Syllabus of Dance Descriptions STOCKTON FOLK DANCE CAMP – 2010 – FINAL In Memoriam Myrtle Hoppe April 6, 1920 – October 13, 2009 Myrtle Hoppe had been coming to Stockton Camp from Minneapolis, Minnesota nearly every year since 1949! It was her dream to get her 50-year pin. Unfortunately, she died shortly after the 2009 Camp, at the age of 89. Myrtle had been a member of the University of Minnesota Folk Dancers since it was formed in 1947. She was its sole leader from the mid-1990s until her death. Myrtle loved Stockton Camp, and called it her “California Family.” Athan Karras September 22, 1927 – February 12, 2010 Athan Karras, born in Thessaloniki, Greece, was a well-known authority, performer, and teacher of Greek folk dance. Athan’s instruction explored the various styles of Greek folk dance, covering the many regions and islands of the Aegean and Ionian Seas. Athan traveled the United States, teaching and lecturing in major cities and conducting seminars and workshops at many of the leading college and university campuses. He presented several folk festivals, featuring dancers, singers, and musicians at UC Berkeley, UCLA, and Loyola Marymount University in Los Angeles. Athan directed his own Greek dance groups, including the “Intersection Greek Dancers” and” “Dionysus.” He taught at Stockton Folk Dance Camp in 2001. Carlos Ruling November 25, 1920 – November 13, 2009 Carlos was a life-long resident of San Francisco, living in the same house most of his life. He married Ruth Margaret Beck of Oakland on February 18, 1945. Carlos worked in the San Francisco Unified School District for over 30 years as a classroom teacher, assistant principal and principal. He was an avid runner and ran in the Bay to Breakers Race at least 14 times. He and Ruth were deeply involved in the international folkdance community starting in the 1940s. He was a long-time member of Chang's Folk Dancers of San Francisco and served as its president. He also served as president of the International Folk Dance Federation of California. He and Ruth attended Stockton Camp for many, many years. Ruth died in 2007. STOCKTON FOLK DANCE CAMP – 2010 – FINAL Lillian Turner October 14, 1917 – September 27, 2009 You may not recognize the name or the face in the photograph, but Lillian Turner played an important role in the support of Stockton Camp. She is Steve Turner’s mother and she lived in the Washington, D.C. area. In the 1950s, she began volunteering with such organizations as the Children’s National Medical Center, the Kennedy Center, the National Gallery of Art, the Audubon Naturalist Society and the Supreme Court Historical Society. She and her husband also donated artwork to the Smithsonian and other museums. Her son, Steve Turner of Winston-Salem, North Carolina, has been a regular attendee of Stockton Camp for many years and is the Camp’s videographer. Steve and his mother provided generous and timely financial support to Stockton Camp on several occasions. STOCKTON FOLK DANCE CAMP – 2010 – FINAL Preface Many of the dance descriptions in the syllabus have been or are being copyrighted. They should not be reproduced in any form without permission. Specific permission of the instructors involved must be secured. Camp is satisfied if a suitable by-line such as “Learned at Folk Dance Camp, University of the Pacific” is included. Loui Tucker served as editor of this syllabus, with valuable assistance from Karen Bennett, Marge Gajicki, Joyce Lissant Uggla and Sabine Zappe. We are indebted to members of the Dance Research Committee of the Folk Dance Federation of California (North and South) for assistance in preparing the Final Syllabus. Cover art copyright © 2009 Susan Gregory. (Thanks, Susan.) Please do not use the art without Susan’s permission. Abbreviations Used in the Syllabus beg beginning, begin meas measure bkwd backward opp opposite CCW counterclockwise orig original cpl(s) couple(s) pos position ct(s) count(s) ptr(s) partner(s) ctr center R right CW clockwise RLOD reverse line of direction (CW) diag diagonal sdwd sideward Fig figure shldr(s) shoulder(s) ft foot, feet T-pos hands on shoulders ftwk footwork twd toward fwd forward V-pos hands joined and held down L left W woman, women LOD line of direction (CCW) W-pos hands joined, elbows bent M man, men wt weight Folk Dance Camp Committee Bruce Mitchell, Director Bobi Ashley, Gordon Deeg, Bob Harris, Jeff O’Connor, Lee Otterholt, Loui Tucker, E. David Uggla, Karen Wilson-Bell, Jan Wright. Founder and Director of Folk Dance Camp 1948-1967—Lawton Harris STOCKTON FOLK DANCE CAMP – 2010 – FINAL FACULTY BIOGRAPHIES Fang-Chich Chen – Dances of Taiwan Fang-Chich Chen was born in Japan and educated in Taiwan. She started learning international folk dance during high school and began to teach folk dancing in college. She and her husband, Ching-San Chang, were invited to teach Taiwanese dances at Stockton Camp in 1980 and 1981 and at San Diego Camp in 