LES KURBAS: Where Did «Berezil» Disappear To?

Photo Source: openkurbas.org

 

Les Kurbas (February 25, 1887 — November 3, 1937) — a groundbreaking theater director who revolutionized theatrical art, reshaping its rules and conventions. His productions resembled mysteries, and his vision was far ahead of his time. Kurbas was fluent in eight languages yet never studied Russian. He read in French and Italian and worked as a translator. He founded the renowned «Berezil» theater and directed three feature films.Known for his almost magical influence over people, Kurbas believed that everything has rhythm — the table, speech, the wind. He likened staging a play to the labor of miners.

 

KYIVANS, BREAD, AND BIRCH SAP

 

The year 1922 had just begun, and Kyiv was in dire straits. Exhausted residents, clad in makeshift clothing made from curtains and sacks, roamed the streets in search of bread, firewood, potatoes, or wood chips. Plans were underway to export eight million poods of grain from Ukraine, along with church bells, crosses, chandeliers, and candlesticks.

On one bleak day, crusted with old ice, a young director, Les Kurbas, gathered his actors and announced a contest to name their theater. He promised the winner a bottle of fine Tokaji wine. Poet Pavlo Tychyna suggested the name «Sad» (Garden).

At first, the actors approved but soon hesitated: «If the theater is called ‘Sad’, does that make us… sadists?» Kurbas pondered for a while, studying a calendar where March was coming to an end. «Why not name it after the first month of spring? In nature, everything awakens and blossoms, just like the energy in our theater — it reminds me of birch sap».

The actors chuckled and buzzed with excitement. As a sign of agreement, they shared the promised bottle. On March 31, 1922, the new theater was officially established. Kurbas even borrowed a few karbovanets from poet Mykhail Semenko to pay for an announcement in the Proletarian Truth newspaper.

Just three days later, Stalin was appointed the first General Secretary of the Communist Party — a man who would ultimately destroy both Kurbas and his «child».

 

 

LOVE WITH A TASTE OF DEATH

 

Performing at «Berezil» was considered an honor, as the director seemed to have come from another galaxy. He combined dramaturgy, acrobatics, and dance, often quoting Gaius Petronius: «The whole world resorts to villainy». His focus was on the life of the city, while other stages mostly portrayed peasants and rural life. But what about city dwellers? What about factory workers, residents of communal houses, women as mothers, and women as laborers?

Kurbas understood the nuances of theatrical art, not just theoretically — he had been a brilliant actor in the past. Emotional, intelligent, olive-skinned, with thick black brows and a Grecian profile, he was nicknamed «Childe Harold» behind his back.

«Harold» dressed stylishly, wearing a bow instead of a tie and a wide-brimmed hat. In The Government Inspector, he infused the performance with devilish mischief. In Stolen Happiness, he transformed into the jealous Mykhailo, and in Uncle Vanya, he embodied the adventurer Astrov. His roles were always emotional, colorful, and powerful. In life, too, he was remarkably passionate. At the Lviv theater «Ruska Besida», he fell for Kateryna Rubchakova — a beauty with a slim waist and proud figure.

She was called the Galician Zankovetska, and when she sang, the Galician Krushelnytska. On stage, she lived, wailed, laughed, loved, and fainted. Married with three daughters, she played live on stage with Kurbas, but there was no pretense — he truly loved her.

During a tour in Krakow, they rode together on the same cart. Overcome with emotion, Kurbas passionately confessed his love. Kateryna, however, burst out laughing. The cart dangerously tilted, and the air grew tense. Devastated, Kurbas pulled out a revolver, pressed it to his wounded heart, and pulled the trigger. Though his life was saved, the bullet was never removed.

 

 

CAPTIVATED BY VIOLET EYES

 

Next came Kyiv, with rallies and the news of the tsar’s abdication. Les Kurbas performed at Sadovsky’s Theater, but he felt an inner fire to not just act as a servant or doctor but to direct plays himself. His first step was founding the Young Theater. The troupe consisted of young enthusiasts who worked for the sheer passion of art, going two years without pay.

The artists eagerly practiced acrobatics and fencing and attended lectures on theater history. For some time, they lived communally in Odesa. Every morning, they dove into the waves, embraced gymnastics, cooked meals on makeshift stoves, and rehearsed five plays simultaneously.

Kurbas constantly reminded them: «Immerse yourself so deeply into the role that no tram bells, onlookers’ chatter, or children’s laughter can distract you». And they succeeded, despite the biting cold and hunger — some audience members even brought food for the actors.

After returning to Kyiv, Kurbas encountered a new love: an 18-year-old ballerina named Valentina Chystyakova. She had come from Moscow in search of a better life. With striking violet eyes, thin arched brows, and wavy hair, she was impossible to ignore. She wore a stylish beret and tinted her lips with berry-colored lipstick and immediately found Kurbas charming.

Kurbas moved with a dancer’s grace, ascended stairs two at a time, wore a gray sporty suit, and spoke in a deep, melodious voice full of subtle inflections. Actors, audience members, and stagehands alike fell for him.

Revolutionary upheavals couldn’t extinguish their love. Flags, languages, and faces changed in the city. Refugees, suffering, and revolutionaries roamed the streets while the two lovers couldn’t take their eyes off each other. Kurbas taught Valentina Ukrainian, treated her to white wine with roasted almonds, and invited her to his home, filled with an endless collection of books.

The director even began arriving late to the theater, sparking jealousy among his colleagues, who half-jokingly threatened to kill the ballerina. Soon, the couple married, but two months later, Kurbas received devastating news: his first love, the bold and flamboyant Kateryna, had died — typhus had claimed her life.

