Early Cultural Activity in the Lemko Region
The village of Zyndranowa/Zyndranova (Krosno county) was the site of the first Lemko cultural organization since the Vistula Operation: a folk song and dance ensemble. The ensemble, founded by Fedor Goch127 in 1954, was featured a year later in a Polish TV program "With the Lemkos in Zyndranova."128 In 1955 a film, "The Lemko Wedding," was produced there, based on Goch's script. The village of Biljanka became an early center of cultural activity among other Lemkos returning to their native villages. A new school was built there in the early 1960's and a Lemko Song and Dance Ensemble was organized under the direction of Pavlo Stefanovskij. The Ensemble performed in various Lemko villages such as Barwinek/Barvinok (Krosno county), Ucie Gorlickie/Ustje Ruske (Gorlice county), Krynica (Nowy Sacz county), and the Presov Region (Sarys county) villages Dubova and Krajnja Poljana in Czechoslovakia. A school was also constructed in Kunkowa/Kunkova (Gorlice county) whose school children were also engaged in folk song and dance activities. Other performing ensembles were organized in the late 1950's and early 60's in Komancha, Grab/Hrab (Jaslo county), Vilchovec, Tylawa/Tylova, and Polany/Poljany (all in Krosno county). Orthodox church choirs were active in a few villages. Other villages of early cultural importance were Bortne, Hanchova, Konieczna/Konechna, and Zdynia/Zhdynja (all in Gorlice county).129 Several of these early folk ensembles are pictured in Appendix VII.
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