From Kaluga to Dhaka: Russian teens stir souls with folk dance tribute

Once in the mid-1980s, I used, as here, the term ‘folk soul’ in the title of an article. Then I got the hump. Because folk soul, I was told, was not a scientific term, but an outdated relic from romanticism. No one has ever seen the folk soul. I don’t really take this criticism too seriously. Because no one has seen the soul either. And it still exists, I would say. Jan-E. Askerøi. Jan-E. Askerøi is the author of the book “Russia, Ukraine and th…

From Kaluga to Dhaka: Russian teens stir souls with folk dance tribute

At the 80th Russian Victory Day celebration held on May 11 at Le Meridien Dhaka, an unexpected burst of culture and emotion unfolded onstage-led not by seasoned performers or celebrated stars, but by eleven teenagers from Kaluga, Russia. As the folklore ensemble Obraz took the spotlight for a nearly 50-minute, non-stop dance spectacle, the entire ballroom-filled with diplomats, dignitaries, and culture enthusiasts-watched in awe. Initially, the …