Georgi Kolev Danceteacher

ABOUT MEGeorgi Kolev

Dance Teacher

I was born and raised in the beautiful Bulgarian city of Burgas. I had my first encounter with Bulgarian Folk Dancing when I was in the second grade. Merely nine years old at the time, I joined the local Pioneer Hall’s dance ensemble. Six years later, I applied for Sofia’s National School of Choreography and began my journey through the beautiful world of Bulgarian Folklore. Due to the unexpected influx of candidates, the school was forced to accept two classes for “Bulgarian folk dances”.

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I spent the following four years hard-at-work on my degree. My focus, however, did little to distract me from the fact that I was living away from my parents for the first time. During this period, I had to not only learn the intricate details of Bulgarian Dancing but also get used to faring on my own. Luckily, I had the pleasure of studying with some of the greatest choreography teachers and connoisseurs of Bulgarian folk dance of our time – Kiril Haralampiev, Dimitar Dimitrov – Pavlarata and Krassimir Petrov, who was our primary teacher in Bulgarian folk dances. These wonderful people helped cultivate our love and facilitate our understanding of Bulgarian history, characteristic dances and classical exercises.

I will never forget the times when I got to meet the great artists from the “Filip Kutev” ensemble. Observing them was a huge inspiration. Around this same time, I also met the most wonderful woman in the world, who has been a part of my life ever since.

During the 1979-1981 period, I found myself joining the Ensemble of Construction Troops. Two years filled with beautiful emotions and a lot of hard work. Rehearsals and preparation entirely overtook our mornings, our afternoons consisted of a short break, and in the evenings were completely booked for performances. In the morning, Mitko Manov took our health, Anatoly Klochkov finished us.

October-November 1981 Ensemble “Trakia” – a student’s dream come true. I don’t have the words to describe the pleasure of working closely with Kiril Dzhenev. We were fortunate enough to participate in the opening ceremony of the National Palace of Culture with the concert “1300 years of Bulgaria” – A once-in-a-lifetime experience! All professional dance ensembles were there at the National Palace of Culture!

Eventually, however, my time in “Trakia” came to its end. I realised that I had gotten to a point where I could no longer resist the yearnings of my heart. And so, after one last great concert in Sofia, I decided that it’s time to pack my bags and leave for the seaside, where my girlfriend was working with the professional “Varna” ensemble. I made the trip on the 1st of December, 1981 and I joined Varna’s “Professional Ensemble for Folk Songs and Dances”, led by Mr Petar Angelov. Together, we took part in countless tours, performances and festivals, both on a national and an international level.

One year later, on the 23rd of May, 1982, we got married, and today, 38 years later, our relationship is stronger than ever! Around this time, I became the assistant director at the Trade Union’s House of Culture dance troupe, with which I travelled quite a lot. My daughter was born in 1984, while I was in Malta.

I spent the 1992-1993 period as the leader of Suvorovo’s local dance troupe. In 1994, I transitioned to Dalgopol, where I spent another year, before returning to Varna’s Public University “Chernorizets Hrabar” to finish my degree in “Bulgarian Folk Choreography.

In 2000, I joined and led the dance troupe “Akaskovo” at the “Prosveta-1905” Community Centre in Akaskovo.

In 2002, I earned my specialised “Bulgarian Folk Choreography” master’s diploma at Plovdiv’s Academy of Music and Dance Arts. I joined the newly formed dance group “Contrast”.

After my graduation, I spent three years as a teacher (2001-2003) in Bulgarian Folklore Dancing.

The period between 2005 and 2009 I dedicated to the choreography at the Thracian Society “Captain Petko Voivoda” – Varna
At that time, Kolevi Dance School was established as a result of the great desire of many people to touch the Bulgarian folk dance. This is also how the Dance Ensembles “Trakiyche” and “Zharava” came to be. Not long after, the Dance Ensemble “Bozhena” and DTS “Charodeytsi” were also founded.

I’ve been working with the “Folklore Magic” ensemble since 2016, and in 2018, I also joined London’s “Folklorche” club. During 2019, I had the pleasure of visiting the fair in Benidorm, Spain where I observed the “Other Bulgaria” event. I was also at the London concert, dedicated to the “Day of the People’s Awakeners” and the celebration for the anniversary of Ensemble “Folk Magic”, held with the dance group “Contact” ended up being quite the challenge to my colleagues and me.

During the fall of 2019, I began working at Dulgopol’s “Ivan Vazov” Primary School and the “Nikola Vapstarov” National Community Centre.

During my career, I’ve had the pleasure of partaking in the following creative projects – “Nestinarka”, “The Road”, “Shopski Dance”, “Kalushari”, “Dobrudzha Dance”, “Varna Dance”, encompassing all ethnographic regions of Bulgaria. Additionally, I’ve also worked with the “Contrast” dance formation on the dances of the Balkan peoples.

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196 Lancaster Road, London, EN2 0JH
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