ACAS “Sevdah” will take part in this year’s Tulip Festival

Saturday, May 4 at 1 pm in front of the City Hall building in Ottawa

May song and dance sail us into spring

“Let’s take a walk across Bosnia and Herzegovina through its beautiful folk dances.  May love poetry awaken our buried feelings.  Let the “Old city songs” (starogradske) sail us into a new spring, and may “sevdalinka” awaken our souls.”

“Sevdalije” held an open house in February of this year which was a great success, as was our evening of music and poetry. This event was held at the Library and Archives of Canada, titled “Evening of music and poetry”.  It gathered fans of poetry, old city songs (starogradske), folk dances and “sevdalinka”, alike. At the very beginning of our gathering, the Ambassador of BH Embassy, Biljana Gutic-Bjelica, addressed the audience.   Her speech touched everyone, especially members of “Sevdah”, as it was a great compliment and recognition for our clearly defined purpose of representing a multicultural Bosnia and Herzegovina.

This was followed by a program full of variety with something for everyone, and according to the reactions from our audience, it was a great success. In addition to the folklore dances performed by AKUD “Sevdah” the audience had an opportunity to revel in musical compositions of Anastasia Filippova, Una Bjelica and Faik Cavalic.  The sketch “Busybodies”, performed by Mia Glisic, Elma Caklo, Matea Vijackic and Semir Nalic, was a real treat for our audience members of all ages.  Our young actresses and actor handled their stage debut very professionally and were rewarded with loud applause.

After the official part of the program our gathering continued with guests who did not hide their enthusiasm and satisfaction evoked by the program performed as well as the overall organization.  Treated with numerous delicacies from Bosnia and Herzegovina, touched and awakened through “sevdalinka”, both guests and members of “Sevdah” welcomed and sailed into a new spring.

Photos from this event can be viewed under the category “Photos”.

Open House by Merima Uzarevic and Irma Tabakovic

Explore Bosnia and Herzegovina

Several members of “Sevdah” attended a dinner organized by Dr. Zeybek, although it was held in the evening and during the work week. Dr. Zeybek and other members of the Intercultural Dialogue Institute (IDI) organized the dinner at Algonquin College. Featured speaker was Dr. John Dorner from the Ottawa Archdiocese and the theme of the evening was “Green Faith”.

This evening, with its pleasant atmosphere and good food, was a great opportunity for members of “Sevdah” to meet new people and form new friendships. Other speakers at the dinner were members of the Federal government, Chief of Ottawa Police, members of other communities, a representative of the Department of National Defence, as well as the “Sevdah” public relations officer Maida Caklo.

As the time goes on, members of “Sevdah” are being invited to numerous local events and receptions. One of the events they were invited to was a reception organized by the Anatolian Heritage Federation (AHF). Wearing their beautiful traditional costumes, members of “Sevdah” were once again the centre of attention.

Members of Parliament, dignitaries and other guests asked to have their pictures taken with our group. There were even some that were reluctant to leave our display, which was as always artfully done. Aside from the members of “Sevdah”, other members of the Bosnian community, as well as Mithat Pašić, Counsellor of the Embassy of Bosnia and Herzegovina in Ottawa, attended the reception.

For members of “Sevdah”, the long weekend in October was reserved for taking pictures in the gorgeous Gatineau Park. A cool autumn day did not prevent them from doing what they had planned. Dressed in the traditional costumes of Bosnia and Herzegovina, with all the necessary accessories, they strolled through the park and were the main attraction for other visitors of the park. Smiling faces and beautiful costumes blended perfectly with the golden autumn colours. In this section we are showcasing just a few photographs. To see the rest, please check out “Photos”.