​Before you even notice, the week of the Song and Dance Festival is almost over. The most important, emotional and magnificent concert is ahead - the closing concert ‘‘Zvaigžņu ceļā’’, which took place on the new Mežaparks large stage. The concert will feature the history of the Song Festival from its beginnings to the present day. Accompanied by dancers, the Song Festival flag was carried and raised on stage during the ‘‘Karoga dziesma’’, followed by the Latvian anthem and our own beloved “Lec, saulīte”. More than one dancer shed tears of happiness and joy. Every song and word sung in the concert, the surrounding atmosphere made ants run. However, when the dance groups joined the chorus to “Sasala jūrīna” and “Manai dzimtenei” and performed these powerful dances, the feelings were indescribable. "Zvaigžņu ceļš" was the culmination of a five-year period for everyone - both participants and dancers - and made them realize their belonging to Latvia, folk traditions, and the power of dance and song.

The best Latvian folk dance groups and ensembles began the XXVI Latvian Song and XVI Dance Festival with two wonderful concerts – ‘‘Vēl simt gadu dejai’’ – at Arena Riga.

The performance featured both ancient and currently popular works by popular dance authors performed by different generations of dancers. The groups had already been rehearsing before the festival began. While preparing for it, each participant already felt that the concert would be very magnificent, enjoyable for the audience and, most importantly, the dancers themselves. The simplicity of the stage design highlighted the beauty of Latvian dances and the patterns they created, and, of course, the stately and always smiling dancers themselves. At the concert we danced the same beloved dances as ‘‘Gatves deja’’, ‘‘Spēlē, Spēlmani’’, ‘‘Es izjāju prūšu zemi’’ and ‘‘Aiz ezera augsti kalni’’.

​Inhale, exhale… Inhale, exhale… Five seconds before taking the first step, starting a dance is the most nerve-wracking moment for a dancer. And with each breath, your heart beats faster and faster. And then you suddenly find yourself on stage and you have nothing left to do but trust your partner’s encouraging smile and handshake, and let yourself be captivated by the magic of the dance. We can safely say that the show is one of the most stressful events for dancers, especially the final show, in which just participating is a great honor and you just want to show yourself from the best side.

Fortunately, we have Elita, Sanita and Sarmīte, with whom we earned ourselves the award-winning 3rd place, which we shared with our beloved brother JDK “Austris”!

You can view the results of the show here:

http://www.lnkc.gov.lv/Uploads/2018/06/03/1528048972_4762.pdf

You can also watch the virtual shows with all the witty and concise comments here:

http://straume.lmt.lv/lv/notikumi/notikumi/deju-konkurss/1023760

​The morning of May 1st started a little differently for the people of Ačkupi - they had to get up early and be dressed in national costumes at the Freedom Monument by seven in the morning. Then our creative day could begin!

We are talking about our project dedicated to the centenary of Latvia “Lec, saulīte!”. We chose to make a video specifically for this song, because Rita Spalva’s choreography touched our hearts and we still remembered the sound of the song from the final performance of the song with the same name in Mežaparks.

The preparation process was long and complicated, while all permits were coordinated with state authorities. We decided that we wanted to discover the most significant cultural and historical places in Riga, which are associated with art, song, culture, dance and Latvianness. So, as a result, we came to the conclusion that the best places for this were the Latvian National Library, the AB Dam near the large Latvian flag, the Dome Square and, of course, the Freedom Monument.

The filming process went very well and there were no obstacles, so we finished filming 2 hours earlier than planned. The most interesting thing for us was at Dome Square, where we happened to be at the exact moment when foreign tourists were exploring the city and, fortunately for them, ended up at a concert where they saw Latvian folk dance, filming and, of course, dancers in beautiful Latvian national costumes. After each dance, there was a big storm of applause and tourists immediately ran to the dancers to take pictures. We ourselves also took advantage of the fact that there was both a filmmaker and a photographer, so we also created group photos and individual portraits of the LV centennial Ačkupa lineup.

As a result, we got a very beautiful video, which was made by everyone working together as a team!

