Colleagues following the spat between Russia and Ukraine in the Kerch Strait
may be interested in the following effort to diffuse the tension....
m a r t i n
UKRAINIAN STAGE AWAITS "TUZLA - THE MUSICAL!"
A musical comedy about the construction of a causeway [towards Ukraine's
Tuzla Island] by Russia in the Kerch Strait will be staged at the Suzirya
Theatre in Kiev in November, the author of the musical comedy libretto and
one of the originators of the project, the famous Russian journalist and
anchorman Dmitriy Kiselev, told a news conference in Kiev today.
Dmitriy Kisilev, who also works for the Ukrainian TV channel ICTV, said "the
hot news taking place (in the Kerch Strait - Interfax) in the conditions in
which we live requires artistic conceptualization". "It is one thing when
politicians and the military go to the scene and it is another when artists,
composers, literary critics and musicians come to the fore. It is a natural
phenomenon, when in such a pre-war atmosphere - I am convinced that the
current atmosphere resembles a pre-war situation - that the muse should not
remain silent,"the journalist said.
He also expressed the hope that "It will not be the last project of this
kind". Oleg Kulik, the artistic director, told the news conference that "the
(Tuzla - Interfax) conflict will unite Russia and Ukraine, as any dispute
clarifies stances, relations and emotions." A press-release issued to the
reporters called the "Tuzla"theatrical project a "tragic love story in the
classical canon". A plot summary: A young Russian excavator-driver is
digging along a spit of land to reach a beautiful female islander. The
beautiful island girl sees him through binoculars given to her by the
commander of the Ukrainian border guard detachment, who is in love with her.
The Muscovite stops work in the shallows and, in the light of the morning
sun, wades off with a song. The beautiful island girl sees in the stranger
Christ walking on the water, and sings an aria of romantic yearning. Towards
evening the girl murders the stranger allegorically. There follows a
patriotic aria sung by the island girl: "You could take me, but not
Tuzla/The Motherland [giant statue in Kiev] is awakening on the banks of the
Dnipro". Kiselev said the content of the musical is "an artistic attempt to
jolt the consciousness of the politicians and the military, who are taking
all of this pretty seriously". He also said it was a "non-commercial
project". The composer is Volodymyr Solyanik and the director Andriy
Zholdak.
Source: Interfax-Ukraine news agency, Kiev, in Russian 0944 gmt 24 Oct 03
[BBC Mon KVU 241003 mvm/ad]
|