A Rom from Feather-Bed or Enter Majority
created: 23. 03. 2023 11:57 modified: 23. 03. 2023 12:08
A monodrama, the author is František Balog who also plays the title role, is based on his own life story. Jovial and witty, with large dose of sarcasm, the scenes from the life of the Romani boy growing in orphanage are accompanied by songs sung by the actor who also plays piano. The drama illustrates the principal events and meetings, successes and failures which shaped the protagonist from his childhood to adulthood. The autobiographic elements make the monodrama an extremely personal statement of the most sensitive talented artist who inspite of his social handicap is able to find his own place in life and achieve his goals without losing his compassion and optimism. The under title of the drama – Enter Majority insinuates – according to its author – his own coming of age and becoming adult; in the same time it speaks about acts of people who smuggled him into the mainstream society, something what first seemed next to impossible. The monodrama is performed in RS9 Színház in Budapest, Hungary, during the program of the theater festival Roma Heroes.
Screenplay - František Balog; Director - Juraj Bielik; Performer – František Balog
Frantisek Balog was born on November 9, 1982 to underage Romani mother in a Romani settlement. He grew up in the orphanage SLON (An Elephant) in Šarišské Michaľany, he sang in their choir and became a well-known child TV star. Later, he studed acting in the Secondary School of Arts in Košice (2002 – 2005), after graduation he went on College for Musical Arts where he specialized in musical acting (2005 – 2008). He was a member of various theaters: The Arena Theater, The International Theater Meteorit, The L+S Theater, The Bolek Polivka’s Theater, Studio 12, The Theater a.ha, The Bibiana Theater, The State Theater in Košice (since 2010 on). His roles on the stage include dozens of smaller as well as bigger roles. In several TV series he managed to secure several smaller roles as well. He also works at the Actor Theater in Košice, for which he plays, writes and produces his own plays.
category: drama
tags: theater comedy spoken drama stage original Slovak František Balog Juraj Bielik general audience internal
Alexander Daško
created: 22. 03. 2023 15:21 modified: 22. 04. 2024 07:35
Alexander Daško was born in the settlement in Čierny Balog, the youngest of 13 children. According to his words, it was music which became his ticket into the world; which he both studies and performes since his childhood, being able to do so thanks to a strong sense of responsibility of his parents. Nowadays a musician well known not only in Slovakia has his own band, three children and a Russian wife. The family si, therefore, multicultural, speaking Romani, Slovak, Russian and English languages. He graduated from conservatoire in Žilina, later on from the Faculty of Pedagogy of Matej Bel University. In Banská Bystrica he has organised already 15 years of the event – the festival Gypsy Fire; he established his private musical school for talented Romani and non-Romani children.
category: speaking
tags: retrospective biographical monologue guided Slovak Alexander Daško general audience internal
Magdaléna Rothová - Roma Spirit in Kežmarok
created: 21. 03. 2023 13:11 modified: 21. 03. 2023 13:14
Magdaléna Rothová is the director of the Association for Culture, Education and Communication (ACEC), she is also the senior lecturer of the Platform for Better Health of Vulnerable Groups and participates at the trainings of the health asistants. Currently, she works full time for the Roma Spirit project as its organiser and producer. She is also actively participating at the projects of health education for the socially weak groups Together for Better Health, Lunik IX, The Healthy Communities. In the interview she provides information about the Roma Spirit Project and its beginning, its uniqueness, the mission and significance for the society as well as its vision for its future development.
category: speaking
tags: biographical monologue guided Slovak Magdaléna Rothová Roma spirit general audience internal
Jozef Červeňák
created: 23. 02. 2023 11:13 modified: 16. 03. 2023 08:12
PhDr. Jozef Červeňák was born in Dobšiná, the Rožňava district. He graduated from the Faculty of Social Sciences of the University of Konstantin the Philosopher in Nitra. In 1993 he started to work at the Roma Community Center in Rožňava, from 1998 to 2004 he lead the cultural and educational organization Roma-Gemer. Later, he also worked as the Headperson of the Municipal District Luník IX in Košice (2006 – 2007) and national coordinator of national projects financed from the sources of the European Union (Methodological and Pedagogical Center in Prešov). He passed away during the Covid-19 pandemic, in November 2021 in the village of Roštár, where he is also buried. The interview was produced by the Art Society Ltd. Project titled Roma, 30 years after... supported by the Fund for Development of Culture of National Minorities, in 2018.
category: speaking
tags: retrospective biographical monologue guided Slovak Jozef Červeňák general audience internal
Alexander Daško a Vladimír Sendrei
created: 15. 02. 2023 14:59 modified: 16. 02. 2023 15:04
Vladimír Sendrei, a singer and frontman of the music group Sendreiovci and Kokavakere lavutara. He is the chairman of the Civic Association Latcho Drom and the main organizer of the music festival Balval Fest.
Alexander Daško comes from Čierny Balog. He is a musician, together with his band became well-known not only in Slovakia. He attended the Conservatory in Žilina, later graduated from the Pedagogical Fakulty of Matej Bel University. In Banská Bystrica, for many years already, he has been organising the festival Cigánsky oheň (Gypsy Fire); he established and manages his own music school.
The main topic of the interview is their experience gathered in cooperation with foreign musicians. Vladimír Sendrei cooperated with Hans Zimmer who picked him and the band to play his music in the film Sherlock Holmes 2: A Game of Shadows.
