A festival of traditional Jewish and Israeli dance will take place at Park Pobedy's Sport and Concert Complex on Tuesday and Wednesday of this week.
It has been organized by Messianic Jews from America and St Petersburg who believe that Christ is the messiah. The second International Messianic Jewish Festival includes performances of Davidic Dance -- the oldest form of Jewish dance dating back to Old Testament times -- by the New Jerusalem Dancers.
The dancers were formed by Mrs Vera Chierco, who runs dance workshops in England and Russia. Mrs Chierco, who is from Peckham, England, said, "One of the traditions dropped by the gentiles was dance as a form of worship and I'm trying to revive these ancient dances which have been handed down through the centuries from one generation to the next."
Mrs Chierco stressed that the festival is mainly a cultural and artistic event which aims to encourage local people in St Petersburg to experience the richness of Jewish and Israeli culture.
"We don't think that the Christian and other religions are necessarily that different from one another, and this event is not only for believers but for people who are interested in culture and art," she said.
Among the performing artists at the festival will be Kol Simka (Sounds of Joy) -- a choral group from Pennsylvania, Nagila --a contemporary Jewish pop group which bases its songs on the scriptures, and vocalist and pianist Marti Goetz.
The festival, which begins at 7pm both evenings, is free.