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Folk Dance Federation of California, South, Inc.
By Dick Oakes |
THIS IS HISTORICAL INFORMATION ONLY
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The Sardarabad (from the name of an ancient city) Dance Ensemble was centered at the San Fernando Valley chapter of the Armenian General Benevolent Union (AGBU) in Hollywood, California. They rehearsed twice a week and performed (for expenses only) at local festivals, holiday programs, and Armenian social occasions. They performed at Los Angeles City College, the Barnsdale Park Arts Center, for the Refugee Festival of Los Angeles, and at the Pasadena Children's Museum.
All instruction was in Armenian, the first language of virtually everyone in the room. All of the young-adult dance group (ages 13 to 23) were born in Armenia, and many of them had been in the United States for only 3 or 4 years. Many of the younger dancers (ages 5 to 12) were born here in California.
The AGBU sponsors this two-part dance ensemble for a number of fairly obvious reasons. The primary goal is, of course, "to preserve traditional Armenian songs and dances as well as the Armenian culture," according to Adam Avasian, Performance Manager for the group. Another goal, subscribed to by all parts of the AGBU organization, was to provide a pace for Armenian immigrants to socialize and maintain contact with one another. According to Adam, perhaps a more urgent need was to give Armenian youth alter-native activities and social life to that found on the streets of Hollywood.
Since 1988, the instructor of Sardarabad was Levon Gasoyan. Sardarabad itself was started in 1987, then fell on hard times a few years later, and was reborn under Levon's tutelage in 1985. In that year, he was a guest director in a tourist visa from the Soviet Union. In 1987, he and his family permanently immigrated to Los Angeles, California.
Levon Gasyuan's background was training that reflected the serious level of support given to folk arts in the Soviet Union. As a boy, he dances with the Young Pioneers in Kerovkan, his home town. His teachers encouraged him to attend the Cultural Institute in Yerevan, where he studied ballet as well as folk dance. He became a member and featured soloist in the State Ensemble of Armenia in 1958, under the instruction of Vartkes Rashigian and choreographer Edward Manovgian. In 1973, he was awarded as an Artist of Merit by the State of Armenia, and also received the Best Dance Artist Award of 1977 for the Soviet Union Youth Dance Competition. In 1977, Levon founded his own independent dance troupe, "Nork," where he served as artistic director and choreographer. The group danced to a 12-piece orchestra, and many recordings from that time were used her by the Los Angeles group.
The biggest challenge for Sardarabad wasn't necessarily the influence of American dance style. Rather, it was American life in general. Retaining dancers after they were trained and know the repertoire was Levon's main problem. The younger dancers could be counted on to continue for several years. Their parents were eager for them to maintain as much Armenian folk culture as possible. The high school dancers, however, usually only danced for 3 or 4 years before university or marriage drew them away.
The group performed at the International Festival, Laguna Beach, California on October 2, 1977, and in the San Fernando Valley on May 3, 2009. One of the groups choreographers and teachers was Rouben Hovhannessian.
Taken from the October 1991 issue of Folk Dance Scene.