The Days of Ukrainian Culture festival are being held in the Austrian capital for the first time these days, as reported by storinka.at website. The event aims to present Ukraine as a modern European state. By the way, almost 40 artists from Switzerland and Germany who have some Ukrainian ancestry supported the festival and are now performing at the best venues of the Austrian capital. The program includes literature readings by Serhii Zhadan and Kateryna Babkina, art exhibition “Ukraine. Transformation of Modern,” concerts of bandura player Olena Nechai and Ukrainian classical music, and workshops for children on glass beads weaving and making traditional motanka dolls. For ages, motankas have been not just children’s toys, but also guardians of the family and clan, powerful magical talismans and symbols of intergenerational linkages.
As part of the festival, visitors will see Ukrainian-Swiss visual-musical-dramatic performance Hamlet – Babylon, staged by Dmytro Kostiuminsky. This is an original interpretation of the texts created by writers of different ages who addressed the topic of William Shakespeare’s Hamlet; it is starring as the protagonist Swiss-based Polish actor Bartek Sozanski (Kyivites saw this revolutionary performance at GogolFest past year, and it prompted a lively response among theater critics). The final gala evening will be held on November 29. Ukrainian opera stars will perform on the stage of the Vienna Concert Hall on that day.
