The cultural center was established on
July 7th, 1897. The project was chosen and designed at
the insistence of President Nikola Popov. Taking part in
the initiative were interested teachers, artisans and
other enlightened citizens of Batak. In order to
commemorate the April Uprising of 1876, and the citizens
of Batak that perished on May 4th of that year, the
cultural center is named “4th of May.”
In 1979, the cultural center took up
residence in a new building. The old building was
transformed into the town’s movie theater and bookstore.
The new building contains halls for rehearsals, study
groups, and lectures. The equipment is modern and well
maintained. The large concert hall provides
opportunities for theatrical productions, musical
performances and other presentations. The cultural
center features a library with a large collection of
books for lend, a reading room, a children’s collection
and listening stations.
Current
Activities:
Singing group “Melody,” specializing
in old songs, with artistic director Zhivko
Kunev
Women’s Folklore Group
Men’s Folklore Group
with artistic director Elena Klimentova
Folklore
Group “Zravets,” with artistic director Sofia
Pishtroneva
“Modern Ballet”
Troupe
Majorettes
Club “Izbori”
Children’s
Music Classes
- Accordion class with director Georgi
Mirchev
- Piano class with director Veska
Balinova
Library with the following departments:
-
Lending collection
- Children’s collection
-
Reference collection
- Art collection
- Local
collection
- Reading room
Singing group “Melody,”
specializing in old songs, with artistic director Zhivko
Kunev
Address: Narodno Chitalishte – Pametnik “4ti
Mai” Batak 4580
Formed in 1994 with the cooperation of
the secretary of the cultural center, B. Pencheva, it
was the first group of its kind in Batak. For 10 years
the group has been popularizing old folk songs by
participating in various events organized by the
municipality. They occasionally work with groups from
neighboring communities such as Bratsigovo, Kostandivo,
Pazardjik and others. For a few years, beginning in
1996, the group participated in a contest called the
“Golden Chestnut” at the National Folk Festival in the
city of Petrich, and was awarded a certificate for best
presentation. The group has also participated in
contests in the city of Varna. In 2000, at the “Balkan
Folk” festival in the Central Balkan Mountains, the jury
recommended that the group’s repertoire be recorded and
broadcast everywhere so that all Bulgarians could enjoy
their artistic rendering of the classic folk
songs.
Women’s Folklore
Group
Founded in 1985, the group has many
members that participate in local, regional and national
folklore festivals. The group has won many prizes for
presentation, including first prize at the amateur
artistic review in Pazardjik and the national review in
Sofia. The group participated in the festivals of
Kopruvshtitsa in 2000 and 2005. They were awarded for
popularizing authentic folklore from the Batak
region.
Men’s Folklore Group
“Batuvtsi”
Artistic Director – Elena
Klimentova
Founded in 2002, the group has won many
awards from their participation in regional and national
folklore festivals. They participated in the folklore
festival at Kopruvshtitsa in 2005 and were awarded a
certificate for popularizing authentic
folklore.
Majorettes
The Majorettes have been under the
direction of secretary Boyanka Pencheva since 1994, when
the group was formed with 16 girls. Mrs. Vaska Paunova,
with the help of choreographer Bilyana Maslarova,
designs the girls’ dances to such songs as “Beautiful
Bulgaria” and “Homeland.” The group contributes to the
aesthetic and patriotic upbringing of young people in
the community. After a brief hiatus, the group was
reformed in 2004 and prepared the dances “Hymn of Cyril
and Methodius,” and “The Radetsi March,” which they
performed for local events and in the “Mini Miss and
Mini Mister” contest.
Club
“Izbori”
Founded in November 2001, the group
seeks to collect and preserve the rich folklore, culture
and history of Batak. In a contest organized by the
Ministry of Education and Science in Sofia titled
“Bulgaria, Our Future,” the club won first prize for its
presentation. In 2003 / 2004, the group directed its
efforts at preserving Batak’s way of speech. The goal of
the club is raise awareness of the rich cultural history
of Batak in order to create a more stable and peaceful
way of life for the different ethnicities in the
area.
Modern Ballet
Troupe
Founded for the first time in 2004,
under the direction of Mrs. Bilyana Maslarova, the group
performs the dances “Usmivki,” “Nastroenie,” and others.
The group has 12 members and performs in numerous local
events and holidays.
Library
The library holds a large collection of
reference, non-fiction, literature and children’s books.
In all, the library holds 45, 412 volumes, and yearly
lends 25,000 volumes to its 1,300 members through over
15,000 visits. The library is divided into the following
departments:
- Lending collection
- Children’s
collection
- Reference collection
- Art
collection
- Local collection
- Reading
room
