These scenes take place on the Sunday at Svitlana and Vasyl’s wedding.  Dance is an important part of the wedding, serving as a general backdrop during most of the 48 hours of the celebration, and also featuring very centrally in specific ceremonial moments. The dances are both traditional and new.

See “Wedding part A” for the Saturday events that preceded. Whereas Svitlana and many of the wedding party wore traditional clothes on Saturday, she is dressed in a white “western” gown on Sunday. She welcomes guests to her yard with a drink, and they eat, dance and visit. The same is happening at the groom’s house. Young women tend to stay at one location, whereas the males often travel from wedding house to house. Mid-afternoon,  the bride’s party and the groom’s party each take their musicians and set out on a circuitous route to the church. The two groups meet in front of the church. After the church ceremony, and photographs, the bride and groom each take their respective parties back to their own homes, where they are ritually greeted at the gate, exchange toasts with the parents who are waiting inside the yard, and eventually enter the yard themselves. After the main meal (for over 600 people in Svitlana’s yard, and about 300 at Vasyl’s home) music and dance continue. In the evening, Vasyl’ and his entourage arrive at Svitlana’s home. He and his groomsmen are riding horses. Gifts and toasts are exchanged at the gate, and Vasyl’ eventually enters the yard. Vasyl’s guests follow him in, and the main ceremony of gift-giving ensues. The central players dance a formal rus’ka with each other, and with the gifts. More food and dance continue until morning.