Specificity of embodiment of Shevchenko’s image in Lev Colodub’s opera “Poet”
Authors: Makliuk D.M. 
Published: June 2020

Formulation of the problem, analysis of the publications on the topic. The opera by Lev Kolodub “Poet” is one of the recognized examples of modern “Shevchenkian music” and the outstanding achievement of the composer. From the very premiere at the Kharkiv Opera and Ballet Theater named after M. Lysenko (2001) to this day, this work has been preserved in the theater’s repertoire, and the 2011 Kharkiv performance has become a world event: in the recording of Ukrainian Radio, it was broadcast to 78 countries of the world by the European Broadcasting Union. L. Kolodub’s creativity attracts considerable attention of researchers and was covered in various sources, including monographic essays (Zahaikevych, M., 1973), scientific, encyclopedic, journalistic articles (Bielik Zolotariova, N., 2009; Sulim, R., 2010; Paukov, S., 2007), where the opera “Poet” is mentioned in different contexts. The reviews of premiere performances of this opera were given: in scenic version at Kharkiv (Velychko, Yu., 2002) and in philharmonic variant in Kyiv (Sikorska, I., 2004); in his interviews, the composer also recalled this work. Nevertheless, the holistic analysis of the concept of the opera and the image of its leading hero, as well as its vocal-stage interpretation by the Kharkiv Opera’s artistic collective, has not been carried out yet. The objective of this article is to formulate the concept of the stage embodiment of the Poet’s image in the opera of the same name by L. Kolodub, on the basis of its interpretation at the Kharkiv National Opera and Ballet Theatre and self-own scenic experience of the author of these words, which is currently the only performer of the protagonist’s part. Summary of the main material. The composer has many times emphasized the outstanding importance of Taras Shevchenko’s work for every Ukrainian. “I consider Shevchenko to be a personality who has arisen on the basis of Ukrainian folklore. She is understandable to everyone, everyone cares - this is a very social poet. Many perceive him naturally, since the problems of his works excite and affect people. Shevchenko is incredibly interesting! I constantly re-read him and every time I find a new one. The main thing is that he himself suffered, all this is transmitted in his poetry. At the same time, he is a very big optimist, a warm-hearted person” (from the interview, as cited by Koskin, V., 2008b). The composer noted that the scenic life of his opera was not easy: at first the work arose interest both in Dnipropetrovsk and Kyiv (Children’s Music Theater on Podol, National Opera Theater). In 1988, when the opera was created, S. Turchak, who was supposed to be the conductor, suddenly passed away, and the new management of National Opera deleted it from their plans. Nevertheless, the opera was staged at Kyiv in the philharmonic performance in the arrangement for soloists, choir and brass band (2004). In I. Sikorska’s (2004) opinion, the composer “broke the stereotypes”, having redrafted the score in such a way that the brass orchestra’s timbre palette rivals the symphonic one. The opera is written on the basis of drama “Path” by O. Biletskyi and Z. Sagalov. The librettists’ idea was that the events of poet’s life intervene with the plot collisions of his works. For example, execution of Jun Hus symbolically coincides with the moment of death of Shevchenko himself. Moreover, the poet’s image is identified with heroes of his works. So, Colodub’s opera is the authors’ interpretation of Shevchenko-Kobzar’s fate from the XX century human’s point of view. Therefore, both, phantasmagoria and cinematographic methods are justified. The composer thought that “modern opera requires novel forms of delivering the material. The art of cinema and drama theater are developing fast, and opera esthetics is sort of frozen in the 19th century, she is not seeing even the heels of the far-ahead walking dramaturgy of the modern theater” (from the interview, Koskin, V., 2008a). The principle of introspection became the main dramaturgical principle of opera libretto’s construction. Avoiding the symphonic introduction, the first scene instantly transfers the viewer to the last March night of the Poet’s life. Being on the edge of eternity, the heavily ill Shevchenko is diving in memories. The Poet in the opera acts simultaneously as the event’s participant and its commenter, revealing gradually through different scenic roles: as a na&#239;ve creative person (scene 10), as a poet-citizen, who points out social injustices (scenes 3, 4, 15, 16), as a loving and beloved person (scenes 6, 7, 14, 20), or a thinker (scenes 11, 13, 1, 22). Over time, these roles are summing up, turning Shevchenko’s image into polyphonic and lifting the latter to the epic generalization. The image of the Poet become the symbol of the nation’s self-consciousness lost in the conditions of imperial Russia’s brutal reality (scene 29, “The burning of Jan Hus” – the Czech thinker is the hero of the Shevchenko’s poem of the same name). The opera’s authors do not separate the title hero from the storm of events and kaleidoscope of others scenic personages, which stipulates the specificity of vocal dramaturgy of Shevchenko’s opera character. The Poet’s vocal party does not include the developed solo or duet episodes, but it consists of concise replicas-phrases written by the recitative (Dargomyzhsky-Mussorgsky’s tradition) and several solo statements of arioso type. Conclusions. So, “Poet” by L. Kolodub, continuing the line of psychological opera-drama, vividly presented in the twentieth century by the works of D. Shostakovich, A. Berg, B. Britten and their followers, at the same time appeals to symbolism as to one of the main means of artistic expression. The image of Taras Shevchenko is interpreted as polysemantic: the fate of the Poet coincides in the perception of the audience with the fate of the Ukrainian people in their desire for liberty in a situation of opposition to the autocratic regime. And the freedom of expression of poetic and civic thought appears as a conscious necessity in the struggle for personal freedom, honor and human dignity. The logical culmination of the development of the image is the final scene of the auto-da-f&#233;, where the burning of Jan Hus, the hero of Shevchenko’s poem, acts as a symbol of cruelty to the Poet himself, and to the people, of whose part he is. The musical language of the Poet’s vocal party, on the one hand, is quite naturally approaches to the style of Ukrainian kobzars folk lyrics; on the other hand, it inherits the recitative type of melodicism, which is a characteristic feature of psychological musical theater. Such a synthesis helps to reveal the image of the Poet as the outstanding representative and spiritual leader of the Ukrainian people, and, at the same time, to emphasize the rich content of his work, and the beauty of the inspirited poetic Word. Theopera provides rich artistic material for the study of innovative type of dramatic thinking in the context of the development of the national tradition of the genre and is promising for further study.