The quiet miniature public garden in front of the Ivan Franko Theater became a small mecca on Kyiv Day, as a statue of a wonderful man, People’s Artist of Ukraine Mykola Yakovchenko was unveiled there. He would have been 100 years old May 3.
The sculptors, Volodymyr and Oleksiy Chepelyk, succeeded in conveying portrait likeness. Cast in bronze, Mykola Yakovchenko sits on a bench with his friend of many years, dachshund Fanfan, at the feet.
Since 1927 and till his dying day (1974), the actor’s life was inseparable from the Ivan Franko company where played his best roles. He was described as a character comedian, Ukrainian Charlie Chaplin, and a master of improvisation. Among his memorable impersonations are Mykola (Natalka Poltavka), Penezhka (Martyn Borulia), Lyashch (The Last Ones).
Personally, I like the statue very much. Except perhaps that the dog Fanfan does not look the way it did in real life. It was not a dachshund but an ordinary chestnut mongrel with its tail constantly up in a coil.
Our favorite actor is back among the living, resting in tree shade, by a whispering fountain. The place is always crowded, adults taking pictures and kids concentrating on Fanfan. Kyiv Mayor Oleksandr Omelchenko is sure the small public garden by the Franko Theater will soon turn into a real park. He also promised the drama company to help with the drawn-out construction of the Small Stage.
