A musical and literary evening, organized on March 19, 2026 at the Salle Colonne in Paris.
Poet, translator, dissident: Vasyl Stus is a major figure of Ukrainian literature, whose life was tragically interrupted in 1985 at the age of forty-seven, in a Soviet labor camp. The Swiss publishing house Noir sur Blanc is finally making the poems he wrote during his first stay in the Gulag between 1971 and 1977 available in French, with the publication in March 2026 of Palimpsests translated by Georges Nivat.
In this event, Vasyl Stus is presented from several perspectives: after an introduction by philosopher Constantin Sigov and translator Georges Nivat, the director Aleksi Barrière performs a montage of poems and letters written by Stus in the Gulag. The mezzo-soprano Oleksandra Turyanska then sings the French premiere of Face to Face, a song cycle by Olena Ilnytska composed to poems by Stus.
In partnership with the association Aide Médicale Caritative France-Ukraine.
Full Credits
Speakers
Georges Nivat & Constantin Sigov
Reader
Aleksi Barrière
Singing and Artistic Direction
Oleksandra Turyanska
Composition and Piano
Olena Ilnytska
Cello
Clément Mailliet
Echoes
March 23, 2026
This format of the mini-performance allowed to create a holistic artistic image and bring the viewer closer to the emotional experience behind the poet’s texts. After all, the figure of the artist was revealed to the audience not only from the side of a freedom fighter and dissident, but also as a father and husband. This is the figure of a living person with his experiences, doubts, reflections, fears…
(…) This event is important not only for the literary community, but also for cultural diplomacy. It contributes to a deeper understanding of the Ukrainian historical experience, and also demonstrates the power of poetry as a universal language capable of overcoming borders. This is not just the release of a new book, but an important step in the dialogue of cultures, which opens Ukrainian poetry to new readers and consolidates its place in the European literary space.
Yulia Shipunova, RFI
