Спілка жінок Херсонщини

Although nearly two and a half thousand guests from all over Ukraine and even from the USA and Switzerland were expected to visit the Ivan Kupala Day Festival, it still appeared to be a pleasant surprise for everyone.

The festival was traditionally hosted (for the second time) by the Equestrian Sports Club Grand Prix, an acknowledged natural pearl of Kherson Region.

That day the territory of the Club looked wonderful, as the friendly team of creative Skadovsk people – the Original Gifts Factory Design – had been creating an original festive spirit with all their love and inspiration since an early morning. Headed by Larysa Dvornik, the Factory’s owner and inspirator, assistants and handywomen, namely Maryna Yares’ko, Natal’ya Sokol, Tetyana Kindra, Anna Lavrova, Svitlana Vlasenko, Lyudmyla Davydova, Anna Sematkina, Nadiya Shelofastova, Olga Zhukova, worked to decorate some original photo zones and the Club’s territory in a traditional Kupala style. And Serhiy Dvornik helped them representing a virile strength.

The Ivan Kupala Festival 2017 is considered to be special for its charitable goal.

Iryna Nikolayeva, the Head of Kherson Women Union, and Yevhen Ryshchuk, the founder of the Yevhen Ryshchuk’s Charity Fund, Kherson Regional State Administration Deputy Head, the deputy of Kherson Regional Council, announced during the Festival inauguration that the proceeds gained from the Festival tickets and goods’ sales as well as from paid-for workshops would be spent to build an orthodoxal church of Kyiv Patriarchate in Ulyanivka village (Skadovsk District).

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The guests were welcomed by real Ukrainian beauties – Kherson Women Union’s volunteers. They smiled and wished everyone a fantastic evening. Having entered the Festival territory, the guests felt the original folk spirit watching the performances of amateur artists and ensembles from various parts of Kherson region. There was an opportunity to enjoy folk songs and dances performed by the Sagivchanka (Sagy Community Centre) and Kryshtalevi Rosy (Pishchanka Village Club) ensembles, the Fortuna choreographic group (Gola Prystan Children’s Art School), and the young accordionist Volodymyr Myakota. Everyone was pleased and greatly impressed.

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The peculiarity of Ivan Kupala Day is wreaths of fresh wildflowers and herbs, and the Kherson Women Union followed the tradition. The wreaths were extremely popular among the guests and volunteers. The wildflowers were picked up and delivered to the Equestrian Sports Club Grand Prix especially for the Festival by the employees of the Sotsenko farm early in the morning, just after dew had disappeared.

The volunteers and handywomen of the Original Gifts Factory Design started to twine nice festive wreaths. The volunteers wearing these wreaths and Ukrainian folk costumes were meeting the guests at the entrance. And the guests impressed by the beauty hastened to decorate themselves with wreaths of wildflowers and herbs. That evening the social sites were full of photos of charming Ukrainian girls in extraordinary Kupala style.

Moreover, the guests were suggested having their hair plaited. Hairstylists of Olena Ostapyuk’s Beauty Studio and the Marafet Beauty Salon did the girls’ hair and plaited their hair in various ways free of charge. All little and grown-up beauties who had not had a chance to coiffure before the Festival could have their hair done just at the main lane of the Grand Prix Club. They decorated the girls’ hair with flowers and glass beads making them feel pleased.

There was a special health-and-beauty location presented by the company Rain International, where everyone could get a professional consultation of the company’s Kherson top-leaders. The Red Cross first medical aid group and experts of the Medical Centre Taurt Medical kept an eye on the guests’ health.

Having got their hair done and their festive image completed, the girls hurried to professional photographers to get a free-of-charge photo session.

Memorable photos in various locations were made by Nataliya Timanova, Nataliya Nozhevnik, Valeriya Timanova, Violetta Vdovichenko, Yevhenyia Volkova, Anatoliy Skybitskiy, Alina Mazurenko, Olexandra Ustinova and Stanislav Ostrous.

