The second Stus-Fest will be held in Ukraine and abroad: what will it be?
Photo: Stus-Fest press service
During January 2025, the second Stus-Fest will be held throughout Ukraine and abroad - a festival dedicated to the life and work of the poet and dissident Vasyl Stus.
The festival will last the whole month, and the key events will take place on January 6, on Vasyl Stus' birthday. The main event of the festival will be held at the Les Kurbas National Center in Kyiv. There will be a presentation of the updated play "STUSANINA" by the Theater of Military Actions and a poetry evening where Vasyl Stus' poems will be read by famous theater and film actors.
In total, 50 events are planned within the framework of the festival in Ukraine and 19 other countries around the world. Kyiv, Dnipro, London, Ankara, Chernivtsi, Charlotte, Alicante, Warsaw, Edmonton, Dublin and even the Ukrainian Antarctic station "Akademik Vernadsky" will join it. The organizers plan to involve all seven continents. This idea is also emphasized by the motto of this year's festival - "Stus Skriz".
In addition, Ukrainian military personnel will record Vasyl Stus' poems in English specifically for the festival as part of the #private_stus project. And international artists and stars will read Stus' poems in different languages as part of the #stus_international project (their recordings will be posted at the link ).
Also, specifically for the Stus-Fest festival, they plan to release a vinyl record with songs by famous musicians set to poems by Vasyl Stus. Dilya, Angy Kreyda, Dakh Trio, Fraze Frazenko, Svarog Light, Correspondent, and others have recorded their compositions.
The organizers of Stus-Fest are three Ukrainian theaters: the DSP community, ProEnglish Theatre of Ukraine, and the Theater of Military Actions. They say that the goal of the festival is to highlight the figure of Vasyl Stus as one of the key figures in the awareness of the Ukrainian nation, as well as to identify, unite, and initiate all projects related to the poet's personality in Ukraine and abroad.
As a reminder, the National Museum of Folk Architecture and Life in Pirogov will host a festive event dedicated to Ukrainian traditions of celebrating Christmas. Folk groups will perform carols and schedrivkas for guests, as well as authentic Ukrainian greetings.
