Vasyl Avramenko

Vasyl Avramenko loved to dance.

He taught dances from his home. He wanted people to be proud of their culture. He started many dance schools. He taught over 100 schools.

He traveled to many lands. He went to Canada and the United States. He even went to Hollywood. He wanted the world to see his dances.

He made a film about a story. The story was called Natalka Poltavka. This helped share his art.

Vasyl was a great teacher. He shared his joy through dance.

Vasyl Avramenko was a famous dancer and teacher.

He was born in Ukraine in 1895. He loved his culture very much. He wanted to share Ukrainian folk dance with the whole world. Many people call him the "Father of Ukrainian Dance."

Avramenko studied many different dance steps. He took notes on how to move. He turned these steps into a real art form. He opened over 100 dance schools. He taught people in Europe and North America.

In Canada, his dance groups were very popular. They performed for huge crowds. He also moved to the United States. He set up schools in New York City. He even tried to show his dances on Broadway. He wanted everyone to see the beauty of his home.

Avramenko also worked in film. He started a film company in New York. He wanted to make a movie about a famous story. The story was called *Natalka Poltavka*. He used film to help the Ukrainian cause. He spent his life traveling to teach and perform.

Vasyl Avramenko was a man who lived to share his culture. He was a dancer, a teacher, and a director from Ukraine. Many people call him the "Father of Ukrainian Dance" because he spread folk dance across the globe.

He was known for being energetic and very imaginative. His main goal was to show the world the beauty of Ukrainian traditions. He wanted people to feel pride in their own history through movement.

Avramenko learned how to turn village dances into a grand art form. In 1917, he attended lectures by Vasyl Verkhovynets about dance theory and performance. Avramenko took many careful notes on different steps and movements. He later wrote a book called *Ukrainian National Dances, Music, and Costumes*. This book helped preserve the legacy of dance in Ukraine. He believed that these traditional steps belonged on a professional stage.

His journey as a teacher began in a very difficult place. In 1921, he was in a camp in Kalisz. Even there, he started his first school of Ukrainian folk dancing. He taught everyone from small children to the camp guards.

This was the first of more than 100 schools he would open. He traveled through many towns in Ukraine to teach and lead workshops. He would often leave a leader behind to keep the dancing alive.

In 1925, Avramenko arrived in Canada with a big mission. He opened his first North American school in Toronto. His dance groups became very famous and performed for huge crowds. At the Canadian National Exhibition, up to 25,000 people watched them perform. He later moved to Winnipeg and opened more schools across the prairies. He even taught teachers in Edmonton how to bring dance into public schools. His work helped the Ukrainian-Canadian community stay connected to their roots.

Avramenko also tried to reach even larger audiences in the United States. He moved to New York City and set up schools in Manhattan. He even attempted to stage big shows on Broadway and at the Metropolitan Opera. To reach more people, he turned to the world of movies. In 1936, he started the Avramenko Film Company in New York. He wanted to make a film about a famous Ukrainian story called *Natalka Poltavka*. He used every tool he had to share his culture with the world.

Vasyl Kyrylovych Avramenko was a multifaceted Ukrainian artist and cultural leader. He worked as an actor, dancer, choreographer, balletmaster, director, and film producer. Avramenko is widely recognized for spreading Ukrainian folk dance across the entire world. Many historians and community members refer to him as the "Father of Ukrainian Dance." He was known for his energetic, imaginative, and sometimes exasperating personality. His life's work focused on elevating traditional village movements into a professional art form.

Avramenko's early life was marked by significant hardship and movement. Born on March 22, 1895, in Stebliv, he was orphaned at a young age. He spent his adolescence wandering as a homeless youth. Eventually, he traveled east across the vast Russian Empire to Vladivostok. There, his eldest brother taught him to read and write. This education allowed Avramenko to work at a naval base. As a crewman on Russian naval vessels, he visited several major Asian ports. These travels encouraged a lifelong love of learning and global exposure.

His professional foundation began with formal study and military service. In 1912, he saw a production of the operetta *Natalka Poltavka* in Vladivostok. This was his first experience seeing Ukrainian culture on a stage. After passing his teacher's exams in 1915, he was drafted into the Russian Imperial Army. He served in several regiments, including the 4th Heavy Artillery Regiment and the 35th Siberian Infantry Regiment. During the war, he was wounded and hospitalized in Minsk and Petrograd. While in Petrograd, he joined a troupe of military actors. This experience helped him discover his natural flair for the stage.

In 1917, Avramenko attended lectures by Vasyl Verkhovynets in Kyiv. Verkhovynets taught the theory and choreography of Ukrainian folk dance. Avramenko took extensive notes to compile a vocabulary of dance steps. He later published these findings in his book, *Ukrainian National Dances, Music, and Costumes*. This work aimed to preserve the legacy of Ukrainian dance. He also worked with various theatrical troupes, including those led by Mykola Sadovsky.

Avramenko's career as a teacher grew during difficult political times. In 1921, while interned in the Kalisz camp, he established his first dance school. He taught 100 students, ranging from small children to camp guards. This was the first of more than 100 schools he would open over 20 years. He later toured western Ukraine, visiting cities like Lviv, Rivne, and Lutsk. He conducted workshops to encourage others to pass these dances on. This method of teaching ensured the traditions survived in many different towns.

In December 1925, Avramenko arrived in Canada to promote Ukrainian independence. He opened his first North American school in Toronto at St. Mary's Roman Catholic hall. His troupe performed for massive crowds, including 25,000 spectators at the Canadian National Exhibition. He later moved to Winnipeg in 1927 and expanded into the Canadian prairies. He taught in cities such as Saskatoon, Yorkton, and Edmonton. In Edmonton, he trained 20 public school teachers to teach dance to their students. His leadership helped establish lasting groups, such as the Ukrainian Shumka Dancers.

Avramenko eventually moved to New York City to reach even larger audiences. He established schools in Manhattan and the Lower East Side. In the 1930s, he used phonograph records to teach dance without live music. He attempted to bring Ukrainian culture to the grandest stages in America. He staged a massive performance at the Metropolitan Opera with 500 dancers and 100 singers. While the English-speaking press gave it a positive review, the Ukrainian press saw it as an artistic failure. This was because the audience expected a high-level operetta rather than folk traditions.

To solve his growing financial debts, Avramenko turned to the film industry. He established the Avramenko Film Company in New York City in 1936. He raised $25,000 to produce a feature film of the operetta *Natalka Poltavka*. He believed this film would bring global fame to the Ukrainian cause.

His work connected traditional folk arts with modern media like film and recording. Through these various methods, he ensured that Ukrainian dance became a recognized global art form.