Kids also felt extremely cute during the Ivan Kupala Festival. They had got their faces painted with animal or fantastic images. The artists of the Arbooz Creative Workshop and ASSORTI Festive Agency had been putting the make-up on children’s faces by the late night making kids happy. They turned ordinary girls and boys into tigers, spidermen, butterflies and flower fairies.

“Meo-o-ow! Look, Mummy, I’m your fluffy little kitty now!”, a little girl crowed over a catlike make-up on her face. I can’t find the words to describe her happy eyes!

You only should have seen it for yourselves!

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And in one of the cosy pergolas, kids were expected to have a wonderful meeting and an autograph-session of a real writer – a Kherson taleteller Lana Yasins’ki. It is her fairytale “The Daisy Fairy and the Cat” that has become the Ivan Kupala Festival’s heart. For the second year guests of the Festival can watch and even participate in the performance – an interactive tale “The Daisy Fairy and the Cat”, staged by art directors, choreographers and slim dancers of Children’s Choreography Studio Mriya. Girls, ranged from little dollies to charming lassies, in Ukrainian folk costumes created an original Kupala spirit with their impressive dance compositions.

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This year the tale by Lana Yasins’ki formed the plot of the exciting quest “Searching For a Magic Wreath” that was organized for kids on the main stage of the Festival. Children took part in the quest altogether with the characters of the tale – a Magpie, Daisy Fairy, Cornflower Fairy and Poppy Fairy (acted by the entertainers of the Festive Agency Zateynik).

Just by the taleteller’s pergola, there was another one where adult guests could deal with a fortunetelling and ask a sorceress about their future. The spirit of magic filled the air. As a matter of fact, Nataliya Kotlyuba, the expert in natural herbal cosmetology played a sorceress’ part. She told the guests’ fortune by gingerbread and the book of prophecies.

Children could visit the art workshop conducted by the Creativity and Development Studio Art-Insight to paint easel pictures. It was located in a small wooden house decorated with pieces of paintings created by the artists. Silence and creative spirit reigned there. The children were painting thoroughly and set their brushes aside from time to time to admire their little masterpieces.

The handywomen of the Original Gifts Factory Design taught the little ones to make small windmills. The weather was windy, and the kids enjoyed testing the toys made by their own hands. Not the least popular was the location where Viktoriya Gordashevs’ka, a mehndi artist, decorated adults and children with magic henna tattoos.

And the children’s playground was filled with cheerful noise and fun!

Also, the kids could try their hand in a unique style of colouring there. The artists of the Art Studio Pisochnyy Ostriv helped children to colour plaster figures with bright paints. The kids were extremely proud to show their works – unusual animals, beautiful princesses, cartoon characters.

NOVA SHKOLA conducted masterclasses for new children Z nearby (born after 2000). And the youngest guests enjoyed learning games with coloured sand taught by educators of the NOVA SHKOLA.

By the children’s playground, there were two extraordinary locations – BabyBar presented by the entertainment complex Jump Park, and chemical laboratory (experiment show).

All day long kids and adults were tasting delicious and original drinks and playing with soap bubbles. And when it got dark, the research chemical lab started its work.

Jump Park employees told lots of fascinating facts. For instance, what dry ice is and how it can burn. The kids saw giant soap bubbles and played interesting interactive games. The most active children got unusual cocktails with a wonderful secret ingredient.

The folk crafts fair was bright and attractive. The guests had a chance to purchase nice handmade fashion jewellery, bracelets, necklaces, vyshyvankas (Ukrainian traditional embroidered shirts), toys, spice cakes and wreaths. Every item was so incredible that you wanted to buy all at once! Craftswomen Larysa Gayday, Galyna Koval’, Olga Genkulova, Oksana Marchenko, Galyna Kalyn and Galyna Lazarenko presented their works there.

The air smelled with festivity, herbs, joy and tasty treats. The field-kitchen and food courts presented by the Original Ukrainian Cuisine Restaurant Pan Ataman, the general partner of the Festival, called the guests to taste various food and drinks.

