This year’s GogolFest will differ from all previous festivals by its context. For the first time, the festival will be held in wartime. In fact, the founder and director of the festival Vlad Troitsky emphasized it at his press conference:
“Is it appropriate to talk about art at a time when such a terrible story is unfolding in the east of our country? We have resolved for ourselves that despite all, the war is to be won, first and foremost, in people’s minds. It is important for the lads who are defending us there to have a place to return to. We do not want them to return to that gloomy Soviet system, which prospered throughout 23 years of our independence in theaters as well as ministries. All these bodies seem to lack the part tasked with thinking about the future. The army, for example, is recruited and supplied mainly through efforts of volunteers who have shown an example of how the society can self-organize and create a real, new Ukraine. Therefore, we have emphasized education and production projects and launched the school residence project, which has been active for a month and involving up to 300 people. The main task is forming a horizontal structure so that people learn to be self-reliant, to cooperate, to seek resources. Expecting that someone will resolve our issues for us is a kind of infantile insanity. One can complain about the authorities’ inaction, but the time will come when one will have to answer the question: What did you do for yourself, for your life, for your city and country? I do not want to spend my life waiting senselessly for someone’s favors. We must create our future now.”
Hence, the GogolFest will involve, apart from theatrical, musical, and literary programs, many workshops and master classes. There is enough space for all of them, as the festival has expanded its territory. First, the management of the plant has finally started to take care of the facilities by installing a sewerage system and making some improvements to the interiors. These changes have enabled the organizers to turn the Auditorium hall into a large children’s area. The classical music hall will be made much more comfortable, and the theater will move to a better accommodation. Two new places have been added as well, called the “Fresh-Stage” and the “Quiet Progress” halls.
The international multidisciplinary festival GogolFest’s opening will be held in 7V Inzhenerna Street (the reinforced concrete structures plant, near Vydubychi subway station) at 7 p.m. on September 11. Performance Here and Now will involve Orkestronika band from France, theater-cabaret Che y Moche from Spain, freak-cabaret Dakh Daughters Band from Kyiv, Israeli performance artist Tamar Raban, Musical Design Bureau (Mishukov, Kabanov, Borysov), and a troupe including 100 dancers and dozens of musicians and actors.
Our newspaper will follow the events of the festival.
