Let us once again rightfully honor the proud blouse! Put on your IA and join us!
On June 24, 2025, the ASTRA Museum – an institution whose activities are made possible through funding from the Sibiu County Council – celebrates Sânziene, the ie, beauty, and femininity through a wide array of events, as well as through Dance as Intangible European Heritage and as an expression of community identity.

On Tuesday, June 24, 2025, a day of great celebration – the Nativity of Saint John the Baptist and Sânziene – the program begins with the Holy Liturgy at the wooden church “Saints Archangels Michael and Gabriel” from Bezded, Sălaj (79A), followed by activities dedicated to ancestral traditions and participatory dance (9:30 AM – 11:45 AM).

During the workshop Sânziene. Flowers and Threads of Longing, participants will weave floral crowns from sânziene flowers at two emblematic museum locations: the wooden church “Saints Archangels Michael and Gabriel” (Bezded, Sălaj – 79A) and the parish house from Spermezeu, Bistrița-Năsăud (79L) (12:00 PM – 3:00 PM).

At the unseen border between Transylvania and Bukovina, in the Bârgău Valley, lies the village of Tureac – a place where the past is not forgotten, but lived through each dance step, each song, and each costume kept in the hope chest. Thirty years ago, the Group for Traditions and Customs from Tureac was founded out of a deep desire to preserve ancestral heritage. During major holidays, the community becomes a stage where the story of the homeland is told through the eternal language of song, dance, and traditional clothing. The dancers, folk singers, and musicians from the village skillfully reenact local rituals and customs, with deep respect for their authentic, archaic forms. All group members are locals, and their repertoire springs from the very land they tread: pure, direct, and alive. Their proudly worn garments, lovingly preserved in dowry chests, complete the image of a world breathing through ancient customs and beliefs. Widely acclaimed and award-winning, the group has won the hearts of audiences and the respect of folklore experts, becoming a symbol of authenticity and cultural value in Romania. As we watch them, we see the gentle faces of the peasants of old, with calm speech, serene brows, and a deep understanding of life’s purpose. Through their carefully preserved songs and dances, a world where time flows by the rhythms of nature and the Romanian soul is brought back to life. Meeting them is more than a performance – it is a pause of the heart, a reconnection with our roots.

Under the guidance of folk artist Sanda Cioancă, the group will revive for ASTRA Museum visitors the Sânziene wreath rituals from the Bârgău Valley and will reenact moments from the traditional wedding in Tureac.

The seminar Practicing and Transmitting Dance in Heritage Communities and Methods of Facilitating Dance in a Museum will take place at the Parish House from Spermezeu, hosted by ethnologist PhD candidate Menuț Maximinian in conversation with Dr. Mirela Crețu from the ASTRA Museum. The event will culminate in a traditional dance workshop facilitated by the Group for Traditions and Customs from Tureac, Bistrița-Năsăud County (12:00 PM – 3:00 PM).

The exhibition Dance – Intangible European Heritage in Motion, in the Multicultural Museum Pavilion (Hall 2), will be animated by a dance workshop with the Tureac group (2:00 PM – 3:00 PM).

At 4:00 PM, the students of the “Ioan Macrea” Dance School will start the Village Hora at the Country Fair area. The event is part of the project Childhood in Dance Steps, initiated by CJCPCT “Cindrelul-Junii” Sibiu, in partnership with ASTRA Museum and co-financed by the Sibiu City Hall.

On Saturday, June 28, 2025, between 10:00 AM and 7:00 PM, the public is invited to the Blouse and Other Finery Fair, where artisans from across the country will present their creations. Participatory workshops led by invited craftsmen will offer visitors the chance to explore traditional arts – from embroidery and weaving to modern reinterpretations.

In the Shepherd’s Household from Gura Râului (81A), four panel-workshops will be held: Romanian Clothing from Gura Râului, Sibiu – Between Tangible and Intangible presented by Dr. Maria Șpan, “Lucian Blaga” University of Sibiu (2:00 PM – 2:30 PM); Maria Hanzu’s Patterns from Gura Râului, presented by ASTRA Museum curator Elena Găvan (2:30 PM – 3:00 PM); and From Paper to Pixel, led by Carmen Popescu from Șezătoare Sibiu (3:00 PM – 6:00 PM). Simultaneously, between 2:00 PM and 5:00 PM, designer Raluca Cânean-Coșăreanu will coordinate the workshop Decoding Symbols – Printing Ancient Patterns on Contemporary Garments.

