For the first time in 17 years, the French Spring festival is moving from the Ukrainian capital to Kharkiv, the country’s second-largest city located 480 kilometers east of Kyiv.
Unlike Kyiv that is under a strict lockdown amid the surging number of COVID-19 cases, Kharkiv is remaining in the “orange” quarantine zone, which means it allows cultural events with less than 30 attendees.
The festival was originally planned to promote French art through cultural events in eight Ukrainian cities. But when the epidemiological situation in Ukraine worsened, the French Spring put its plans on hold everywhere except for Kharkiv.
If the Ukrainian capital eases restrictions after the lockdown which is set to run through April 9, the festival will hold some events in Kyiv too.
Meanwhile, Kharkiv, which takes five hours to reach by train from Kyiv, is an option to spend a getaway weekend combined with exploring French art.
Organized by the French Institute in Ukraine and the French Embassy, the annual festival kicked off on March 25 with a performance by famous French cellist Gautier Capuçon at the Kharkiv Philharmonic.
The slogan of this year’s festival is “out-of-door,” meaning that many events will take place outside as a precautionary measure.
The Kharkiv program teases “USSR” exhibition featuring photographs of Soviet architecture by French photographer and journalist Frédéric Chaubin, a concert by French jazzman and organist Bernard Struber, a concert film with French avant-garde music and the screenings of three French films accompanied by contemporary music of Ukrainian composer Anton Baibakov.
The Taras Shevchenko Kharkiv State Academic Ukrainian Drama Theater will hold productions based on plays by French writers Albert Camus, Françoise Sagan and Claude Magnier.
And three Kharkiv restaurants, The Terrace, Aristocrat and In Vino, will serve French cuisine on set dates.
The French Spring will run through April 25, culminating in a street art performance by the Les Quidams group.
The French Spring festival. March 25 – April 25. Multiple locations in Kharkiv. For further details and updates, check the French Institute in Ukraine Facebook page.
