Rubi Vučeta
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Specialty:
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Deceased
Balkan
Balkan
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Rubi Vučeta, born in 1923, was an avid Balkan dancer, teacher, and choreographer. For many years, she taught classes in Balkan dance on Wednesday nights at the Hollywood Playground in Hollywood, California. Several of Rubi's students, including Billy Burke, Barry Glass, and Dick Oakes, became nationally known in the folk dance movement.
Vocationally, Rubi was at one time a social worker. She also was Chief Clerk for the Los Angeles County Health Department, supervising the clerical staff for the city's 42 county health centers.
For a time, Rubi was married to Paul Pritchard, who, with Dick Oakes, was one of the co-founders of Folk Dance Scene, the official news magazine of the Folk Dance Federation of California, South, Inc.
Rubi was one of the early members of the Gandy Dancers, an international folk dance performing group based in Hollywood, and for a time, a choreographer and teacher at The Intersection Folk Arts Center. Later, she became engaged to be married to one of The I's owners, Rudy Dannes.
In 1970, Rubi died in the prime of her life in an auto accident in Yugoslavia while on a research trip. The thousands of dollars worth of video and audio taping equipment she had taken with her to record the dances and songs she found were never recovered.
Rubi taught Zajko Kokorajko and Yves Moreau, who learned the dance in one of Rubi's classes in 1968, taught it as Skopska Zaramo in a May 1969 workshop.
Dances Rubi taught include Bela Rada, Beljevina, Brâul, Brzi čačak, Čačansko kokonješte, Čamčeto, Čarlama užička, Cigančica, Ciocârlanul, Ćiro kolo, Croatian Waltz, Čuječ mala, Čukaričko kokonješte, Dance of the Seven Veils, Djurdjevka kolo, Dorčolka kolo, Dura, Elenino horo, Eleno mome, Ersko kolo, Haj haj bože daj, Hajd na lijevo, Hora din Clejani, Jabučica, Jovano Jovanke, Jovica, Kačerac, Kiša pada, Kokonješte kolo, Kolo iz Vranje, Kolo Zita, Lesnoto, Ličko kolo, Mangupsko kolo, Nebesko, Maloj Mome, Moja diridika, Pajduško horo, Pera Ston Pera Kambo, Pirot Dance Medley (Serbian Medley No. 2), Pleskavac kolo, Pokupski Drmeš, Poskakuša, Pravo Trakijsko horo, Prsten mi padne male, Radikalko, Razgranjala, Savila se bela loza, Serbian Medley No. 1, Slavjanka, Slavonsko kolo, Šroteš, Sukačica, Siroon Aghchig, Three and One Bar, Trite pŭti, U šest koraka, Vranjankoro, Žabarka, Zagoritikos, Zajko kokorajko, and Zaplet.