Dark Night Bright Stars

Dark Night Bright Stars by Yara Arts Group, directed by Virlana Tkacz, recreates the meeting of Taras Shevchenko (1814-1861), the great Ukrainian poet and painter, and Ira Aldridge (1807-1867), the African-American actor who was much honored in Europe.

The two great artists, who rose up from serfdom and slavery, could not speak to each other directly but in one historical moment, found a common language in art and song. Their meetings were documented in the diary of Count Tolstoy’s 15 year old daughter, Katya (Ekaterina Tolstoy Yunge).