See other releases of corporate mass media
Victory Waltz
Today, Ural State University of Economics held its twelfth Victory Waltz dance event in Yekaterinburg’s Historical Square. Its participants were 240 couples, including schoolchildren, students, and townspeople.
Yakov Silin, USUE acting rector, chairperson of the Yekaterinburg Public Chamber, and Honorary Citizen of Yekaterinburg, opened the event: “Today, here in the Urals, in the center of the country, the festive parade and the Immortal Regiment march took place. And here’s another symbol—the Victory Waltz. We hope future generations will preserve these symbols. The memory of generations is one of the guarantees that the great country, having won the Great Victory, can preserve it. I congratulate everyone! I wish you peace, goodness, and prosperity! Happy Victory Day!”
Students from Ural universities, colleges, and schools, members of student construction brigades and youth centers, and employees of the Ural Customs Administration performed the Victory Waltz to the musical composition “In a Forest near the Battle-front.” For the second year in a row, Tatyana Savinova, Deputy Governor and Minister of Health of the Sverdlovsk region, joined the dance event.
“Why are we dancing the waltz? Because it’s the melody that resounded on every dance floor and in parks in the post-war years. It’s the key symbol of the continuity of generations. Victory Waltz is the most joyful and happiest peaceful action!” Tatyana Savinova noted.
Every year, thousands of people of all ages participate in the event. This year, the youngest is 9 years old, and the oldest is 75. For the second time, Valentina Georgievna Mityukhlyaeva and Vasily Petrovich Palkin are participating in the dance flash mob. They meticulously prepared for the event during two months: they didn’t miss a single rehearsal, honed dance moves at home, and practiced them immediately before the event.
“I’m taking part in the dance not only to pay tribute to the Soviet people. My father served in the labor army in Nizhnyaya Tura during the war,” said Vasily Palkin, a participant in the event and Yekaterinburg resident.
Ural State University of Economics conceived and first implemented the project in 2014. It immediately attracted the attention of Yekaterinburg residents. Little by little, cities across Russia and other countries joined the dance flash mob. This year, residents of 86 Russian cities and abroad supported it. A distinctive feature of the project is the annual change of attributes. Previous years, participants danced with scarves, banners, and flags, and this year, with ribbons in the tricolor colors.
Since 2020, the event has been held in two formats: offline (with participants attending rehearsals) and online. In-person participants receive classes from a professional choreographer. A USLU student Marina Malchukova is participating in the event for the first time: “We attended rehearsals for a month, but to perfect all the moves, we rehearsed additionally. Victory Day is a glorious holiday, and the event allows us to pay tribute to our ancestors who laid down their lives for our country.”
The international dance event Victory Waltz aims to commemorate the Soviet people’s heroism, foster patriotic feelings in young people, strengthen unity, and pass on historical memory to future generations. The format of the event is based on a tradition established in May 1945, when residents of the USSR danced in the streets of cities and villages, rejoicing at the end of the war and the great Victory. From the very beginning, the initiative was supported by the Ministry of Education and Science of the Russian Federation, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation, the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO), Rossotrudnichestvo, Rosmolodezh, the Youth Public Chamber, the Eurasians – New Wave Foundation, and other organizations and agencies. Educational institutions, creative teams, cities, and countries actively joined the event.
We are sharing a video of this special and touching event!
Participants of the Victory Waltz online event!
Photo gallery:
