A group of Carpathian artists — soloists of the Ivano-Frankivsk Oblast Philharmonic Society, the Chamber Orchestra “Harmonia Nobile,” and amateur performers — visited the “miners’ capital.” This was a response to the recent visit to western Ukraine of Vadym Pysariev, the artistic director of the Donetsk Opera and Ballet Theater, during which the world-famous artist announced the beginning of a project, East-West, aimed at closing the gap between the different regions of the country. Specifically, Pysariev unveiled plans to open a branch of his celebrated children’s ballet school in Galicia, and pledged to actively promote cultural exchange and a search for new talents.
Thus the Carpathian team paid a return visit to the Donbas region with none other than Ivano-Frankivsk Governor Mykhailo Vyshyvaniuk at its head. The guests were received by the president’s wife Liudmyla Yanukovych, the honorary manager of the East-West project, who, as is known, has not moved to Kyiv and still resides in Donetsk oblast. At the opening ceremony, Vyshyvaniuk presented the first lady (his old acquaintance, incidentally) with a Hutsul-style carved box “for your husband to keep his decorations in.” Mrs. Yanukovych was so touched that she struggled not to shed a tear. Rumor has it that she proposed a toast in the official language at the farewell banquet for the forum participants.
At first glance, the act of cultural fraternization went off with flying colors. Given the event’s importance, one could shut one’s eyes to the fact that it occurred right on the eve of the head of state’s informal visit to Ivano-Frankivsk, a city which must be calling up unpleasant associations in Mr. Yanukovych’s mind. Besides, the results of the latest local elections demanded that image-makers from the president’s entourage urgently came up with something “intriguing” in order to curb the Galicians’ public passions.
One could also disregard the fact that the Ivano-Frankivsk artists had to give closed-door performances, to which audiences could come by special invitation alone. This could hardly have an impact on the local cultural milieu — after all, what you failed to do at the first attempt can be done later. But, just a few days later, the Donetsk Oblast Administration began to hold a festival of Russian culture on an entirely different and much larger scale.
The politicized extravaganza, on the occasion of which the oblast council passed a special resolution, “On the Regional Program of Developing the Russian Language and Russian Culture in Donetsk Oblast,” will last for a week, until November 21. The event embraces almost all the state-run cultural and educational institutions — from the abovementioned opera house to the regional public library — as well as the amateur groups like Cossack Yard, The Russian Commune of Ukraine, etc. A large number of guests were also invited from the Kursk and Rostov oblasts of the neighboring state. What actually tops the bill is the celebration of the 75th birth anniversary of the Moscow poet and songwriter Mikhail Pliatskovsky, who was born in Yenakieve, the incumbent president’s birthplace. It was promised that the acclaimed singer Iosif Kobzon would come personally to the memorial soiree to sing The Volga Empties into My Heart.
