Kashtan Artistic Report

Written by: Christina Bohuslawsky-Brown

What a year Kashtan and Zorya have had! They have been on the go! In addition to the countless hours spent in the studio learning choreography and music, working on technique and vocals, they have also been celebrating, fundraising, performing, embracing a workshop weekend, preparing for Parma’s Ukrainian Festival season, gearing up to meet a certain famous mouse, and planning for the future.

It is no secret that our Kashtan students are great dancers, but did you know that they are also pretty talented in a pair of ice skates? The Kashtan Ice Skating Christmas Party highlighted such talent! Coordinated by Natalie and Yuriy Firmanchuk, this holiday celebration was enjoyed by all who attended as a frozen rink, good food and great friends met for a fun afternoon outside of the studio!

The Firmanchuks, however were just getting started. Not only did they plan and execute a very successful Pub Night fundraiser for Zorya, (read more about this fun event in Natalia B. Mahlay’s article!) but they also arranged the Scentsy and Malley’s fundraising events for Kashtan. Proceeds from the Scentsy and Malley’s fundraisers will be used towards various Kashtan needs such as costumes and future performance expenses. Our sincerest thanks go to Natalie and Yuriy for their hard work in making these opportunities such a success. Thank you also to the students and parents for your participation – your support is greatly appreciated!

Zorya has been very busy learning and rehearsing new and challenging religious pieces for its upcoming performance on April 24th at the 30th Anniversary of the Chernobyl Disaster Commemoration. This community event is being held at St. Vladimir’s Ukrainian Orthodox Cathedral in Parma, Ohio at 3:00pm. Additionally, Zorya has been ramping up for what will be a very fun and busy festival season! Be sure to look for them this summer at many of the Ukrainian Festivals held by our local parishes! As their performance details become available, we will update them on our website.

In February, Kashtan danced at the Slovenian National Home in Cleveland, Ohio for the Cleveland Kurentovanje Festival – the cast members had a great time, and the audience loved the performance! On April 1st, Kashtan traveled to Athens, Ohio where they represented Ukraine in the Ohio University World Music and Dance Festival by showcasing the beautiful colors, music and dance of our culture. The weekend of April 8th, Kashtan hosted a workshop and welcomed guest instructor Andrij Cybyk of Iskra Ukrainian Dance Academy & Ensemble from Whippany, NJ who taught our students an energetic gypsy number, which we are excited to be adding to our repertoire!

Additionally, Kashtan is also working hard to prepare for a performance they are scheduled to do in Disney World on June 18th! We are looking forward to spending some time with Mickey Mouse and Donald Duck, and if you plan to be in the Disney area, we would love to spend time with you too! For performance information and details, please visit the UCAA website at ucaacleveland.org.

Both Zorya and Kashtan have been diligently preparing for the UCAA Spring Concert, which will be held on June 5th at 7:00pm at the Breen Center of St. Ignatius High School. This concert is not one to be missed as both groups have collaborated to intertwine their individual repertoires for an evening of song and dance richly steeped in our Ukrainian culture!

As we wrap up another exciting and eventful school year, we must take a moment to recognize and congratulate all of our UCAA graduating seniors. All of this year’s seniors are members of Kashtan. These talented students have worked so hard and have been so dedicated not only to this organization, but also to their studies and other extracurricular activities! To say that we are proud of them is an understatement! We wish them well as they embark on the next chapter of their lives – we won’t say goodbye, but rather, see you next time!

Contratulations Diana Vasylkevych, Khrystyna Lupiychuk, Khrystyna Chyzevska, Ivan Wolansky, Mark Drozd, Kayla Bohuslawsky, and Marta Vilshanetska!