Everyone had a chance to taste delicious pies, uzvar, barbeque, fruit desserts, unique soft drinks made by original recipes. Someone happened to find a tiny pearl in the shell of a boiled mussel. What a surprise!

Both children and adults had been waiting for flying in a balloon for the whole day. Sturdy fellows inflated a balloon for several times for every guest to have a chance to hit the sky. Unfortunately, it was very windy that evening, and it might be dangerous to fly in a balloon. Thus, the organizers decided not to risk people’s lives, and the fun was put off until the next year.

At the same time the concert and entertainment show was in full play on the main stage and at the lane, emceed by Olena Zaryutina and Oleksiy Ivanchenko (the Festive Agency ASSORTI).

They invited the guests to participate in prize drawings at entrance ticket numbers and to the fashion runaway walk of the Children’s Studio Happy Kids. Smiling little Ukrainians displayed luxurious designer Ukrainian garments presented by the Happy Land Shop. It was worth watching!

When it got dark a bit, the Southern Queens demonstrated a fashion show. The girls presented the First Professional Model Agency ST Models. Daryna Tretyak, the vocalist of the Vocal-and-Variety Studio Unison, and the colourful folk group Oleshshya enchanted all guests with their singing.

Men got the most interested in the “Kozats’ka Syla” games that were held by the well-known Kherson Olympic sportsmen, namely Serhiy Kirsanov, the silver medalist of 24th Seoul Olympic Games (1988), two-time world champion, Merited Master of Sports of the USSR in rowing and canoeing, Luisa Kirsanova, the executive director of Kherson Regional Department of National Olympic Committee of Ukraine, Dar’ya Goncharova, the Master of Sports of International Class in weightlifting, European champion, and Olga Mazmanyan, the member of the Olympic Academy of Ukraine in Kherson region.

All winners gained gift certificates from the restaurant Pan Ataman, the general partner of the Festival.

And in the evening the sky got lit up with a great Kupala fire, 4,1 metres tall. It was so tall, the sky seemed to burn. All guests were given wild rose hips. They should be thrown into the fire with magic words “The Power of the Fire, save my kinsfolk and me!”

At last, the moment came that everyone was waited for. It was the rite of floating girls’ wreaths on the water. While wreaths were floating, little girls were making wishes and older ones wanted to gain foresight into their relations fortune.

According to the popular folk belief, if a wreath floats well, the girl will marry soon; if it spins at one and the same place, the girl won’t marry that year; if it drowns, the girl won’t marry at all. We hope, most girls who saw their wreaths float well will visit the next year Ivan Kupala Festival with their fiancés.

The night was lit up with the fire-show presented by fire-theatre HORS. People were enchanted observing the performance of the virtuosos from Nova Kakhovka and odd figures made with their light sticks.

The organizers and guests were incredibly pleased not only to participate in the folk festival but to be aware of belonging to a charitable deed. Due to common efforts, there were collected 98 176 hryvnyas of funds during the Festival to construct an orthodoxal church.

The unique Ukrainian Charm and Traditions Charity Ivan Kupala Festival was conducted by:

Organizer – the Kherson Women Union supported by Kherson Regional Yevhen Ryshchuk’s Charity Fund

General partner – Pan Ataman Restaurant

Stylistic design of the territory - Original Gifts Factory Design

Production, festival and dance performances direction – Children’s Choreography Studio Mriya (art directors – Olga Shylina, Tetyana Budnikova)

Host - Equestrian Sports Club Grand Prix

Healthy Lifestyle Partner – Rain International company

Seeing off our guests, the Ivan Kupala Festival did not farewell them only to say ‘See you next year!’

Authors: Yuliya Mayner, Lara Grek, Mariya Bodnaryuk

Photo: Nataliya Timanova, Nataliya Nozhevnik, Valeriya Timanova, Violetta Vdovichenko, Yevhenyia Volkova, Anatoliy Skybitskiy, Alina Mazurenko, Olexandra Ustinova, Stanislav Ostrous

Translated by Anastasia Kistanova