DRAMA REVIEW: "Koliada: Twelves Dishes" at LaMama Theater (04/03/05)

DRAMA REVIEW: "Koliada: Twelves Dishes" at LaMama Theater

by Olena Jennings

NEW YORK - "Koliada: Twelve Dishes," performed by the Yara Arts Group at the LaMama Theater in New York City on March 4-20 is a collage of past, present, pagan and Christian traditions. Ukrainian and English are also interwoven in traditional folk song and spoken word, which includes the poetry of contemporary Ukrainian writer Serhiy Zhadan.

"Koliada" was created in a theater workshop that took place in Kyiv during the Orange Revolution, but the idea was conceived during director Virlana Tkacz's research travels in the Carpathian Mountains, where many of the rituals invoked in the play are still practiced.

The play is framed by the Christmas Eve dinner. A lonely Ukrainian woman played by Olga Shuhan prepares dinner, goes outside with an ax, which she taps against a bowl, calling the spirits and bears to the table. "If you don't come when I invite you, then don't come at all," she says. When she falls asleep, the spirits enter her house and prepare to feast.

The spirits are played by Andrew Colteaux, Olenka Denysenko, George Drance, Siho Ellsmore, Allison Hiroto and Vira Slywotzky. Even in her silence, Siho Ellsmore conveyed emotion in her vivid expressions. The confidence of Mr. Colteaux's movements stood out as the spirits danced rhythmically on stage. Ms. Hiroto also stuns with the poignancy of her voice during the cast's performance of musical arrangements by Mariana Sadovska.

Music is important throughout the play. Hutsul koliadnyky Ivan Zelenchuk and Dmytro Tafiychuk sing and at one point play a trembita from a ramp above the stage. This adds an especially Ukrainian touch since they sing in a traditional style, while most of the play seems to transcend specific culture. This is one of the play's strongest points. It brings Ukrainian culture to a universal level.

In the play, visual images become poems in themselves. Upon first glance, the set designed by Watoku Ueno seems simple, but when the play begins audience members discover its intricacies. Shadows add to the ethereal atmosphere. In one scene, colorful fruits and vegetables are placed on a tablecloth reminiscent of a canvas. Their scents drift toward the audience members, causing them to reinterpret their perception of everyday objects just as Zhadan's poems do. His poems cause us to contemplate the associations with objects such as "Honey," "Mushrooms," "Fish" and "Potatoes." In another visually stimulating image, cabbage falls from up above, neon green leaves landing with a thud against the black floor.

At the end of the play, the table is pushed toward the audience. The members in the front row are actually sitting at the table. They are given a spoonful of kutia, joining the spirits, emphasizing the communal nature of the Christmas Eve dinner and of the artistic experience of viewing the play.

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