“It was an easy sell. Lexus Edmonton supports so many of the arts in Edmonton, so it was a no-brainer when I was approached to sponsor Shumka. We needed to be involved in this first-class organization and it was the perfect way to give back to the community.” Growing up in Edmonton, Bruce always had friends in the Ukrainian community.…

Joshua Semchuk has been involved in Shumka for years, even before he was part of the company. Growing up, he watched his parents (Orest and Jennifer Semchuk) dedicate their time to Shumka. He was one of the first students at Shumka School of Dance in 1989 and danced in the company for a short time. After going to school for…

Amongst all the siblings, the Eshenko family spent 49 years dancing in Shumka. Toby was an original member of the group in 1959. “Not everyone knew what Shumka meant, but we joined anyway. All we did was practice and practice, and we would have some shows here and there.” After meeting his wife, he retired from the company. Both his…

Leda Tarnawsky started dancing at the age of 4, and joined the Shumka School in grade 2. She grew up watching Shumka and attended many performances. After graduating from the School, Leda auditioned for the company and has been a current dancer for 2 years, learning and performing the dances she grew up watching. Leda is also passionate about teaching…

Dorianne Martyniuk grew up watching Shumka’s shows, so from the time she was little, it became something to aspire to. When she was 16, Dorianne auditioned and was accepted into the company. Over her 10 years, Dori learned a lot about dance, an organization, and family, which all came in handy in other parts of her life. She choreographed dances…