DEHISTAN FOLK BAND PRESENTS KUSHTDEPDY DANCE AT THE ABU DANCE FESTIVAL

New Delhi, the capital of India hosted dance festival of the Asian Pacific Broadcasting Union on March 7 – 10 where popular folk and ethnographic ensemble Dehistan from coastal region of Turkmenistan have performed with great success.

The collective of the Cultural Palace of the State Concern Turkmenneft performed the dances reflecting national art in many countries and always had the most emotional response of the audience.

This time, our fellow countrymen have conquered the public and participants of the festival with national kushtdepdy dance with its expressive character and distinguishing plastics combined with traditional song. Owing to uniqueness of national art of kushtdepdy singing and dancing, its ancient sources, it was entered to the UNESCO Representative Intangible Cultural Heritage List in 2017.

The idea of popularization of kushtdepdy dance belongs to President Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedov as the dance is a bright sample of cultural heritage, historical and cultural traditions of Turkmen nation. Archeological findings and written monuments indicate thousand year old roots of dance tradition. The scientists say that kushtdepdy dancers are pictured on the rhytons, which were found at the excavations of Nisa, the capital of Parthian Empire.

Kushtdepdy dancers narrate of endless circulation of human life, love and wonders of giving birth to new life, reveal the outlook meaning of rites by choreographic language sharpened by ages and strengthened with voice vibration. As the speed of the dance grows, the dancers involve the spectator to the whirlpool of emotions. Today, this dance bears powerful life asserting message uniting history and modern time as well as representatives of different cultures as it was at the festival in New Delhi.

In addition to the host, collectives from Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Indonesia, Malaysia, Maldives, Uzbekistan, Fiji and other countries came to the dance festival under the ABU aegis, which organized the broadcast of this excellent presentation. Colourful costumes, original music of Asian and Asian Pacific regions made bright kaleidoscope of impressions from the art of gestures and gracious moves.