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“НАШЕ ЖИТТЯ”, БЕРЕЗ ЕНЬ 2020 WWW. UNW LA.ORG 1 3 OPERA GAZ: HISTORY’S INS T RUCTIONS by Olena Jennings Opera Gaz , an opera p erforme d at La MaMa E.T.C. in New York City Dec ember 19 – 22, was created by Yara Arts Group in collaboration with Nova Opera. The libretto was created by Virlana Tkacz. Music and additional librettos were by Roman Grygoriv and Illia Razumeiko . The narrative, a reminder that history instructs , wa s second ary to the music. The music created the atm osphere of gaz (gas). At times, it was overpowering and perc ussive. Else - where , it was melodic. The language used in the show starts out simple , with a lot of repetition of the word “gaz,” but gradually be comes mo re complex wit h the singing of Tychyna’s po em “The Party Leads the Way .” O ne of Yara Arts Group’s most ambitious productions , Opera Gaz is a masterful synthesis of many components . The connection between Yara Arts Group and Nova Opera is magical. The them e was inspired b y German dramatist Geor g Ka iser in 1919 and is based on a performance by the famous director Les Kurbas in the 1920s . The gaz (gas) is central to the opera. It creates an aura o f energy for the entire western world . All the workers on stage move in rhythm to create it, but the overa rching question is when will the rhythm be broken? When will one worker decide not to comply? Gaz is some - thing bigger than people, but when will people stop believing in it? The set is striking with the spiral o f lights in the background, also us ed for t he Yara Arts Group exhibit titled “Kurbas: New Worlds.” The set is inspired by Vadym Meller , a designer who worked under Les Kurbas. The c ostumes for Opera Gaz , designed by Tetiana Sherstiuk , are ba sed on designs by M eller and create the image of factory w orker s with an emblem of blue and red on their chests , an emblem shining like an abstract paint - ing. The women are enveloped in their task of making gaz. When they f ind the production of ga z destroyed, the y shed t heir uniforms. Later, t he wo - men app ear in simple dresses, the fabric almost transparent , no long er concealing their true bodies. Pavlo Tychyna ’s (1891 − 1967) early poems are part of the performance. His poem “Spring Awakes , ” which doesn’t focus on the soc ialist realism typical of his work, still a sks “why won’t you sing with the collective?” Tychyna ’s “The Party Leads the Way” is also a significant poem in the opera, emphasizing the importance of working for the good of the group. The performance reminded this writer of Timothy Snyder’s book On Ty ranny. T he gaz be - comes oppressive , reflecting t he tyranny of the industrial world over the natural world , a concept especially important today because of climate change. Humans towe r over the natural worl d as the y work to oppress it. They easily fall into the collective, no longer acting on their own. Even when they think they are rebelling against the collective, they are doing it together. Snyder also writes about “our imaginary p erfection.” Gaz seem s l ike perf ection, but the leaders only imagine it thi s way. In truth, t he workers are unhappy with it. F oreshadowing in the opera hints tha t this world will be destroyed . And indeed, t he world under gaz is devoid of love and true connection. When two charact ers lean forward for a kiss , they have trouble reaching each other . When the piano that is the center of gaz production is destroyed, chaos reigns . Tools shatter the piano into pieces , and its pieces l ie l ike skeletons on the stage. The workers move with r age. Their arms swing as they smash. Then the p ieces are shattered further, until the stage is covered with debris. Afterwards, the female characters reclaim their natural selves, full of emotion and love. Th e ir factory uniforms lie scrunched at their feet and they are now wearing simple white dresses. At the very end, there is a sign of hope in lif e, glowing eyes searching for the world. Walking out of the theater after the production ended we saw two other pianos, wait - ing to be destroyed during the next two performances of the opera. We bec a me consc ious of the repetitio n that takes pl ace even in this, knowing that a piano will be destroyed again and again. And that it will also be rebuilt.
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