Sweden is hosting a cultural festival to celebrate Ukraine’s unique culture through music, art, cinema, literature, and poetry. The “European Festival: Ukrainian Spring” aims to promote a united European front in support of Ukraine, in line with Sweden’s EU presidency theme this year. The festival is being organized by the Ukrainian Institute in Sweden, in collaboration with the European Union National Institutes for Culture and the European Commission.
Ukrainian and European artists will perform at the festival, which will last for almost a month and feature various events throughout Stockholm and the surrounding area. The festival aims to become a regular event throughout Europe, focused on different topical issues. “European Festival: Ukrainian Spring” will end on Europe Day, May 9.
Celebrating Ukrainian Art and Culture
One of the festival’s highlights will be a reading of works by Ukrainian poets of the “executed revival” by the famous Swedish actress Stina Ekblad. The reading will be accompanied by strings from the Royal Stockholm Philharmonic Orchestra, and will include works by Vasyl Barvinsky and Borys Liatoshynsky. The festival will also showcase two young Ukrainian pianists, Hanna Kozyak and Amelia Ploshko, who will perform for the audience.
The festival will also feature a play called “How Do You Feel When You’re Afraid?” by young Ukrainian playwrights aged 15 to 21. The play will be directed by Lars Rudolfsson and performed on the small stage of the Orion Theater. The festival will also screen a range of films, including “The Vision of a Butterfly,” “Shchedryk,” “The Guide,” “Winter on Fire,” and “Mariupol2.”
Supporting Ukraine through Art and Music
The grand finale of the festival will take place in the prestigious concert hall of the Stockholm Museum, where the Lviv Philharmonic Symphony Orchestra will perform Ukrainian music that has never been heard before in Sweden. The orchestra will be conducted by Yaroslav Shemet, a rising star from Kharkiv, and will feature works by Myroslav Skoryk and Borys Liatoshynsky. The exhibition “Unbreakable” will also be on display in the museum’s lobby, showcasing the work of 17 contemporary Ukrainian artists who continue to work in Ukraine despite the ongoing conflict.
All proceeds from ticket sales for the festival’s events will go towards supporting Ukraine. The festival is a wonderful opportunity to celebrate and support Ukraine’s unique culture, and to promote a united European front in solidarity with the country.
