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The Annual Student Ball held at Samara University

The Annual Student Ball held at Samara University

Самарский университет

The colourful party program included 25 historical dances, demonstration performances of debutants and creative teams of the University

29.11.2022 2022-12-02
On November 19, Samara University hosted an unusual and truly society event – the Annual Student Ball. For one evening, the University manege turned into a fabulous hall, where dancing couples whirled to the enchanting sounds of instrumental music.


Guests of the ball were greeted by the Samara University orchestra, and the dance-procession, called “polonaise”, that opened the ball. Ladies on one side, gentlemen on the other gracefully and steadily moved in pairs to live music, with each their step expressing solemnity of the event. The girls stood out with their snow-white evening dresses, and their gentlemen – with formal suits.

Then welcoming words were addressed to the participants by Mikhail Leonov, Vice Rector for Educational Work and Youth Policy, and invited guests – Vladimir Smirnov, the head of the NADEZHDA Social Development Fund, and Galina Trubochkina, one of the first Historical Dance teachers at our University.

“Looking at the student ball, I see burning eyes of the girls and the young men. It’s great that this event has been held at our University for more than ten years, and still resonates in the young people’s hearts. I believe that the ball will also be held in future, delighting us”, said Mikhail Leonov.

The party was continued by demonstration performances of the ball debutants and creative student teams – the ensemble of the Salon Dance Studio, and the ensemble of the GRATSIA Dance and Sports Club. Waltz, polka, mazurka, march, minuet, quadrille succeeded each other, uniting both debutants and experienced dancers in the single circle. The entire ball program included 3 rounds and 25 historical dances.

The atmosphere of society balls of the 19th century was recreated with magnificent dresses, formal suits, interesting hairdos, decorations and beautiful music. This unusual party turned out to be a real fairy tale for the students who took part in the ball for the first time. This was preceded by long preparation of the couples.

“For two months we studied dancing, looked for suitable clothes, and rehearsed a lot, feeling the ball coming every day. We had been waiting for this moment with excitement”, shared their impressions debutantes Daria Vladimirova and Yulia Asmaeva. “We were struck by the indescribable atmosphere of the ball, and the pace set by the master of ceremonies did not let us relax, but we showed ourselves at our best”.

The key event of the ball was election of the king and the queen out of experienced dancers, and the prince and the princess out of debutants. The ladies gave their preference in form of the beige bow to the gentleman they liked, and the young men gave their preference to the girls. Aleksey Chigarev and Elena Fedorinova got the titles of King and Queen of the ball, and Roman Nezamedinov and Daria Pokina – Prince and Princess.

“We were carefully preparing for the ball, mastering not only dance moves, but also creating the image and studying etiquette. Our diligence helped us get the titles of Prince and Princess of the ball. We are very happy! It is difficult to express all our feelings, but we will remember these emotions for long. We would also like to thank very much Samara University for giving us this opportunity to plunge into the beautiful fairy tale”, told us Roman and Daria.

The Annual Student Ball has been held at Samara University since 2008 by the Department of Extracurricular Work and the Sergey Boldyrev Salon Dance Studio Student Association. The past two years, because of restrictive measures, the event was not held at the University. During this time, the organizers and participants’ team from the studio got updated, and the students had to put a lot of effort into preparing the event.

“The Student Ball is a bright and unforgettable event, in which you need to take part at least once. This year, our young and friendly team that is members of the Salon Dance Studio, helped create the fairy tale. For some time, the ball was not held at the University, and it was difficult for us to restart the process, but we succeeded. We managed to convey the atmosphere of comfort and warmth, and simultaneously show grandeur and scale of the event. That came up beautifully – the wonderful ball in its content, design and work of the master of ceremonies. Of course, the participants of the ball helped us create this magical aura, by turning for one evening into beautiful ladies and gallant gentlemen, who followed ballroom etiquette and dress code. It was really nice and charming!” said Sofia Surkova, one of the ball organizers.

Photo: Olesya Orina