By Heidi Trautmann
It’s Time to dance is the title of this year’s Dance Festival at Girne American University.
About 100 dancers took stage on 31st July at the GAU Congress Centre Spectrum Hall. Entrance was free for the many people who filled the theatre house, filled it to the last seat of the at least 800 available ones. It is now for the third time that the Dance Academy in cooperation with the GAU Stage Arts School has organized this event.
The programme included 27 scenes prepared by the professional dance instructors Galip Emre (Turkish Dance Federation Board Member and Creator of Functional Dance Theory), Oleg Manukovich, Liliya Biroğul and Suzan Heıjari-Erkan. Turkey’s Intercollege Dance Champion, GAU Stage Arts Stage School dance groups, Dance Base and Golden Step dance school groups have also taken stage.
Spirits were high when the curtain finally rose. The young dance groups were very enthusiastic and engaged, we saw modern dance mostly and techno dance and some sort of automat dancing. The choreography was well done. A very young group, six girls and one boy showed us something like Michael Jackson. The audience applauded spontaneously.
Dance and music is something all young people like doing and we could feel the excitement and enthusiasm not only of the dancers but also in the audience.
It was announced that GAU Stage Arts Academy has started to accept student applications for next year. Here a short description of the programme according to their website, so if you feel you are born to dance, or your children are:
Students who graduated from Stage Arts Education Program in 2 years may continue their career with “Professional Dancer” degree in professional dance schools as Dance Group Member or Soloist, as an Innovative Researcher in Director Artist, Choreograph, Motion Expert, Dance Theories, Dance Researches, Performance Exercises and Dance Critics fields, as an Administrator in Art Organization and Institutions. For students who complete 4 years of dance education may continue their career with “Professional Dance Educator” degree as a Dance and Art Director, Dance Educator in elementary, junior-high and high schools, Dance and Arts Adviser, as an “Innovative Researcher” in Dance Education and Dance Exercises.
You can access detailed information about GAU Stage Arts Academic Staff and Course Programs from www.gau.edu.tr