We would like to say a big thank you to:

Music composer - Raimonds Tigulis

Text author - Rasa Bugavičute-Pēce

Song performers - choir "Balsis" and conductor Intas Teterovskis

Choreographer - Rita Spalva

Our leader - Elita Treilone

Video creators - otherside.lv

Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q3a1pwTtc-Y

Warm summer in Latvia - even warmer in Bulgaria! So we flew to beautiful Bulgaria in mid-July to participate in a dance festival in Sofia. We arrived in the city surrounded by mountains quickly and calmly. The first impression of Bulgaria - it is hot, it is beautiful, it is cheap, but definitely not in the worst sense! The opening of the festival took place in the suburban center of Sofia, where all the festival participants gave their first performance, giving a small insight into the traditional dance of each nation. On this active note, we continued the festival, dancing in various places in Sofia, creating joy for ourselves and others. During the festival, we made friends with several groups, but the friendliest relations were formed with the Chilean group, with whom we also won the game organized by the festival and together we won the title "Festival Couple". We danced with all our hearts at the festival and the jury appreciated it, as a result we won 3rd place. After the festival we took the opportunity to see both Sofia and part of Bulgaria. Bulgaria is a fabulous country - nature, architecture, people and the emotions we experienced will remain in our memories for a long time. Благодаря!!!

This weekend was planned so well for us! We traveled with the "Latvian Centenary Express" across the country from Daugavpils to Liepāja and even further - all the way to Valga, stopping in Tukums, Dobele and more...

I'm sure everyone has thought at least once - what would it be like if I had my own train - we did, we ate here, stayed overnight, prepared for concerts, and at the same time we also shot a couple of scenes for the film 'Residents', we had a very fun trip!

Video insight into our adventure:

https://www.facebook.com/liepajaskultura/videos/1352473358170601/

The biggest project of the year - 12 photo shoots in 12 months, resulting in a wonderful, cherished calendar...

We are making history today, so we immortalized 21st century dancers in national costumes in various places in Latvia. The idea was inspired by the diverse nature, magnificent and rich national costumes and Latvian mythology. The photographs are an interpretation of the interaction of nature, national costume and man, feeling that we are the guardians and continuers of the heritage.

With love for folk dance and national costumes.

This calendar was created as a gift for the 65th anniversary of Ačkups, we put our heart and soul into it, it brought us closer, it was truly a great project that will always be remembered!

Our biggest thanks go to the initiator of the project and the president of Ačkups, Zane Apsīte, as well as our dearest thanks to our photographer Jānis Romanovskis.

The best shots can be viewed here:

https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.611055039065913&type=1&l=4c084aa23d

Definitely one of the biggest events in Ačkups' travel history - a trip to South Korea to participate in a major dance festival in the city of Cheonan! At the end of September, we boarded a plane to go on an unforgettable dance adventure. At the beginning of this adventure, we got to know the biggest city of South Korea, Seoul. Surrounded by big skyscrapers, we looked at the culture of the Eastern world. This city never stopped surprising us with its splendor and polite people. To be honest, we were the center of attention because of our tall stature and "round eyes" - beautiful Latvians! After getting our first impression of South Korean culture, we went to the dance festival venue in the city of Cheonan. Getting to know the organizers of the event, representatives of other countries and dancers at the grand opening event was the main experience before dancing on the big stage in the presence of several thousand spectators. After the grand opening of the festival, the main events of the festival began: dancing in various suburbs and city areas of Cheonan, so that festival-goers could experience the concerts of various guest artists. And so - dance after dance, emotion after emotion, concerts were danced...as well as a competition was danced, as a result of which we won the award-winning 3rd place! So the festival sounded, but our adventure did not end completely, some of us went back home to Latvia and some of us stayed in South Korea to enjoy the charming splendor of this country, both in nature and in the historical centers. Thank you South Korea for the culture shock in the best sense!
Nothing without RSU support.
고맙습니다  

On October 26, the morning started on the stage of the Opera, then in the evening we danced the concert "Dejā rotātā", where we honored the great choreographer Ingrīda Saulīte.

