THE ANTRANIG DANCE ENSEMBLE

The Antranig Dance Ensemble is the foremost Armenian dance group in the United States, established in 1969 under the auspices of the Armenian General Benevolent Union, an international philanthropic organization.

Currently comprised of over 30 young men and women, the Antranig Ensemble performs full-length dance productions throughout the United States and Canada, and has played on some of the premier stages of the world, including Carnegie Hall and Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts in New York, Claude Champagne Hall in Montreal and the State Opera Theater in Armenia.

The group was honored for its accomplishments with an invitation to be the first Armenian-American cultural group to ever perform in Armenia, travelling to a half-dozen cities during a two-week tour. The following year Antranig sponsored joint productions in the United States with one of the top dance ensembles from Armenia. In a separate tour the ensemble travelled throughout Europe, performing in six cities in ten days.

The group trains year-round and creates a full new stage production approximately every two years. It is under the Artistic Directorship of Joyce Tamesian-Shenloogian, a 20-year dancer/ soloist with the Ensemble and its director since 1986. In addition, Gagik Karapetian, a 22-year dancer/soloist and later choreographer of the State Dance Ensemble of Armenia, trains the ensemble for three months each year.

Antranig's dance repertoires have run the spectrum from folk-ballet and traditional Armenian ethnographic dance to modern Armenian techniques and suites created for the ensemble by Mr. Karapetian. The dances are often complemented by specifically written and recorded symphonic orchestrations and customized costumes designed and prepared by leading artisans in Armenia.