4. FESTIVAL HISTORY

The festival came into existence in 1970, first as a competition in couples dance. In 1973 the annual event, at that time called the ‘3rd Festival of Social Dance’, added other categories. Since 1974 various programmes have begun to be an integral feature of the festival. In 1975 this event appeared for the first time as the ‘Festival of Dance and Friendship’ with a number of program innovations and competitive participation extended to both foreign couples and dance formations. Final competitive rounds have been broadcast since 1976 by the major national TV network. The Clarks, a professional husband and wife dance couple from Great Britain, came to take part as special guests in the non-competitive programme in 1982 giving a brilliant dance exhibition. Increasing public interest got the organizer to leave its traditional venue at the Municipal House of Culture and since 1983 the festival was held in the Sports Hall of the Physical Training Union of the United Chemical and Metallurgical Works. In 1990, the event finally appeared under its actual name: ‘International Dance Festival’. In 1994, the competitive schedule featured, for the first time, a competition held under the patronage of the International Dance Sport Federation. This was the Central European Standard Championship in couples standard dance, with the participation of IDSF General Secretary, Mr. Rudi Hubert, acting as the judge’s chairman. In the following year another competition under IDSF patronage was included, the Central European Latin Championship in couples Latin-American dance. In 1996, the festival organizers received the IDSF’s authorization to hold both above named championships simultaneously, and in 1997, the IDSF Europe Cup Ten Dance with participants from 16 European countries.

While in its beginning the event had only 14 participating couples and no dance formations, the participation had grown to 22 couples and 30 dance formations by 1984, and to 35 couples and 18 formations from ten different European countries by 1995.