 

 

HOW TO PLAY A STEAM ENGINE

 

«Berezil» quickly gained popularity as it wasn’t just a theater but a theater of challenge. Funerals transformed into hopak dances, and actors played not only people but also mice, dogs, and steam engines. Acrobats used their bodies to depict war and peace, love and betrayal. The performances incorporated elements of the circus, pantomime, buffoonery, and shock.

The director despised the «rosy-cheeked» national theater and rejected straight lines and simplistic portrayals of «good» and «bad» characters, arguing that life was far more complex. A «saint» could find themselves in hell at any moment, while a sinner might suddenly appear with a halo around their head. Kurbas insisted that no role was small — every role was significant.

He emphasized: «You cry on stage while the audience watches calmly. It should be the other way around — you must remain calm, and the audience should cry!» Thus, in the play October, instead of shouting slogans, actors danced to the music of Frédéric Chopin. Where dialogues were expected, they performed recitatives.

Proportions were boldly distorted: giants lived in tiny clay huts, drank moonshine from two-meter bottles, and harnessed horses the size of dogs. As a result, audiences’ minds were blown, and socialist truths turned into sheer absurdity. Kurbas worked for the masses, but he aimed to prevent collective slumber. He opposed all forms of apathy and dullness.

Four years later, the theater was relocated to the capital of the Ukrainian SSR — Kharkiv. The city was booming, buzzing, clanking, and growing stronger. Its population rapidly approached one million. Factory kitchens, nurseries, kindergartens, and communal houses were being built, along with Felix Dzerzhinsky Square and a tractor plant. Kurbas, his wife (the most elegant woman in Kharkiv), and his mother moved into the famous «Slovo» building.

He received an apartment on the fifth floor, next to writer Valerian Polishchuk. The space was modestly furnished. Kurbas didn’t know how to entertain or host feasts, dedicating all his time to his beloved work. His idea of rest was a walk or a trip to the mountains. The only leisure he allowed himself was playing cards with his mother, Wanda, who enjoyed games like «66».

 

 

KHARKIV’S «SLOVO»

 

The theater studio astonished Kharkiv residents with its minimalist sets and transparent stage compositions. It employed nearly 400 actors. The Cubo-futurist Vadym Meller designed posters (pure avant-garde). A screen on the stage extended the theatrical action and recorded audience reactions.

Visitors filled out surveys indicating their age, profession, and frequency of theater attendance. Below, they shared what they liked or disliked, noted unclear moments, and commented on costumes, set designs, and music. These surveys were carefully analyzed, and plays were adjusted accordingly.

Actors not involved in the performance were required to sit in the audience and observe their reactions — where they laughed, yawned, or glanced at their watches. Everything seemed to align perfectly: premieres, full houses, and a sea of admirers.

Valentina, Kurbas’s wife, fully blossomed in her roles, performing each as if it were her last. She never made impulsive gestures on stage. Her hands were «expressive», and her gaze pierced straight to the heart. Her only flaw? She was too romantic. One day, she fell so deeply in love that she saw no other way out but to end her life.

Her lover was a «Berezil» actor whom Kurbas had given a role, shelter, and money. Both found themselves trapped and decided to jump off a bridge. The lover jumped, but Valya lacked the courage. He drowned, and she survived.

In Kharkiv, the theater found its playwright, Mykola Kulish, who lived in apartment 33. Outwardly, he appeared like a simple rural man, with even the best-tailored suit hanging on him like an old sack. But his pen was razor-sharp. Berezil staged his plays, including Thus Perished Huska (censored), People’s Malakhii, Myna Mazailo, and Maklena Grasa. Observing their friendship, Mike Johansen joked: «Kurbas starts with ‘Ku’, and Kulish starts with ‘Ku’ — together, it’s ‘ku-ku’!»

 

 

A SHOT IN THE SANDARMOKH FOREST

 

The 1932—1933 season proved to be the most difficult. Autumn was bleak, and hunger was unbearable. The shops offered only cabbage and potatoes, and the streets of Kharkiv were filled with starving people. Some even knocked on doors in the «Slovo» building, begging for a piece of meat, but rarely made it past the second floor — they lacked the strength.

Les Kurbas quickly realized that «communism is as incompatible with human nature as fire is with water». His plays depicted the consequences of Soviet rule, showing children dying in the open air.

Authorities summoned him and «advised» him to reconsider his position and adjust his artistic vision. From then on, criticism rained down on Berezil. The regime declared war on «Kurbasism», accusing him of gloominess and distorting the optimistic Soviet reality. They branded him a nationalist who had descended into fascism.

The dark period lasted five years. Kurbas was arrested and sent to work on the White Sea-Baltic Canal near Medvezhya Gora. Later, he was transferred to Solovki and Anzer Island. Even in the camps, the artist organized a theater, staging The Aristocrats, The Devil’s Students, and Little Tragedies.

On November 3, 1937, it all came to an end. Kulish and Kurbas were executed with a single bullet (to save ammunition) in the Sandarmokh forest. Along with them were their neighbor Pidmohylny and other residents of the «Slovo» building. The sentence was carried out by an uneducated but zealous Chekist, Mykhailo Matveyev, known as an unparalleled executioner. Killing up to 250 people a day, he developed a callus on his trigger finger and earned himself a reward — a radio with records.

…Valentyna Chystyakova signed her name as «Wife of Les Kurbas» until her death, often retelling his favorite parable about two stonemasons. One said he pushed a cart full of stones from morning to night, while the other said he was building the Cologne Cathedral. The great director spent his entire life building «cathedrals».

 

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