The four-day festival will be part of the run-up programme to 2010, when Pécs will take the title European Capital of Culture.
In addition to the troupes performing at the opening, Greece's EL.KE.LA.M Hellenic Dance Troupe will be on the programme. The Budapest Dance Theatre will perform Mediterranean, and the Győr Ballet will show their rendering of The Phantom of the Opera. Festival-goers will also have a chance to meet the world famous choreographer-dancer József Nagy, who was born in an ethnic Hungarian enclave of Serbia.
The festival aims to show locals and visitors Pécs's colourful and powerful dance tradition, as well as the varied styles and forms of dance from other countries around the world, Vincze said.
In the future, the festival may become similar to Pécs's National Theatre Conference or integrate a wider range of performing arts, Vincze said. He added that it is hoped the Pécs Ballet's organisational efforts will bring it more invitations to perform abroad.
Source: Hungarian News Agency (MTI)