The atmosphere will be enriched by Stories from the Sewing Circles of Avrig, Tălmaciu, Codlea, Mândra, and Sibiu (Country Fair; 12:00 PM – 6:00 PM).

Let yourself be guided by senses, memory, and emotion while viewing photographs from the ASTRA Museum archives in the Pastoral Household with Tallow Candle Workshop, Rășinari, Sibiu (20), and the Jogărar Household in Gura Râului, Sibiu (81A), as part of Traces with Meaning – People and Stories Sewn into the Ie (12:00 PM – 6:00 PM).

As part of the Secret Memory of Objects program and in partnership with the Rășinari Ethnographic Museum, discover The Memory of Rășinari Through Deeds and Dishes! through workshops and sewing circles at the Pastoral Household with Tallow Candle Workshop, Rășinari, Sibiu (20) (10:00 AM – 3:00 PM).

One of the most anticipated moments of the day is The Blouse Ride with Chic Bicycles. Meet at 3:30 PM in Tineretului Park and begin the urban route at 4:00 PM toward the heart of the ASTRA Museum. As always, the ride will end with a Picnic in Ie in the Country Fair area.

Music will fill the air all day long, through musical animations by Adrian Borbely aka DJ ICS and an artistic performance by Ecaterina Duță (4:00 PM – 5:00 PM). And “if you stood aside fearing you don’t know the steps,” Vornic Dan Liuț and the Tezaur Bănățean Ensemble from Parța, Timiș, will guide you in learning traditional Romanian dances. This workshop is part of the European project Dance as ICH – Dance as Intangible Cultural Heritage, a celebration of dance as cultural heritage (12:00 PM – 6:00 PM).

On Sunday, June 29, 2025, the activities continue in the same spirit, with the Blouse and Other Finery Fair and the craft workshops and interactive exhibits open to the public from 10:00 AM to 7:00 PM.

In the Jogărar Household, Gura Râului (11:00 AM – 6:00 PM), three more workshops take place: Decoding Symbols! Printing Ancient Patterns on Contemporary Garments, coordinated by designer Raluca Cânean-Coșăreanu (11:00 AM – 2:00 PM); Maria Hanzu’s Album from Gura Râului – Embroidery Patterns from the ASTRA Museum Collections, presented by curator Alina Matei (2:00 PM – 2:30 PM); and From Paper to Pixel – The Art of the Reinterpreted Traditional Pattern, facilitated by Carmen Popescu, Șezătoare Sibiu (2:30 PM – 6:00 PM).

Music will accompany you throughout the day, bringing rhythm and joy through DJ ICS – Adrian Borbely’s inspired selections. The presence of Sara Hanț, finalist of Romania’s Got Talent, and the children accompanying her is made possible by the partnership with the “Rise and Walk” Association (1:00 PM – 2:00 PM).

For those who want to feel the pulse of tradition, Vornic Dan Liuț and the Tezaur Bănățean Ensemble propose a new dance workshop that revives the charm of Banat dances – a vibrant meeting with heritage and the joy of dancing together (10:00 AM – 12:00 PM).

The story of Traces with Meaning – People and Stories Sewn into the Ie continues in both the Pastoral Household with Tallow Candle Workshop, Rășinari (20), and the Jogărar Household, Gura Râului (81A) (12:00 PM – 6:00 PM).

The Pastoral Household with Tallow Candle Workshop, Rășinari (20), will also host the Memory of Rășinari Through Deeds and Dishes! activities between 10:00 AM and 3:00 PM, as part of the Secret Memory of Objects Project.

In case of bad weather, all event workshops will be moved to the Auditorium Hall, PaMM.

Through this event, the museum highlights its role as a facilitator of intergenerational exchange, connecting tradition with contemporaneity and integrating heritage within this dynamic. The Dance as ICH European Project, co-funded by the European Union under the Creative Europe Program, frames these activities within the wider European context of valuing dance as intangible cultural heritage.

The ia becomes a symbol of simplicity, authenticity, and timeless feminine beauty! Illo tempore, illo loco! – In that time, in that place.

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