The Benito Vesselli Ukrainian Dancers have had a busy season filled with dance practices, competitions and an annual recital. The dance club travelled to Brandon last month for the Troyanda Ukrainian Dance Competition.
“The Brandon Troyanda Ukrainian Dance Competition and Festival was held on April 17 to 19, 2026,” said Benito Vesselli Ukrainian Dance Head Instructor Amanda Bulycz. “Multiple clubs from all over Saskatchewan and Manitoba were in attendance, filling three full days of competition dances. As well, they were celebrating 50 years of the Troyanda Club.”
At the Troyanda Ukrainian Dance Competition, there were a variety of dances performed and the Benito Vesselli Ukrainian Dancers were well represented in each age category and style of dance.
“Traditional Ukrainian Dances representing Poltavski, Hutzul, Transcarpathian, Volyn, Polissia, Bukovynia, Character, Pryvit, Hopak were represented at the competition,” said Bulycz.
“Benito Vesselli took the Beginners, Juniors, Intermediates, Advanced and Senior Dancers to competition ages ranging from five to 18 years. Group dances, along with solos, duets, trios and family dances were also performed by Vesselli Dancers.”
The Benito Vesselli Ukrainian Dancers excelled at this competition.
“The Beginner Poltava dance received a 98 Platinum and the highest mark in the 12 and under age category,” said Bulycz. “The Senior Transcarpathian dance received a 95 Hold and the highest mark in the 13 years and older category.
“The dancers did amazingly at the Brandon Competition. We brought home multiple high marks, but most importantly, the dancers had a lot of fun and enjoyed the whole weekend. Many goals were achieved during the weekend and our dancers performed their very best. It was such a great weekend celebrating Ukrainian dance and culture and seeing all our hard work performed on stage.”
Then the group travelled to another dance competition in Saskatchewan before holding their annual end-of-season concert. There will be one final performance for the season, for the senior dancers, at one of the biggest venues for Ukrainian culture in Canada.
“Following the Brandon Competition, Vesselli attended the Yorkton Kalyna Dance Competition from April 30 to May 3 and held their annual spring concert on May 9, 2026,” said Bulycz. “Our club did another amazing job at the Yorkton Competition, bringing home 21 Gold Medal Marks!
“Our Annual Vesselli Spring Concert hosted a full afternoon of dance and making their first debut on stage was our Tots in Motion Class.
“Our club will be breaking for the summer, minus the senior dancers,” said Bulycz. “Our senior dancers will be preparing for their main stage performance at Canada’s National Ukrainian Festival in Dauphin. They’ll be performing during the Saturday Night Grandstand Show. We also look forward to volunteering at Swan Valley Credit Union’s Beef on a Bun event, with proceeds going to our club.
“Our next dance season begins in September 2026, and we look forward to another fun year ahead, accepting dancers 18 months to 18 years of age.”