We had the honor of dancing Ačikops for 16 couples and also ... dances that amused the audience and made us learn the national dances of other countries.

The opera stage welcomed us with great spaciousness and the dancers themselves had a great feeling of elation and happiness to be there.

On May 31 and June 1, the first joint rehearsal of the dance performance "Lec Saulīte" took place in the International Exhibition Center Ķīpsala.

To create something beautiful requires a lot of effort, which is not always easy to do, but you know - the satisfaction, being together - common strength and unity, which was visible during these two days...  it is worth it!!! A new vigor and a new spark was kindled in the heart of each participant. Because the upcoming big performance really, really promises to be magically beautiful. 

Latvian people celebrate holidays on Līgo night, keeping their rituals alive and contemporary. This holiday is a confirmation of the nation's vitality, awareness of its origins and roots. 
That is why the performance is based on a story, which if you hear, see and experience, you will be able to enter the world of light chanting and the ritual of the nation's vital holidays. It is so beautiful to experience the power of the people being together - to realize our values and the beautiful wealth of the nation - garlanding, braiding wreaths, decorating houses and livestock, lighting bonfires, going to the sauna, fertility race, sailing, searching for fern flower and other traditions surround this night, making it for the energetically strongest night of the year. 

The story of the performance will remind us of the true values of Līgo Night.

In the international exhibition center "Ķīpsala" on July 1 this year, a dance laureate competition took place - the final show, in which "Ačkups" performed with the first number. 
The competition was very strong, because the best and most skilled dancers from Latvia participated in this competition. 

According to the regulations of the competition, the dance collectives performed three dances in the competition: one from the collective repertoire of the respective group of the Dance Festival's big performance "Tēvu laipas", one newly made dance, which was created after 2008 and which is not in the repertoire of this Dance Festival, and the third dance - free choice. "Ačkups" chose to participate in the competition with the following dances: "Apkal manu kumeliņu", "Mēs ciemiņus gaidīdami" and "Sen to Rīgu daudzināja". 

This competition is proof that "Ačkups" is really one of the best ensembles in Latvia.

Georgia - mountains, wine, cows, khachuperi, khinkali, sun, dance and chacha.

Ačkups participated at the folk dance festival "Golden Dolphin", which took place in the Georgian city of Batumi, which is located on the coast of the Black Sea.

At the festival, we danced in three concerts and joined in both the opening and closing processions, as well as constantly taking pictures with other festival participants, because our tall guys and smiling girls with bright skirts did not leave anyone indifferent.

The biggest benefit of the festival was seeing the attitude, passion, work and love of dance that the dancers put into their performances. Here we must also mention the little Georgian dancers, who are truly admirable and did not leave anyone indifferent.

In general, the main key word for both the festival and Georgia is contrasts, because surprises awaited us at every step and you can never really be sure how fast the minibus driver will drive, how a luxurious theater building will look from the inside, and what kind of khachuperi will be brought for lunch.

But you can undeniably understand Georgia through its people and their hospitality. And in fact, Georgia can be described with one sentence, which in a sense is their philosophy "We have everything, if not, then we will!"

We were participating in the national dance competition. This time we have obtained the highest rating with 62.3 points out of 65 maximum. We are satisfied and happy with what we have done, and we will continue to work so that the result and quality only grow! 

We invite you to visit exhibition

"Ačkups' 60 years of dance"

opening festivities on Friday, 9th  December at 16.00 at Riga Stradins University (RSU) Museum exhibition hall K-102, Dzirciema street 16.

The exhibition was prepared at the RSU Museum in cooperation with the RSU Folk Dance Ensemble "Ačkups". It will tell about the team's activities from 1951 to 2011, historical costumes, symbols, trophies, souvenirs and photographs will be on display.

