National Folk Dance Ensemble of Croatia

Ansambl narodnih plesova i pjesama Hrvatske – National Folk Dance Ensemble of Croatia (LADO) was founded in 1949 in Zagreb as a professional national ensemble, with the aim of researching, artistically interpreting and presenting the rich traditions of Croatian music and dance on stage.

The ensemble consists of 38 dancers and singers and 14 musicians who play approximately 50 different traditional and classical instruments. The ensemble’s repertoire consists of more than 100 different choreographies as well as vocal and instrumental numbers. LADO represents the rich and diverse regional musical and choreographic traditions of Croatia, in which the Mediterranean Balkan, Pannonian and Alpine influences are found in its dances, music and costumes.

The main task of LADO is to preserve and artistically perform Croatian traditional songs and dances. As such, LADO has incorporated and adapted for its programme the songs, dances and customs of Croatia that are protected by the UNESCO list of intangible cultural heritage, and presents them on stage as part of its repertoire.