Purdue News
Purdue News
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September 22, 2000 Purdue welcomes Veriovka & Ukrainian song and danceWEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. – Veriovka brings its traditional Ukrainian folk singing and dancing to Purdue University on Oct. 14 as part of Purdue Convocations' Patron's Choice Series. Seventy-five of the finest classically trained dancers, singers and musicians from all over the Ukraine make up the Veriovka Ukranian National Dance Company, which prides itself on combining traditional Ukrainian song and dance with contemporary style. The performance begins at 8 p.m. at Elliot Hall of Music. Ticket prices are $25, $21 and $16 for the general public, and $18, $15 and $12 for Purdue students with a valid identification card. Tickets for Purdue Convos' Patron's Choice Series, which allows subscribers to choose five of seven performances within the package, cost $85 for the general public and $70 for Purdue students. Tickets can be purchased at campus box offices or charge by phone at (765) 494-3933 or toll-free at (800) 914-SHOW. Veriovka's repertoire includes many different types of Ukrainian music including historical ballads, Cossack and Chukka songs and dances, scenic compositions, and pieces inspired by Ukrainian rites and holidays. Some of the featured songs in Veriovka's 22-song performance at Purdue will be "Ukrainian Festival Suite," "Its Roaring and Buzzing," "Kozatchok" and "Don't Float, Little Swan." Formed in the difficult years of World War II in the city of Kharkov just after it was liberated from the Nazis, the original members of Veriovka were demobilized soldiers, workers and collective farmers who had a talent for singing and dancing. The ensemble's original founder, composer and conductor Hryhory Veriovka, had a vision of sharing Ukrainian music with the rest of the world. His main goal was to combine the creative and artistic traditions of folk singing and dancing with a contemporary style of performance and professional skill. Veriovka's legacy lives on through the ensemble's current conductor Anatoly Avdyevsky. Avdyevsky, who received a People's Artist of Ukraine Award, is the director of the choir department at Ukrainian State Pedagogical University. Veriovka has taken its Ukrainian folk music across the globe to countries that include Germany, Romania, Poland, Yugoslavia, France, Switzerland, Belgium and Finland. In 1996, Veriovka made its first trip to the United States. CONTACT: Laura Sargent, Purdue Convocations, (765) 494-9712; sargentl@purdue.edu.
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