ANTIN RUDNYTSKY'S OPERA "ANNA YAROSLAVNA — QUEEN OF FRANCE": COMPARATIVE ANALYSIS OF THE AMERICAN AND UKRAINIAN FORMATS OF PRODUCTION
Authors: Suvorova Iryna 
Published: September 2024

The author devotes this research to the phenomenon of the creation by Antin Rudnytskyi's the opera "Anna Yaroslavna — Queen of France", having used historiographical and iconographical sources, its artistic productions in American and Ukrainian formats. The relevance and necessity of taking into account the historical national theme in general and the opera in particular in today's socio-cultural realities are outlined. The role and place of the Ukrainian diaspora in the preservation of national identification of cultural property and artistic heritage in the conditions of stay in different countries of the world is clarified. Attention is focused on returning to the treasury of national musical culture and unjustifiably forgotten names and works of Ukrainian emigrant artists, one of their bright representatives is rightfully considered the American composer of Galician origin Antin Rudnytskyi. The literary background of the opera is analyzed and systematized being based on the peculiarities of the historical, sociocultural development of Kyivan Rus and France at the end of the early Middle Ages; the prerequisites for creating an opera are outlined, emphasizing the main storylines in the development of its dramaturgy; the author studied memoirs, reviews and publications on its production in American and Ukrainian formats. The article describes the differences in living conditions, the way of existence of Kyivan Rus and France during the specified era, emphasizing the peculiarities of their contemporary culture, lifestyle, and traditions. Attention is drawn to the choice of the effective vector of Yaroslav the Wise's activity in politics, diplomacy, interstate family ties with the leading royal courts of Europe, which contributed to the highest development of Kyivan Rus at that time, strengthening the princely secular power. On the contrary, the author emphasized the modest position of medieval fragmented France in the geopolitical development of Europe with the subordination of secular royal power to the Pope. The motivation of Antin Rudnytskyi's appeal to historical themes and the prerequisites for writing the opera "Anna Yaroslavna - Queen of France" as a "heartfelt confession" of the emigrant Maestro is determined. Two storylines in opera drama are analyzed — social-historical and domestic-psychological, with arguments for their conceptual solution. The reasons for the concertstage format of the implementation of the opera by the forces of the Ukrainian diaspora in America and the impossibility of its further stage life in the country are clarified. The conceptual production of the work in the National Opera of Ukraine in the stage format, the reasons for the shortcomings of its mise-en-scène development in connection with errors in the director's analysis and the creative idea of the performance are studied. The necessity of a thorough approach to the interpretation of historical operas of national themes with the use of large-scale monumental mass scenes is proven. Prospects for further scientific research on the given topic in the conditions of modern possibilities of musical theater and achievements of director's opera practice are predicted