GAU Dance Fest 2014
By Margaret Sheard
I was surprised to learn just a few days before that the originally 
planned Dance Fest on Thursday 24th July had been postponed but I was able to circulate the news immediately and hope that it reached the people who had planned to attend the Dance Fest on Thursday.
The Dance Fest was re-scheduled for Saturday 26th July and I learned later that the postponement of the event was for the 3 days of National Mourning declared by the TRNC Government in recognition of the dreadful events happening in the Gaza Strip, which was supported by GAU.
We arrived at the GAU Spectrum Hall early on Saturday 26th July, to be sure of a seat as this had been advertised as open to the 
general public with free entrance. At this point I apologise for the quality of my pictures as I was some way back from the stage and it was difficult to take photographs, however it is still possible to imagine the brilliant performances of the students at their end of year Dance Fest.
The show opened with a minute’s silence for the people involved in all the current turmoil in the Middle East and especially Palestine. Simgi Ozekler welcomed the audience (in Turkish) and Suzan Heijari, the Head of the Dance Academy, spoke in English and then the show started.
There were 10 different dances in the first half, all very varied and extremely well presented, this was followed by a short interval and there were a further 9 dances in the second half, all of which were performed beautifully. As well as the 9 planned dances in the second half we were treated to a surprise performance by a ballerina from Ankara – Dephne Mutlu, who dances with the Ankara State Ballet and Galip Emre dance company. The show ended with a performance of Papa, a dance we had previously seen at the recent Gala Night, but this time we had on stage “papa” and a cute little boy who brought a smile to everyone’s face, including the dancers.
This was a wonderful show and congratulations should be given to all of the people involved with the choreography, costumes etc. the people who work in the background to ensure everything goes to plan and most of all the very talented young dancers who are embarking on careers in the world of theatre and dance. Well done everyone, it was a very enjoyable evening.