The closing concert and dance grand performance are usually the most grandiose and anticipated concerts at the Song and Dance Festival for both spectators and participants. More than 18 thousand dancers of all generations participated in the XXVI General Latvian Song and XVI Dance Festival dance grand performance ‘‘Māras zeme’’ at the Daugava Stadium. In “Māras zeme”, the most significant moments of our people’s history from the beginnings to the present day were danced. The most different from the usual was the first part – “Māras atnākšana”, because for it all the dancers were sewn the same stylized archaeological costumes, which together looked impressive. Although 3 days of rehearsals from morning to evening in both rain and hot sun might seem tiring, for true dance lovers it is nothing – this is exactly how we create a celebration for ourselves! Stepping onto the stage and not realizing how many different patterns are being danced in front of the audience, every dancer feels a great sense of pride, joy, and happiness that cannot be described in words.

​Gaudeamus, or the Baltic Student Song and Dance Festival, took place in Tartu, Estonia this year. For three days, through sun, rain, and wind, we experienced dances, songs, togetherness, and fellowship - a 3-day party! It should be noted that this year Gaudeamus took place during the Midsummer and Midsummer holidays, so the emotions and joy were doubly great, wreaths were woven, and other Midsummer traditions were also observed.

We were proud that the Rector of Riga Stradins University, Prof. Aigars Pētersons, was with us at this celebration!

Long live the students and the student spirit! See you in four years in Lithuania!

​On May 4, Ačkups participated in the grand dance performance "Vēstījums rakstos" dedicated to the Day of Restoration of Latvian Independence and its centenary. In total, more than 700 dancers, the musical association Raxtu raxti and the group Auļi agreed to remind us of the richness of the Latvian people - signs and patterns, their symbolism and meaning - through stage dance and folk music.

We gained a new experience and created a festive feeling for ourselves!

We are pleased with what we have achieved and would like to say a big thank you to Dagmāra Bārbale and the entire creative team for this magnificent adventure!

When the regular dance season is in full swing, an event has crept up on us, forcing dancers to spend almost all of their free time in the dance hall, whether voluntarily or involuntarily. An event that makes the dancers' families see their polka dancers coming home later and later, or only see them at breakfast in the morning. An event that brings a sigh of relief and a smile to their faces when they mention it.

Yes, my dears, we are talking about the Centennial National Competition.

We went through it all too, but we would do it again and again and again, because the satisfaction that comes after the last show dance... ask the dancers themselves!

Here you can find a summary of the results of the 26th Latvian Song and 16th Dance Festival dance collectives' joint repertoire tests and the festival participant selection shows in 2018:

http://www.lnkc.gov.lv/jaunumi/xxvi-visparejo-latviesu-dziesmu-un-xvi-deju-svetku-deju-kolektivu-koprepertuara-parbaudes-un-svetku-dalibnieku-atlases-skasu-2018-gada-rezultatu-apkopojums/b/6/

This year, we went to the Dikļi Castle stage happy and excited about what awaited us. In Dikļi, we kicked off the XXVI General Latvian Song and XVI Dance Festival, and it is an important place for the Song Festival traditions. We participated together with the dance groups “Agrā rūsa”, “Austris”, “Gauja”, “Pastalnieki”, “Sadancis”, “Teiksma”, 75 choirs of the Vidzeme region and the Vidzeme Brass Orchestra. The accompanying band was led by Raimonds Macats.

Although it rained the entire concert, it did not stop us from enjoying the event, laughing about our wet clothes and trying to dance without slipping on the wet plank floor!

Putting on a white shirt, a red puffy skirt and, most importantly, yellow shoes! This was the most important condition for giving a performance at the RSU Academic Ball for lecturers, colleagues and friends - in a happy, light atmosphere. Smiling, rejoicing and enjoying everything that is happening around you is exactly what is needed when dancing in a different style!

Our leader Elita very precisely and beautifully put into words the feelings of the whole team about the upcoming anniversary concert: "The time spent dancing has become intertwined into one ball of dance, with a great love of dance at its core and sweat, fatigue, defiance, joy, friendship and happiness around it. This is felt by everyone who has come to know and truly love dance. The anniversary concert will be both a reference point for us on what has been accomplished and a stepping stone for future work."

The name of this concert "A moment in one breath" was significant, because dancers of several generations measured how deep a breath should be in order to dance a moment - to dance their heart's love for dance and their team.

