The Greek Orthodox Metropolis of San Francisco is pleased to announce that His Eminence Archbishop Demetrios will honor the 34th Annual Folk Dance and Choral Festival in San Jose, California with his presence and attendance at the events throughout the weekend. Archbishop Demetrios briefly attended the 2007 FDF in Ontario, California and referred to this event as a "flagship ministry" for the youth of our Church. During His Eminence's visit to the 2010 FDF, the Archbishop will interact with nearly 2,000 registered dancers and singers who will participate in a weekend of faith, dance and fellowship.
The weekend will begin on Thursday, January 14 with an Agiasmos service to bless the convening of FDF. This will be followed by the traditional Opening Ceremonies and procession of teams in the San Jose Civic Auditorium.
Dance and Choral groups will be participating in competition throughout the weekend on Friday, Saturday and final competition on Sunday. Centered around the theme "Family Takes Center Stage" the weekend will include a series of workshops offered by Metropolis Clergy and Youth Workers. FDF participants enthusiastically participated in the new workshop structure offered in 2009, and the plans for 2010 workshops will continue this successful tradition. "Keeping our youth connected to their culture and faith are very important to their future involvement in the Greek Orthodox Church. Many of the thousands of youth who have participated in FDF over the past 33 years have remained close to the Church, and now serve their parishes as Parish Council members, Sunday School teachers, youth advisors, and some of our former dancers are now priests in our Metropolis. We are blessed that this event brings together so many Orthodox families and provides them the opportunity to cultivate lasting friendships," stated His Eminence Metropolitan Gerasimos of San Francisco.
Saturday evening's Cultural Night will once again feature stellar performances by the dance and choral groups who received the coveted Sweepstakes awards in 2009. A special presentation will be made by the Metropolis Committee on Greek Education and Culture where they will recognize students who have earned the Certificate of Attainment in the Greek Language. They will also be promoting a Greek Language Immersion Camp aimed for elementary school-aged youth being held at Saint Nicholas Ranch in June 2010. Another highlight of the Cultural Night will be the presentations of The Elios Society Award and the Patriarch Athenagoras I Humanitarian Award to deserving individuals in the Metropolis.
Keeping with the family theme, the evenings will include family-style Glendi's featuring both young, local musicians who are actual products of the Folk Dance Festival and internationally renowned musicians from Greece coming solely to perform for this special weekend. FDF is particularly thrilled to welcome the band Makedonikos Ichos (Macedonian Sound) led by Yiorgos Skopakis to FDF this year. Famous throughout Greece, Skopakis plays clarino and saxophone, with his two nephews, Konstantinos on accordion and Elias on daoule/percussion, and Dimtrios Athanasiou on trumpet. All were born and raised in Florina and learned to play their instruments at the knees of their grandfathers, fathers and uncles. In addition to Florina, their repertoire includes many areas of Makedonia and across northern Greece (e.g., Kozani, Grevena, Edessa, Aridea, Goumenissa and Thraki) as well as tunes of the Vlach Greeks who settled in these areas. If you visit the Florina region, you will undoubtedly hear Makedonikos Ichos playing at a panegyri, wedding, baptism, or glendi as they are in great demand and some of the most talented regional musicians in Greece and the US.
Sunday morning the FDF participants and their families will begin the day with a Hierarchical Divine Liturgy at the San Jose Civic Auditorium, celebrated by His Eminence Archbishop Demetrios. The Youth Choir from Saint John the Baptist Church in Las Vegas, NV, joined by other youth choir members from the Metropolis, will sing the hymns and responses for the Divine Liturgy.
Following the conclusion of the final round of competition for the Advanced Senior division, over 2,500 people are expected to gather for the Awards Banquet honoring the outstanding performances of the weekend. The festivities will continue after the awards presentations with dancing to the music of The Olympians.
For over 30 years, the Greek Orthodox Folk Dance and Choral Festival (FDF) has become one of the most vibrant youth ministries in the Greek Orthodox Church. With over 65 parishes across the western United States which comprise the Metropolis of San Francisco, FDF has been the meeting place for thousands of Greek Orthodox Christians year after year.
FDF is one of the central ministries of the Metropolis of San Francisco and is designed to bring together Greek Orthodox Christians of all ages through the love of Greek folk dance and music. It is a forum where youth can come together in friendly competition to share and showcase the history of the Greek people, share in faith and fellowship, and create lifelong friendships and memories.
For more information, visit www.yourfdf.org. See you in San Jose!
4th Thursday after Pascha
