On the eve of a unique theatrical event — the performance of “The Magic of Light” by the New York–based Yara Arts Group, which blends puppetry, music, and Ukrainian epic tradition — the Ukrainian Institute of Modern Art (UIMA) in Chicago hosted the presentation of a book of the same name.
This was reported to the Ukrainian Institute of Modern Art
Yara Arts Group presented the book “The Magic of Light,” which includes the full script of the production, photographs, and materials about the creative process behind it. The performance was created by director Virlana Tkacz, designer and puppeteer Tom Lee, and bandurist Julian Kytasty, a third-generation master musician.
During the presentation at UIMA, Virlana Tkacz shared the story behind the project and explained its relevance today. She spoke about the creative process and presented images by Porfiry Martynovych, the 19th-century Ukrainian painter who serves as a central figure in the production. Martynovych created projected images for the first concert of Ukrainian epic songs ever performed before an international audience in 1875.
Julian Kytasty introduced the audience to the kobzar singing tradition and performed selections from his new album, “Songs of Truth” (Smithsonian Folkways), which features historical dumy (epic ballads), philosophical songs, and dance melodies.
Poets Olena Jennings (New York) and Anna K. Yoder (Chicago) added to the evening with poetry readings. Jennings, who grew up in Milwaukee’s Ukrainian community and has long collaborated with Yara Arts Group, recited poems from her forthcoming collection about her Ukrainian roots and language, inspired by her grandparents’ memories.
The premiere of “The Magic of Light” took place earlier this year at La MaMa Experimental Theatre in New York, where it was described by the press as “enchanting.” The performance will soon travel to Chicago, with shows scheduled for November 13–16 at Abbot Hall, Northwestern University.
The play interweaves puppetry, language, music, and poetry to portray the cultural and spiritual awakening of a Ukrainian artist in the 1870s. Inspired by the epic songs of blind kobzars, it tells the story of a young painter embarking on a lifelong journey to record, preserve, and illuminate Ukrainian traditions under harsh imperial oppression. Натхненна глибокими епічними піснями українських сліпих кобзарів, історія розповідає про молодого художника, який вирушає в довічну подорож, аби записати, зберегти й освітити українські традиції в умовах жорстокого історичного тиску. Постановка відбувається в інтимному ляльковому просторі, виступ здійснюють лялькар Том Лі та музикант Джуліан Китастий, який виконує роль Остапа Вересая, сліпого кобзаря XIX століття.
“The Magic of Light is a layered performance about the life and art of Porfiry Martynovych, a 19th-century Ukrainian artist, and the enduring mark of colonization on him and other Ukrainian creators,” said director Virlana Tkacz. “In 1875, in the cultural capital of the empire, composer Mykola Lysenko organized a concert where the celebrated kobzar Ostap Veresai performed for an international audience. His rendition of the epic about three brothers escaping captivity was accompanied by projections created by young Martynovych. The images were shown using a 19th-century technology — the magic lantern, which projected hand-painted glass slides illuminated by a beam of Drummond light. Martynovych was deeply in love with Ukrainian culture and folk life, which later led to his expulsion from the Imperial Art Academy. Soon after the concert, Emperor Alexander II signed the Ems Ukaz (1876), a decree banning all performances in the Ukrainian language. This production sheds light on the intertwined fates of the artist and the kobzar, whose lives crossed a century and a half ago,” Tkacz explained, inviting audiences not to miss the upcoming Chicago performances.
Photo: Vladimir Davidenko, Virlana Tkacz
Author: Inna Mikhno