Music and Performing Arts
Belarusian music is heavily influenced by folk and religion. The first attempts at collecting, publishing, and studying Belarusian folk songs were made in the nineteenth century. Many Belarusian composers are still influenced by folk music, and numerous festivals and contests for the genre are conducted every year. These cultural events feature a large number of amateur folklore groups, national song and dance ensembles, and folklore-scenic ensembles. It is one of the unique cultural characteristics in Belarus.
Along with the State Musical Comedy Theater and the State Symphonic Concert Orchestra, Belarus features the National Academic Opera and Ballet Theater. Opera and ballet from Belarus are well-known and highly esteemed abroad. Large cities like Minsk, which have a bustling cultural scene with opera, ballet, theater, puppet shows, and a circus, are where you can find performing arts centers. There is a well-known puppet theater in Brest. In the 1990s, rock music in Belarusian began to emerge.
The cultural customs associated with numerous religious and secular holidays, as well as with familial and domestic ceremonies, gave rise to the Belarusian theater. Puppet theater is one of the oldest traditions and has had a significant impact on developing international theatrical customs. Numerous aristocratic families supported their own theaters in the eighteenth century, and many new theaters appeared in the twentieth. The Gorkiy State Theater, the State Theater in Minsk, and the State Theater of Musical Comedy are currently the most well-known. The heroic and romantic genres, as well as the psychology of characters, are frequently emphasized in Belarusian filmmaking. Animation films made by Belarusian directors are particularly well-known. Additionally, Belarus has Tatyana, an all-female film production company.
