Hamazkayin’s Artsakh office organized the performance of a play in two villages. The Stepanakert “Vahram Papazian” State Drama Theater staged Ashkharhe Lorva Tzorerum in the Askeran region village of Astghashen and the Martuni region village of Gish. The performances were dedicated to the 150th anniversary of the birth of the writer Hovhannes Tumanian.
Ruzan Khachatryan, the art director of the theater, directed the play.
The Astghashen performance took place on October 27 at the local House of Culture. Hermine Avagyan, head of Hamazkayin’s Artsakh office, spoke before the performance. She briefly outlined Hamazkayin’s activities in the diaspora, the Republic of Armenia, and Artsakh, noting that Hamazkayin’s calling is to cultivate and preserve Armenian culture, literature, and national values. “Our Artsakh office continually cooperates with various communities in the republic to support lively cultural life, especially in the villages,” she said.
The play was popular with children and adults alike. They appreciated the colorful, engaging performance and found that it created a mood. Zorik Ghazaryan, the head of the village, thanked the organizers and hoped that cooperation between Hamazkayin, the state theater, and the village would continue, as villages in Artsakh have a thirst for this sort of performance.
Students from the nearby village of Khantsk also attended the play.
The Gish performance took place on November 6. Teachers, students, lovers of the theater from Gish and nearby villages attended.
Ms. Avagyan spoke, making the same points she had made the previous week in Astghashen. She added, “Tumanyan wrote for children and adults alike, and was able to reach everyone’s heart, experience everyone’s feelings, love, and longing, and hand those emotions down to us as a priceless legacy. The presentation, thus, is for people of all ages. The author’s work is a beautiful bouquet of flowers, a gift to the viewer.”
The community was grateful for the play even though the hall was unheated, and the weather was unhospitable.