Alexander Daško speaks about Goran Bregovič and their common performance at the concert in Banská Bystrica. The other topics are contemporary Romani music in Slovakia, music inspirations and plans for future.
category: speaking
tags: retrospective biographical dialogue guided Slovak Alexander Daško Vladimír Sendrei Hans Zimmer Goran Bregovič general audience
Lenka Goroľová
created: 15. 02. 2023 14:48 modified: 31. 03. 2023 13:52
Lenka Goroľová lives in the village of Hlinné, district of Vranov nad Topľou. She attended the elementary school in Hlinné, late in the neighbouring village Soľ. She received her secondary education at the State Grammar School (currently renamed as The Cyril Daxner Secondary Grammar School) in Vranov nad Topľou. She graduated from the Catholic University in Ružomberok as a teacher of the Slovak language and literature and Philosophy. After that she started working as the field social worker in Hlinné, then the teacher assistant in Soľ, later on she spent some years teaching Slovak and Romani languages at the Private Secondary Pedagogical and Social Academy in Košice. Currently, she is a teacher of the Romani language at Prešov University in Prešov, The Institute of the Romani Studies.
In the interview she speaks about her personal and professional life and studies since her childhood until present days.The interview was recorded on July 6, 2021 in the Romani Studies Room of the State Sciencetific Library in Prešov.
category: speaking
tags: retrospective biographical monologue guided Slovak Romani Lenka Goroľová general audience internal
Romani Stars
created: 25. 11. 2022 14:06 modified: 25. 11. 2022 14:14
Video from the exhibition entitled Romani Stars, which took place on March 12, 2014 in the premises of the Zemplín Enlightenment Center in Michalovce. The exhibition was organized by the civic association Nová cesta from Michalovce.
In the video, Jozef Fečo presents and describes his exhibited drawings and paintings, with humor typical for him.
Jozef Fečo is a graduate of the Secondary Art School in Prešov, Department of Design and Artistic Wood Shaping. He is mainly interested in the facial expressions of human faces, their expressive value and typical personality traits.
category: fine arts
tags: secular material artistic 2D artifact painting drawing Slovak Jozef Fečo general audience internal
I Have a Handsome Boyfriend - The Folk Band of Július Žiga
created: 16. 11. 2022 14:32 modified: 16. 11. 2022 14:35
The core members of the family cimbalom band are the Žigas from Gelnica: father Július,hisdaughter Bohdana and son Filip. Guest members are Vladimír Plachetka, Kristián Bandy and Július Bandy. All of them are graduates of conservatories and are engaged in music production professionally. Bohdana Žigová and Filip Žiga were scholarship recipients of the Divé maky organization.
The presented song is a slow song about love between a girl and her boyfiriend.
Instruments and players: Július Žiga - double bass, Bohdana Žigová - cello, vocals, Filip Žiga - violin, Július Bandy - cimbalom, Kristián Bandy - viola, Vladimír Plachetka - accordion.
The record was created on 11/12/2021, at the Center for Independent Culture Wave in Prešov.
category: music
tags: vocal-instrumental modern folk sextet borrowed Romani The Folk Band of Július Žiga general audience internal
When I Came to the Apple Tree - Július Žiga and the Band
created: 15. 11. 2022 11:22 modified: 15. 11. 2022 11:25
The core members of the family cimbalom band are the Žigas from Gelnica: father Július, his daughter Bohdana and son Filip. Guest members are Vladimír Plachetka, Kristián Bandy and Július Bandy. All of them are graduates of conservatories and are engaged in music production professionally. Bohdana Žigová and Filip Žiga were scholarship recipients of the Divé maky organization.
The song When I Came to the Apple Tree (Sar me geľom ke jablonka) is in two-quarter time, with a slower tempo during the verses and an accelerated tempo during the interludes. Bohdana Žigová interprets it with Romani lyrics.
Instruments and players: Július Žiga - double bass, Bohdana Žigová - cello, vocals, Filip Žiga - violin, Július Bandy - cimbalom, Kristián Bandy - viola, Vladimír Plachetka - accordion.
The record was created on December 11, 2021, at the Center for Independent Culture Wave in Prešov.
category: music
tags: vocal-instrumental modern folk sextet borrowed Romani The Folk Band of Július Žiga general audience internal
Czardas – The Folk Band of Július Žiga
created: 15. 11. 2022 10:00 modified: 15. 11. 2022 11:11
The core members of the family cimbalom band are the Žigas from Gelnica: father Július,his daughter Bohdana and son Filip. Guest members are Vladimír Plachetka, Kristián Bandy and Július Bandy. All of them are graduates of conservatories and are engaged in music production professionally. Bohdana Žigová and Filip Žiga were scholarship recipients of the Divé maky organization.
The presented composition is a czardasz, a dance song designed for couple dancing.
Instruments and players: Július Žiga - double bass, Bohdana Žigová - cello, vocals, Filip Žiga - violin, Július Bandy - cimbalom, Kristián Bandy - viola, Vladimír Plachetka - accordion.
The record was created on 11/12/2021, at the Center for Independent Culture Wave in Prešov.
category: music
tags: vocal-instrumental modern folk sextet borrowed Romani The Folk Band of Július Žiga general audience internal
