YEREVAN, APRIL 5, ARMENPRESS. The very first Dilijan Arts Festival will take place in Dilijan, Armenia on April 7 and 8. Initiated by UWC Dilijan students, Dilijan Arts Festival has the purpose of renewing the former glory of Dilijan as a regional centre for culture and arts. ‘Roots’ has been chosen as the name and topic for the inaugural festival uniting all the performances together, ARMENPRESS was informed from UWC Dilijan school.

Helen, UWCD’18, from South Africa, the festival’s chief organizer, explains why the students developed such an idea and makes it a reality, “The natural beauty of Dilijan’s landscapes and people is remarkable. The town has enormous potential to become a cultural and touristic hub in Armenia. The Dilijan Arts Festival is one way to harness that potential by bringing together people from around the country and indeed from abroad to celebrate cultural diversity and self-expression, while enjoying the wonders that Dilijan has to offer. This year’s theme is ‘Roots’, through which we hope to explore the origins of humanity and human thought, together, by sharing art with one another.”

Over 40 young and adult Armenian singers and dancers, both famous and undiscovered, will come to Dilijan to present classical, jazz, folk and modern music performances. Over 100 UWC Dilijan students will join them and participate in different concerts and showcases.

During the two-day event, the whole of Dilijan will transform into art and concert venues, with practically all cafes and restaurants in town taking part in the festival. At Caffeine, customers will be able to drink coffee and create drawings under the Drink and Draw interactive event. At Café #2 young artists will attempt to recreate the work of impressionists and capture the mesmerizing nature of Dilijan. Tiezerq Band and Lucine Mardanyan will perform together at Carahunge , while Flying Ostrich will host a DJ party.

UWC Dilijan will be one of the venues to host a variety of art presentations like the Ayb School art exhibition. The UWC Dilijan students’ orchestra will play Gershwin’s Rhapsody in Blue with a talented pianist Aram Khanlari. There will also be an Otri Trio concert, solo theatre performances of UWC Dilijan students, and an introduction to sound design. The grand DiliWorld show will also take place as a collaborative performance to showcase the song and dance of different countries presented at UWC Dilijan. This diverse activity will be a true representation of the small world of UWC Dilijan.

Dilijan Arts Festival will open on Saturday at 11am and last until 6pm on Sunday. The programme can be found on Dilijan Arts Festival Facebook page. All events are open to the public.

UWC Dilijan is the first international boarding school of the UWC education model in the post-Soviet space. The college opened in 2014 in the Armenian town of Dilijan and currently has 210 students enrolled from more than 80 countries and 44 academic staff members from 16 countries.

UWC Dilijan represents an exciting extension of the UWC movement into the Caucasus region at the junction of Asia and Europe. Established in 1962, the UWC educational movement now comprises 17 international schools and colleges, national committees in more than 155 countries, and a series of short educational programmes.

UWC Dilijan was initiated and masterminded by impact investors and entrepreneurs Ruben Vardanyan and Veronika Zonabend with the support of other Founding Patrons. The college was built with generous donations from over 330 benefactors. Its admissions policy aims to make enrolment available to anyone, regardless of socio-economic background, on the basis of demonstrated need. 96% of students receive full or partial scholarships, and 82% is an average scholarship.

English –translator/editor: Tigran Sirekanyan