Does the public in Pavel Banya realize how big and “convertible” value is Detelini?
I think that now, definitely yes! The international cultural exchange of Detelini has influenced the municipal administration to establish international contacts with other cities and municipalities. With some of them – Aleksinatz (Serbia) and Rika (Poland) delegations were exchanged and with others – Meliki (Greece) and Liski (Russia) were signed contracts for fraternization. The mayors of Bursa, Afion, Aydun, Mersin (Turkey) expressed their gratitude for the participation of Detelini in their celebrations. This turned the ensemble into an original bridge for the conveyance of the wealth and beauty of Bulgarian folklore all over the world, it has gained us friends and fans in many countries.

In the four casts of the ensemble there are children of Turkish and Roma origin who perform wonderfully Bulgarian songs and dances. This makes Detelini a unique model for solidarity under the Bulgarian flag.
Thank you for the evaluation! It is really truthful. In the 15 years that have passed since the creation of the ensemble more than 300 children have passed through it, from which around 40 kids of Roma origin and 30 of Turkish origin. Some of them became first class dancers.

At the same time Detelini is one of the few ensembles in Bulgaria with a rich repertoire of gypsy songs and dances. The masterpiece “Gypsy Themes” has been aired several times on the Bulgarian National Television, and the dance “Turtle” received a special award on the tenth international Roma festival in Stara Zagora last year.

How do you select your repertoire?
This is a very important moment of our work. It depends a lot on the temperament of the choreographer, on his/hers knowledge of the folklore. I don’t share the opinion of some colleagues that the Thracians must dance only Thracian dances, the Shopps – only Shopp dances, etc. I strive for the children of the ensemble to know the Bulgarian folklore in all its regional varieties and in the repertoire of Detelini there are Bulgarian folk songs and dances from all ethnographic districts. You’ve seen them yourself – they exhale the sadness of the Rhodopes, the wise tranquility of the Thracians, the playfulness of the Shopps, the love and misery of Dobroudja. When we go abroad no one asks from which region of the country we come from – for them we are Bulgaria – with all its folklore wealth and beauty.

From some of the parents I learned that among the children from the ensemble there is a remarkable friendship and solidarity – they mentioned some of its charity campaigns. Will you share some more specific?
In the ensemble reigns an atmosphere of camaraderie and desire for mutual aid. A specific example of that is the case when a girl from the ensemble got injured in an accident. The family couldn’t afford the medical treatment. Then the children gave a charity concert under the heading “To Ina with Love”. It was really touching! From the stage to the sky flew songs, sincere words of love, prayers… This concert had an enormous moral value, it made all the parents compassionate about the fate of the injured girl; it united the efforts and generosity of the community of Pavel Banya. And a little miracle happened – now Ina is healthy and is once again dancing in the ensemble! Another member – the 20-year-old Dido, a university student, died from a severe illness. His death was a shock to all of us. On the day of St. George this year we gave a concert “In memory”, dedicated to him. We wanted it to be just as he would like it – with the songs and dances he loved so much.

I think that gestures like that strongly affect the values and morals of the children, they teach them compassion, magnanimity and humanity.

Will you allow me a more personal question? You are an economist by profession and you have your own accounting firm. Don’t you get bifurcated between your actual job and your enormous commitment to Detelini? What have your husband and two daughters to say about that?
I am often asked questions like that. It is true that the art of dance isn’t my profession – I have graduated from the higher economical institute in Sofia. But from a very early age I love the Bulgarian folk dances – they are in my heart and soul and as a schoolgirl I was a really good performer. That is why when 15 years ago, the principal of the school in Pavel Banya at that time Deshka Porova created the ensemble and invited me to lead it, I realized that I had the vocation to pass on to the children what I had learnt. But because I’m used to do everything professionally and in the way it should be done, I decided to educate myself in that direction. I graduated the one year school for directors of amateur dance ensembles with the Centre for Amateur Art Activities in Plovdiv. That is how Detelini turned into my second dominant in life and it is no way in conflict with my professional duties. Something more – in 1998 I quit my state job and opened my own accounting firm to have the opportunity and freedom to organize my time in such a way that I could be helpful to Detelini and with a part of my income I support the performances of the ensemble. It is true that it is a big public engagement – the children are now more than 150! But after an all-day-long “communication” with documents, numbers and computers, at the rehearsals with the ensemble I relax and give way to my positive emotions.

And my whole family is committed to the ensemble as well. My husband Kolio Kavrukov is a sports teacher and on our initiative we created a Bulgarian folk dancing division in the school. My older daughter Maria graduated that choreographic division and even though she studies to take her MA in economics at the University of Varna, every weekend she travels back to help me with the ensemble. We now have 4 of her own productions! My younger daughter Detelina is now in 12th grade and will pursue law studies. She dances in the ensemble from kindergarten. She is very talented and is a soloist in some of the dances. This devotion of my whole family gives me calmness, strength and faith that we are doing something useful not only to our city but also to Bulgaria.

Yordanka Tropolova