Thursday, September 21, 2023 - 8:00 pm - 9:30 pm

Workshop 8:00 pm - 9:30 pm

Adults $10.00 - Children Free

Iliana Bozhanova
Bulgarian Folk Dance Teacher and Choreographer
www.ilianabozhanova.com

Iliana Bozhanova was born in 1961 into a family of musicians and singers in Galabovo, South Thrace. She graduated from the National School for Art Instructors and later completed her Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees in Bulgarian Folk Dance and Choreography at Plovdiv’s Academy of Music, Dance and Fine Arts. At the age of 16, Iliana joined the folk dance ensemble Rûchenitsa in Plovdiv. Through this group, she had the opportunity to travel and perform Bulgarian folk dances in other parts of Bulgaria, as well as in Greece, Serbia, Poland, Belgium, Portugal, France, Italy, Holland and Russia. In 1981, she became the choreographer of two children’s folk dance ensembles – Radost in the village of Yoakim Gruevo, and the ensemble of the Rosa Dimitrova Orphanage. Since October of 2004, Iliana has been the artistic director and choreographer of Folk Ensemble Voivodintsi, which has 140 dancers and singers ranging in age from 4 to 80 years old. Throughout the years, Iliana has also worked with many recreational groups and ensembles in the Netherlands, Norway, Israel, Italy, Germany, Switzerland, the United Kingdom, Japan, Taiwan, Hong Kong, Canada and the United States. In the U.S., she is also well known as a dance teacher at dozens of folk dance clubs and camps, including Stockton, Mendocino, Balkanalia, EEFC’s Balkan Music & Dance Workshops, Old World Music & Dance, Pinewoods, Mainewoods and others. She has also lectured at many colleges and universities around the world. Iliana is the Dance Coordinator for the Bulgarian Folk Music & Dance Seminar at the Academy of Music, Dance and Fine Arts in Plovdiv. In addition to working as a dance teacher and choreographer, up to 2004, Iliana also worked as an architectural draftsperson.

Todor Yankov
Accordionist, Singer and Accompanist

Todor Yankov (accordion) was born in 1962 in Plovdiv, but he grew up in the village of Dobralak in the Rhodopi Mountains in a large family. His father, Vasil Yankov, was a well-known gaida player in the area. Todor began to play gaida, like his father, and then when he was 10 years old, he took up kaval. Soon after that he became an orphan and had no one to send him to study at Shiroka Lûka Music High School, which had been his dream. When he was 16, he discovered the accordion and began to teach himself to play. He is also a wonderful singer. For many years he played with the Hisar folk orchestra at different holiday celebrations. He has been the accordionist for the following folk dance ensembles: Rûchenitsa, Hebar, Pûldin and Folk Ensemble Voivodintsi. In 1980, he graduated from the Construction Trades High School in Plovdiv, where he studied electrical installation. For many years, Todor worked as a machine operator in the Plastics division of Liebher Corporation.

Iliana and Todor met in 1984 in Ensemble Ruchenitsa. Soon after that, their roads of life went in different directions. In 2004, Todor invited Iliana to be his colleague and work as a choreographer in the village of Voivodinovo. Both of them founded Folk Ensemble Voivodintsi with 32 dancers and singers. Now there are 140 members. The villagers are proud of their ensemble!

Since 2007, Iliana and Todor have been traveling and teaching together around the world, as well as leading tours in Bulgaria. Iliana and Todor have introduced Bulgaria for the first time to many foreigners.

For further information contact:  Larry Weiner (301) 565-0539 / larry@larryweiner.com

last updated - August 1, 2023 - 11:00 pm