Italy 2022

From 16th to 24th August, the Folkloristic Group “Wielkopolanie” participated in the 36th Folklore Festival “International Summer of Folklore” in the Italian town of Castrovillari, in the Calabria region. The event was held under the patronage of the Italian Section of the International Council of Folklore Associations Festival and Folk Art (CIOFF). Throughout the entire duration of the Festival, apart from the beauty of Polish folklore, viewers also had the opportunity to see groups from Mexico, Chile, Senegal, Serbia, Slovakia and Spain. In their repertoire, the Poznań group presented Wielkopolska dances, Polish national dances – kujawiak, oberek and krakowiak, as well as traditional dances and songs from the Silesian Beskids region along with men’s performances. All the performances of „Wielkopolanie” were awarded with applause and shouts from the audience counting many thousands people. During the Festival, apart from great concerts, during which the Polish group presented the beauty of our country’s folklore, there were also parades through the streets of the cities participating in the event. „Wielkopolanie”, together with other groups, welcomed passers-by, tourists and residents and invited them to see later performances.
At the same time, apart from the ongoing Festival, the Folkloristic Group “Wielkopolanie” took part in the ERASMUS + international project “The Power of Acceptance” which concerned various important problems in terms of human rights as well as acceptance and tolerance. During the project, participants learned how to properly discuss in a group, express their own opinion, and work with children and people with various disabilities. In addition, „Wielkopolanie” and other participating teams presented their traditional costumes and discussed the culture and traditions of individual countries.
The organizers of the festival also made sure that the arriving artists could get to know the culture of Italy. Dancers and musicians had the opportunity to visit concert cities – the historic old town of Castrovillari, the southernmost town of Pellaro, as well as the picturesque coast and the architecture of Tropea. Getting to know their monuments and local traditions, the artists could also try characteristic dishes, as well as participate in dances to the sounds of traditional music and Italian dances, such as tarantella.
The “International Folklore Summer” in the Calabria region is the largest folklore event in southern Italy. All the time, the artistic performances were accompanied by television, reporters and photographers who captured in photos and recordings the rich culture of the world and the national heritage of individual countries participating in this event.

FL