CRY OF THE NATION
JUNE 5, 6
CRY OF THE NATION monoplay by Liudmyla Kolosovych about life and faith of VASYL STUS Event: Ukrainian & English language Play: Ukrainian & English subtitle Complimentary: drinks & snacks Parking and after party are an ADD ONS on the reservation section PG-13
Full-scale Russian invasion into Ukraine demonstrates, once again, the genocide of the Ukrainian people and culture. Nonetheless, neither the killing of thousands of innocent people nor ruined to the ground cities and villages can shut down the voice of the Ukrainian people which has turned into a SCREAM.
“CRY OF THE NATION” – is a name of a play presented by Ukrainian artIsts Liudmyla Kolosovych and Nataliya Kaspshyshak. It is about preservation of the culture of Ukraine.
Repressions for the Ukrainian identity and language, and for the love of the land are characteristics of not only present time. Clear cut Ukrainian position could easily take you to a prison during the Soviet occupation of Ukraine. A vivid example of resistance and courage is Vasyl Stus – a Ukrainian poet of the 60s, a translator, a writer, a thinker, a literary critic, an activist, a political prisoner of the Soviet Union, one of the most active members of the dissident movement. Stus was subjected to repressions by the Soviet dictatorship for his persuasion to preserve and develop the Ukrainian culture; his writings were forbidden and partially destroyed; and he himself was sentenced to lengthy imprisonment in Perm Region where he eventually died.
Poet’s biography resonates with the current history of Ukraine. The show focuses on spirituality, search for the truth, a particular interpretation of the current events, and serves as an example of bravery and courage of the Ukrainian people.
Liudmyla on the moment of performing
A one-man play about the life and fate of Vasyl Stus is a confession of a person who chose truth, fully aware of the price of that choice. It is not only the story of a poet, but a story of indomitable spirit, inner freedom, and absolute responsibility to oneself and to the people.
Through words, silence, and an inner monologue, the spectator travels Stus’s path — from Kyiv literary evenings to a prison camp cell, from love for his wife and son to the solitude of a punishment cell, from hope to a martyr’s death. The space of the play is a space of memory, where letters, poems, and diary lines become the voice of a nation’s conscience.
Through words, silence, and an inner monologue, the spectator travels Stus’s path — from Kyiv literary evenings to a prison camp cell, from love for his wife and son to the solitude of a punishment cell, from hope to a martyr’s death. The space of the play is a space of memory, where letters, poems, and diary lines become the voice of a nation’s conscience.
Official poster created for L.K.
Premier of this play was done by the team survivors from Mariupol drama theater which was destroyed by russians on March 16th, 2022
Memorable moments are created together
This is a play about dignity. About the fact that freedom begins within. About a person who can be physically isolated but cannot be broken spiritually.
Today, as Ukraine again fights for its right to exist, the figure of Stus sounds not as a page of history but as a living presence. His word becomes a dialogue with the present, his pain an echo of our time, his silence the cry of a nation.
Today, as Ukraine again fights for its right to exist, the figure of Stus sounds not as a page of history but as a living presence. His word becomes a dialogue with the present, his pain an echo of our time, his silence the cry of a nation.