Odesa Celebrates Stus: New Horizons of Culture
On January 6, Odesa joined the All-Ukrainian performance festival «STUS-ing Together», honoring the great poet who remained free even in chains.
The event's founder, military man and musician Ihor Dvyhalo, organized meetings right from his bunker, symbolizing that culture knows no barriers.
This year, cities such as Kyiv, Odesa, Lviv, Dnipro, Rivne, Khmelnytskyi, and Kamianets joined together for the festival.
The celebration in Odesa took place at the More Music Club, featuring an eclectic musical and poetic performance that presented Stus as a rebellious artist, relevant even today.
The evening began with electronic music, under which an 11-year-old boy recited Stus's poem — the voice of the sixties poet resonated as the voice of a new generation.
The program included a musical stand-up from the independent Kyiv theater «Between Three Columns» as well as mini-sets from Odesa bands spanning various genres from electronic to industrial metal.
Some of the music was created directly from Stus's poems, while others served as reflections and fantasies inspired by his texts. Between blocks, short facts from Vasyl Stus's life were shared — dates, events, and details often lost in official biographies.
The finale was a communal carol «Good evening to you, master of the house».
On January 6, during Epiphany, the carol resonated in unison across various cities in Ukraine.
