MINSK, 22 January (BelTA) – The 4th edition of the Belarusians of the World art festival will feature around 250 participants from various countries, Head of the Belarusian Center for National Cultures Olga Antonenko told journalists, BelTA has learned.
“The festival is scheduled for 16-20 September. It is a triennial event that brings together around 250 Belarusians who live in various countries,” Olga Antonenko said.
The festival will take place in Minsk, but participants will also visit other regions on one day of the event. “The festival attracts a lot of interest, many people want to take part in it and show how they preserve Belarusian culture abroad. Participants are keen to perform Belarusian songs and dances and demonstrate arts and crafts. They enjoy visiting their homeland,” Olga Antonenko noted.
The 3rd edition of the Belarusians of the World art festival brought together around 220 participants from 19 countries. “Every country is allowed to send to the festival up to 20 people. We are trying to raise this limit, because a lot of performers apply for participation. For example, there are 17 such performers in Latvia, however in Russia there are great performers nearly in every big city. There is a very fascinating place in Russia’s Irkutsk Oblast, the village of Turgenevka, almost all residents of which speak the Belarusian language. The festival is indeed very popular, it even features participants from distant countries,” Olga Antonenko added.