You can also immerse yourself in nostalgia with us by clicking on this link:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zQaqQEB8l-w

On May 28, 2016, we had the opportunity to be among our own dancers and to be part of a magical honor dance performance, where the most magnificent celebrations - Latvian weddings - were performed and danced, thus celebrating our customs. We had the honor and pleasure to participate in the performance, because everything happened for real!

​The most impressive "Ačkups" trip of 2014 has now taken place, taking each dancer with an incredible impression and leaving behind warm memories of what they experienced together. The dancers went to the XIV Latvian Song and Dance Festival in Canada, which took place in Hamilton from July 3-6.

The excitement on July 2 before the long twelve-hour flight was immeasurable. Finally, it begins. Months of hard work, looking for additional funding, had a result - a smile on our faces and a suitcase full of national costumes to go to Canada. Truly, the last few months were crazy, realizing that with the great support of Riga Stradins University, this trip still does not shine in the pockets of the students. We were ready to move mountains to make this trip happen. And even at the slightest ray of hope, we clung to it and tried to make it happen. That's how we applied for our project Labiedarbi.lv, where with our own enthusiasm, grabbing everyone by the hand at transport stops, at dance events, in supermarkets, on the street - and we won! The moments when we sat together close to the edge of surrender, and yet decided to fight on, now make us understand what strength there is in working together. How much everything is possible in life.

The Song and Dance Festival took place in the historic "iron city" of Hamilton. We lived in a nice college student hotel, from which we went to the designated dance venue every morning with the yellow school bus seen in American films. The Song and Dance Festival time was rich in concerts, then a rehearsal dress was put on, then you had to quickly jump into the national costume. Personal speed records were also broken in hair styling and makeup application for the girls. A festive atmosphere reigned in the air. The Latvians of Canada were beaming with joy that we had brought them the warmth of their homeland. Greetings also to the well-known Canadian "Ačkups", which was a big surprise, because many did not even know that a brother of the same name was rehearsing across the ocean.

When the festivities were solemnly concluded, it was time to add megabytes of pictures. We went to Niagara Falls, put on raincoats and drove into the very epicenter of the falls. Huddled together with Chinese tourists, we enjoyed a proper shower. Only after walking around the city for a while did our clothes stop leaving drip marks on the road. We cannot fail to mention the adventures in the Toronto amusement park "Wonderland", after which even some good people, but not Achkupa, could get wet..forehead.

Toronto (Canada's largest city) completely changed the perception of architecture, as it was in Hamilton. A more active observer would need a neck massage, because skyscrapers divided the streets into deep gorges and the roofs of houses were so high that you could see Latvia itself. We enjoyed a 360-degree view of the city from the CN Tower. We watched the earth from a height of 40 floors, walking on the glass floor. It turns out that when we climbed the stairs, visiting the tower was free.. eh! what a disappointment. Some crazy eye-opener might also use this opportunity to save money and buy maple syrup and an I love Canada shirt for their family. And indeed, the warm-hearted Latvians we met in Canada, the song and dance festival, and the fascinating landscapes of the city made us fall in love with this trip to Canada.

We would like to express our great gratitude to Riga Stradins University, RSU Alumni Association, LabieDarbi.lv project competition, and the State Cultural Capital Foundation for their support so that we could participate in these celebrations!! Thank you!

The first week of July this year in Latvia definitely passed in a special atmosphere, when Riga was full of people and events. From 1.-7. XXV General Latvian Song and XV Dance Festival took place in July. Ačkups was also a part of this celebration.

The seven days spent at the holiday were full of events, which in turn could not be said about the moments of sleep and rest, which also created the feeling of one "big event".

It all started with the great honor of participating in the dance laureate competition - the dance final show, where we won third place. There was not much time for celebrations and party, because the next day we had to be at the Daugava Stadium early in the morning. This place became our new home for the next week. Two days were spent in a marathon of very intense rehearsals, which did not end until midnight. It could be said that we neither saw nor heard anything more than the stadium grass, the stands and the faces of our dancers. All the life took place here, filling the moments between rehearsals with teasing and snickering at others, playing football and bathing in the fireman's shower, lunch, shopping and short moments of sleep anywhere, the main thing is to have somewhere to rest your head.

