Facebook Page
- Frula Folklore Ensemble of St. Elijah Serbian Church, Merrillville, IL – Facebook Page
- Gavrilo Princip Folklore Ensemble of St. Simeon Serbian Church, 114th South Chicago, IL – Facebook Page
- Kolo Folklore Ensemble of St. Michael Serbian Church, Lansing, IL – Facebook Page
- Mayer School of Irish Dance, Chesterton, IN – Website | Facebook Page
- Nordikids, Munster, IN – Website | Facebook Page
- Hoosier Strings Jr. Tamburitza, Merrillville, IN
- South Shore Dance Alliance, Griffith, IN – Website | Facebook Page
- Srbadija Folklore of St. Sava Serbian Church, Merrillville, IN – Website | Facebook Page
- Tromedja Folklore Ensemble of St. George Serbian Church, Schererville, IN
This year there will be some familiar dance groups from the inaugural festival and some new additions to the lineup. More information about the performers, new additions to the program, and what you can expect to experience at the festival will be available as the event draws near.
The inaugural Intercultural Festival hosted in May 2015 took place in the new Pavilion at St. Sava and drew more than 400 people.
Last year groups represented different regions of Serbia, Mexico, Greece, Ireland, and India in the performance. Several of the Serbian troupes traveled from Illinois, Wisconsin, and Canada.
Please save-the-date Saturday, May 7 for the Second Annual Intercultural Festival, hosted by Srbadija Folklore at St. Sava Church, 9191 Mississippi Street, Merrillville, IN 46410. For more information, visit the www.saintsava.net/folklore website.
