Meet Maria, An Immigrant In Apex
Per my usual, I was crazy curious - “Why the move to a whole different country? How did this major move come into being?” It all started with dance. Maria, who has been a life-long dancer, explained that, in her younger days (although, from my middle-aged perspective, she’s still quite young, lol ), she spent many years as a member of a performing arts youth ensemble, which, in turn, belonged to a larger, collective group, called Golden Gates. The Golden Gates’ mission is to share Russia’s culture, through song, dance, and music, with people in other countries. Along with her particular ensemble group, Maria traveled the world over on various Golden Gates tours. She has been to multiple European, African, and Arab countries. China too. (Sounds positively exciting to me!) And yes, the U.S. In fact, Maria had participated in three separate U.S. tours, from coast to coast, usually hitting 10-15 states (including NC!) in each six-week tour, prior to moving to North Carolina about three-and-a-half years ago. In her travels to the U.S., Maria got to see how higher education differed between the two countries. Here, there’s a much greater emphasis on class participation and engagement. There’s also much more two-way communication between students and professors. In contrast, classes in Russian universities use the predominantly lecture-based, unilateral formats. And instead of cumulative grades based on multiple assignments, pop quizzes, and tests throughout the term, in Russian university-level courses, there’s one exam at the end of the semester, and that’s it. That was your entire grade. So, after acquiring her master’s degree at St. Petersburg University, in journalism and communications, Maria applied to various U.S. schools to go for another master’s. NC State won out, and now here she is! Since moving here, she has gotten her Masters of Science in Communication, met and married her husband, and got a job in her field. She works in the marketing department for Arts NC State, specifically with their dance program.
Did you know that NC State has not one, but two dance troupes? Me either. But I looked them up online, and they look uber-cool - I’d definitely be up for an outing to Stewart Theater to check them out!
But, promoting NC State’s dance programming and events isn’t all that Maria does; she definitely likes to keep busy. So, on top of that, she sometimes teaches master dance classes: at middle and high schools, at conferences, and right there at NC State.
If any of you Apexians work, study, or teach at NC State, you can take - for free! - dance classes in their Master Class Series, offered annually each fall and spring. Who knows - you might end up with Maria as your dance instructor!
Oh, and yeah, she conceived of the Triangle Russian Festival, now in its third year, and hosted right here in Our Town at the Halle. Maria, as the Festival’s Lead Coordinator, lines up the stage performers, the arts and crafts vendors, kids activities, and the volunteers. This year’s program includes a piano concert of Russian compositions (performed by NC State Dept of Music), a Russian-born singer coming in from Charlotte, and master classes in Russian dance (yep, taught by Maria!). In addition, there will be a Langage Room, where people of all ages can learn a bit about the Russian language. In another room, we’ll get to sample Russian sweets, breads, and tea (I know I’m curious! I know very little about Russian fare...). This just scratches the surface; there’s quite an impressive range of things that will be included, for all kinds of interests, reflecting not only Russia’s historical folk traditions, but also its contemporary culture. For a full listing, check here for the performers and stage schedule and here for all the other cool stuff. I was curious - “Is there much of a Russian immigrant community here?” Surprisingly (to me, anyway), Maria’s answer was yes. In fact, she said, it’s growing quite a bit in the Triangle area - especially over the last couple of years or so - and has a lot of great social gatherings and online resources. I wondered if she missed St. Petersburg. “Besides family and friends, I miss the architecture, the European influences. And the water and bridges,” she said. I joked back, “Well, I bet you don’t miss the cold!” The joke was on me: Maria had gone back and visited family for two weeks in late December; when she landed in RDU in early January, it was snowing, and colder here than it had been her whole stay in Russia. Really, North Carolina??! ️☃️ We wrapped up our conversation talking about Apex, and all the things Maria likes about it. It’s very different from her hometown (St. Petersburg is a large, expensive, northern city), and Maria enjoys the change of pace she has found here. She likes how friendly the people are here (here, strangers chat amiably in store checkout lines and “you know your neighbors”). Maria likes the Apex Farmers Market, the outdoor festivals, and all the area parks. And our downtown, with the Halle and its great events. Topping it all off, is the easy access to so many nearby universities (she’s partial to NC State in particular, given that she works there ), which offer a wealth of performing arts programming and really enrich our community life. I’m really grateful to Maria, who made herself wonderfully available to spend some time to talk with me. Although I expect she’ll have her hands full, I’m looking forward to hopefully at least say a quick hello to her this Saturday, when I go to the Halle to explore the #TriangleRussianFestival. Join me? Triangle Russian Festival Halle Sat, 2/3, 11am-7pm Free* *Except the premier stage event, with performances at 12 noon and 5pm. Tickets are $10 ($8 for kids to age 16), and can be purchased at the door or online (for an additional processing fee) in advance. *For a $15 (or more!) donation, help support this mostly-free community event, and get a T-shirt (in sizes M, L, and XL) to boot.
Peace In! Laura Holley
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