Articles: journals, proceedings and books

Dance transmission in contemporary Romania: Continuity, motivation and mentors

This paper explores the transmission of local dance knowledge in contemporary Romania by focussing on ‘motivation’ and ‘continuity’ as key parameters. We examine the methods currently used by dancers to acquire their local dance knowledge; the dance experience of the teachers and mentors who transmit this knowledge; and the situations …read more

Politics of representation, identity and minorities as portrayed through local dance in the Banat Region

This paper will examine the politics of representation and identity as portrayed through dance by the co-located ethnicities in the Banat region of Romania using three main parameters, the ‘representation’ that the dancing is portraying, the context in which the dancing takes place and the adaption of the dancing to …read more

Crazy week, the disorganised and the organised: Fărșang and “inverted” weddings in the Banat mountains

During crazy week (the week in which lent commences) carnivalesque events, in various manifestations, take place in many villages in Banat. The commonalities between these events are that they focus around local music, dance and customs and only local people are involved. Although each event may be nominally organised by …read more

A sciency look at dancing the Romanian way: physics of the movement of the centre-of-mass

2018 science approaches Graz

This analysis is based on a comparison of my particular experience of two dance cultures-western classical dance training and participation in Romanian traditional dance. I discuss aspects of movement of the centre-of-mass based on a consideration of vertical and lateral movement in the context of very fast stepped dances that …read more

‘Va dorim success, felicitare’: competition and community participation in Romanian dance festivals

This chapter explores Romanian dancers’ participation in organized dance competitions, both within Romania and internationally, and investigates the informal competition that exists between the members of the Banat Romanian dance community. It includes three themes. The first traces a historical trajectory on the changing importance of performances of local, regional, …read more

The cultural development of folk dance festivals and the sustainability of tradition: Introduction

This book is a collection of case studies written by authors who have a long term research interest in folk dance festivals as part of their overall research as dance ethnologists, ethnochoreologists or anthropologists. The chapters that follow draw on the authors’ research on the role of folk dance festivals …read more

Presentational folk ensembles on the festival stage: a window into a participatory and social local dance scene in Banat Romania

This chapter discusses the relationship between local dance groups at festivals and sustaining local dancing in the community. Festivals in south east Europe traditionally include food, drink, music and dancing, and in Timișoara this format is used for many events from the village Saint’s day to the large international folk …read more