This case study originates from the research conducted by Dr Matt Smith, Reader in Applied Theatre and Puppetry at the University of Portsmouth, as part of the UK-Ukraine R&I twinning grants scheme. It highlights the way that culture like puppet theatre can survive conflict and be part of social reconstruction. In this project, Dr Smith worked with a team of scholars at Odesa Polytechnic, Dr. Tamara Rozova, Dr. Nataliia Borodina, Dr. Tetiana Ovcharenko. Here, Dr Smith outlines the project and its findings.
One of the oldest puppet theatres in Ukraine is based in Odesa, being built in 1932. This theatre has continued to put on performances, providing entertainment despite the backdrop of war. The questions we considered in this context were; how can puppet theatre survive times of conflict as a valid art form for children and their families? How important is culture in sustaining an identity?
We found that puppet theatre in Ukraine has survived the war, with accounts of performers even continuing during air raids in shelters. This puppet theatre is also part of the reconstruction and displacement of fears during times of trauma. Culture like this is part of the social contract and can help sustain and rebuild the lives of those affected by war.
Posters advertising performances at the theatre
The outputs of two online research seminars exceeded expectations and have opened a viewpoint on puppetry in the Ukraine as a whole. We are now publishing articles by scholars across Ukraine (including Kharkiv, Lviv and displaced Ukrainian scholars in Czech Republic) detailing how puppetry is surviving during the conflict.
This project included interviews from the Odesa puppet theatre staff. One respondent told us "The theatre continued to work, and some of our employees were called up for military service. But we continued to create performances, and the audience continued to come to us. That is, the theatre did not stop. It just became more difficult because of the anxiety. When there was an alarm, it was necessary to go to the storage room. We stopped the performance, but after the interruption, we continued.”
The interviews and the papers from scholars across the Ukraine attests to a valuable insight into how culture survives in war. The work is continuing after the initial organic project because of the wealth of accounts about an unusual art-form in extreme situations.
We continued to create performances, and the audience continued to come to us.
There is overwhelming evidence to show that Odesa is a home of important puppet theatre for all of the community, and the staff want to promote this positive story further. This desire is built upon the heritage of puppetry continuing despite the harsh times when the population is under threat. The puppet theatre has shown great resilience to these struggles and changes as well as adapting to the needs of its community - forming a safe haven and imaginative hub for their dreams.
Puppetry can be a place of healing where puppets can displace trauma and open up play with children and even adults. In the survey and focus on Odesa puppet theatre it is apparent that puppetry is used for a different mode - as a life affirming art that can warm the hearts and minds of audiences and participants alike.
Principal Investigator - Dr. Matt Smith, Reader in Applied Theatre and Puppetry, University of Portsmouth, UK. Smith has thirty years' experience working in diverse settings such as schools, prisons, with environmental agencies, arts for health, youth arts and disability arts groups .Smith’s practice is the interdisciplinary mixing of drama, puppetry, masks, and music. He has many publications about the use of puppetry in communities.