Thursday's early morning started with the next big opportunity that we had won at the February dance show. The high honor that not every dancer experiences in his life – the happiness of dancing on the big stage of Mežaparks accompanied by live music.

Without closing an eye, while washing, re-washing and ironing blouses again, Friday has surprised us, hhich started a busy concert schedule for the next three days. I dare to say that for a moment we turned from amateurs to professionals, because we had to give as many as three concerts a day.

This period of both physical and mental hard work was outweighed by the emotional satisfaction from being together, the satisfaction gained from what was done and the knowledge that you have been able to bring joy to every audience with your dance.

Although the live events lasted only one week, five years' worth of work was on display. We felt that the audience saw it and knew how to appreciate it, because it was their support with ovations, applause and standing up that helped to reach the emotions, from which you can get a little piece at least for the next five years.

​

Three days in Daugavpils

The end of June was full of joint events for Ačkups. After "Lec, saulīte" (20.06.-22.06. in Mežaparks) we celebrated Summer Solstice together and two days later we met again at the rehearsal on June 26 to polish the last details before going to the XVII Baltic States Student Song and Dance Festival GAUDEAMUS.

All in all, the days were intense. We left early Friday morning. Getting off the bus in Daugavpils, we went to the rehearsal, then danced at the concert of the best dance groups, in the evening we went to the torchlight procession and participated in the opening ceremony at the Mark Rothko Art Center.

Saturday was not boring either. Already at 12:00 we danced in front of Daugavpils University in the Latvian program accompanied by choirs and an orchestra. Later - rehearsals and a big dance concert in the Olympic Center; in the evening – a party for GAUDEAMUS participants with Dzelzs Vilks.

On Sunday, we danced at the closing concert on the Hive stage, where we danced to the songs of the Baltic United Choir. After the concert, we went back to Riga to prepare for the next adventure - Ačkups' trip to Canada.

On March 31, it was possible to meet Ačkups' dancers right here at the Riga Latvian Society House, at the long-awaited annual RSU Academic ball. This time we performed a unique and never-before-seen dance program, and for that we have to say a Big Thank you to the choreographer of the small tango cycle  - Madara Galviņa.

 I remember the first attempt when Madara entered the room and started teaching the first steps. I must admit, I wasn't sure that one day we would be able to do something like this at the level to show it to the RSU rector himself, but...

Everything turned out great, even better than expected. After long and hard rehearsing, we found the real breath of tango on stage, got into the character and simply enjoyed the performance. This was seen not only by the audience, who gave a standing ovation after the concert, but also by Elita, who praised us with favorable words. But, of course, the result would not be the same without our stage colleagues and friends, RSU mixed choir "Rīga", as well as soloists Aija Vītoliņa and Inguss Pētersons, whose charming voices complemented not only our dance, but also the entire concert program.

We all felt proud of what we had done and after the performance we joined the celebration of the academic ball. We opened the ball with polonaise and nibbling on the appetizer trays, and then everything else followed, we slowly entered the ballroom and got to a piece of festive cake. However, we spent a large part of the evening singing together with the "Rīga" choir.

And so the ball was held, in a most academic mood, almost until dawn.

We are looking forward to next year's ball, where hopefully, we will be able to show our dance skills in a new and not yet discovered genre.

As part of the Riga 810th anniversary celebrations, on August 19, we danced our favorite dances at the Riga Dancers' Festival. The Ķīpsala hall was filled with almost 2300 participants. Since 2007, this celebration has been held for the third time and it is very dear to us and thousands of spectators.

This summer, from June 24 to 26, we were one of the collectives who were entrusted to represent Latvia at the XVI Baltic student song and dance festival "Gaudeamus". This tradition began in 1956 gadā in Tartu, since then the celebration have been held in Estonia - six times, in Lithuania - four times and five times with us - in Latvia. 
This year, 43 collectives from Latvia participated, gathering more than 1500 participants. This year the celebration took place in Vilnius, but already in 2014 "Gaudeamus" will gather Baltic students in Daugavpils.