The Ojczyzna Polish Dancers Can Sing Too!
- PostEagle
- April 6, 2018
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- Featured
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BALTIMORE, MD — During the 2017 Christmas Season, the Ojczyzna Polish Dancers of Baltimore performed concerts of Polish Christmas Carols, or Kolędy, for audiences throughout the Baltimore/Washington D.C. region. Among these performances were larger concerts at Our Lady Queen of Poland in Silver Spring and at Holy Rosary Church and Polish National Alliance Council 21, both in Baltimore. Artistic Director Malgorzata Bondyra created an incredible compilation of Kolędy for the group, which was customized for each performance and included old songs such as Cicha Noc and new songs such as Pastorałka Od Serca Do Ucha.
PHOTO: Ojczyzna Polish Dancers Sing Kolędy. The Ojczyzna Dancers are shown after performing Polish Christmas Carols in their secondary role as an adjunct choir at Holy Rosary Church on January 28, 2018. Artistic Director and Choreographer Malgorzata Bondyra is depicted in the first row cradling her violin.
Ms. Bondyra noted that among the things to appreciate most about this year’s performances was that the majority of the group does not speak Polish and that the group had to spend a great deal of time practicing so that these members could sing the songs in flawless Polish. For those who have ever tried to speak Polish it should be clear what an amazing accomplishment this was for Ojczyzna and its members. And Just as amazing, this was with the Ojczyzna Dancers performing in their adjunct role as a choir.
The main focus of Ojczyzna is performing folk dances from the various regions of Poland. The troupe employs a huge wardrobe of authentic costumes from Poland in their performances. Malgorzata Bondyra is a quite proficient and a very talented dancer in her own right. In 2017, after a long and close association with the group, she became both Ojczyna’s Artistic Director and Choreographer after attending an intense summer program at the prestigious Polonijne Studium Choreograficzne at the University of Rzeszów In Poland. Malgorzata will continue to study over the next few summers under the masters of Polish folk dance and choreography as she works toward earning her formal certification from which Ojczyzna will continue to benefit from and be able to grow their expert repertoire, in which they already pride themselves.
It is wonderful to see that such a love of Polish culture still exists and that there are those who are willing to do whatever it takes to be able to share and promote this culture with pride and joy. Photos and videos of some of these performances can be found on the group’s Facebook page, at Facebook.com/OjczyznaDancers. Stay tuned for much more from Ojczyzna in the coming months and years as they continue to perform throughout the mid-Atlantic region.
Issued by Authority of:
Michael Carnahan: Managing Director
Email: mlcarnahan@gmail.com
Richard Poremski: Public Relations
Email: rppp@msn.com