1979 and 1980. The couple established the Asia Folkdance Camp in 1981, and the camp has been hosting annual activities ever since. Fang-Chich was invited to teach folk dancing in Singapore in 1984, 1990 and 2005 and she was invited by the Japan Folkdance Federation to teach Taiwanese dances in 1996. She retired as a junior high school teacher in 2000 and became the chairperson of the promotional committee of International Folk Dance Association in 2001. Now Fang-Chich serves as the artistic supervisor of Shiuan Ko Performing Group, the chairperson of Asia Folkdance Camp and the chairperson of the board of directors of the Taiwan International Folkdance Association. Denes Dreisziger and Gissella Santayana – Dances of Hungary Denes Dreisziger didn’t have much of a choice but to start dancing when he was seven years old, as his father was the Artistic Director of the Toronto Kodaly at the time. In his teens he had the opportunity to learn from the likes of Timár Sándor, Farkas Zoltán “Batyü” and Zsuráfszki Zoltán, and later a good number of the younger generation of top Hungarian Folkdance choreographers. He danced professionally with "Les Sortilèges," North America's only professional folkdance ensemble, before moving to Bratislava, Slovakia, to dance with Ifjù Szivek, arguably one of the world's most respected Hungarian Folkdance Ensembles. Since his return to North America, he and his wife Gissella Santayana have been the Artistic Directors of the Bokréta Hungarian Folkdance Ensemble of Montreal. Gissella Santayana started dancing in her native Peru, where her family attended numerous village celebrations throughout her childhood. Gissella danced professionally in the Ifjù Szivek Ensemble, Slovakia; where Hungarian, Slovak, Gypsy and Romanian dances were constantly in the repertoire. She has been dancing this region's folklore for 18 years and has taught dances to children and adult groups as well as choreographed in North America and Europe. Gissella has traveled extensively for over a decade in Slovakia, Hungary and especially Transylvania, Romania to learn from and live with the keepers of this rich dancing tradition. Since 2008, Gissella and Denes Dreisziger have been the Artistic Directors of Bokréta, Montreal's Hungarian Folk Dance Ensemble. STOCKTON FOLK DANCE CAMP – 2010 – FINAL Cristian Florescu and Sonia Dion – Dances of Romania Cristian Florescu was born in Bucharest, Romania. He started dancing in 1982 with different Romanian folk ensembles and studied with various specialists including Theodor Vasilescu. Cristian was principal dancer with the National Ensemble Cununa Carpatilor. In 1990-91, he received his certificate as a recognized solo dancer and choreographer in the field of folklore from the Romanian Ministry of Culture and the ACAFR. In 1993, he joined Les Sortilèges, a professional folk dance company based in Montreal as a dancer, teacher, rehearsal director and choreographer. During his time in Canada, Cristian has acquired multiple skills in various dance forms including modern dance, ballroom, jazz, and tap, as well as French-Canadian and Irish step dancing. Sonia Dion was born in Quebec and has been a professional dancer for over 20 years. She was lead dancer and choreographer for Les Sortilèges Dance Company, Canada’s oldest folk dance ensemble with whom she developed several new productions. Sonia has toured worldwide and has been exposed to a wide range of dance techniques including Romanian folk dance, Scottish highland dancing, French- Canadian step dance and ballroom dance. In recent years, Cristian and Sonja have developed a specific interest in working with recreational folk dance groups in Canada and the United States to share their love of Romanian folk traditions. They have taught workshops in Canada and the United States and choreographed Romanian suites for performing groups including the world-renowned BYU Folk Dance Ensemble. In November 2006, they were invited for a teaching tour of Taiwan and Japan. Jerry Helt – Squares and Contras Jerry Helt is internationally known for his expertise in the calling and teaching field and is respected by callers and dancers for his ability to bring fun and joy to the dance world. Jerry began his square dance activities in the early 1940s and has been a full-time caller since 1953. He first came to Stockton Camp in 1956 and has been here every year since, delighting us with his great squares and contras, building up to Exploding Squares on Friday night. Stephen “Steve” Kotansky – Dances of the Balkans Steve Kotansky was raised in the San Francisco area and moved to southern California after high school. He danced with Westwind, the SF Russian Dance Ensemble, the AMAN Folk Ensemble, and with Vince Evanchuk and his Ukrainian dance troupe. Traveling in Germany for eight years, he worked with ethnic communities in Munich while teaching dance and performing, and co-founded the performing group GAJDA.