FOLLOWING MURDER OF FOUNDER, ILKHOM TROUPE COMES TO HOP
By Rebecca Wall, The dartmouth.com Published On Thursday, April 17, 2008
It might seem as though nothing could be more exotic than a play performed in Russian and Uzbek with English subtitles. But to consider “White White Black Stork” foreign is to ignore the universality of its themes and forget that the play’s common threads — love, religion, tradition and familial disputes — transcend time and nationality. “White White Black Stork,” written by Elkin Tuichiev and Mark Weil and performed by Ilkhom Theatre, is akin to an inverted “Romeo and Juliet” set in early 20th century Uzbekistan. A tale of two individuals pushed into marriage against their will, the play confronts issues of family obligations, homosexuality, art and the collision of tradition and the individual. Bloody politics underlie the poetic productions of Ilkhom Theatre’s productions. Unknown assassins murdered Ilkhom’s founder Mark Weil seven months ago in Uzbekistan’s capital, Tashkent. Although the murderers have not been identified, the murder appears to be ideologically motivated. The Ilkhom Theatre was the first non-state sponsored theater company in the former Soviet Union and remains the only such company in Uzbekistan, a central Asian nation with a population of approximately 27 million. The company navigated totalitarianism during the waning years of the USSR and continued to face challenges in the political upheaval following the disintegration of the Soviet Bloc. Ilkolm was scheduled to premiere in Seattle the day after Weil’s death. According to a March 21, 2008 article on Variety.com, shortly before his death, Weil said, “I’m opening a new season tomorrow no matter what happens.” According to the web site, “The company performed the next day, wishing to honor Weil’s commitment, and though grief-stricken, its members have managed to carry on.” Despite the politically-tinged drama surrounding the group, Ilkhom actor Maxim Turmenev told the Seattle Times that while many of their plays contain controversial themes, the focus is not on any specific message. Instead, “people see what they see and make their own decisions.” Margaret Lawrence, director of programming for The Hopkins Center for the Performing Arts, worked for four years to bring the Ilkhom Theatre Company to Dartmouth. After seeing them perform several plays, including “White White Black Stork” in Uzbekistan, Lawrence was impressed despite the language barrier. “I saw them without translation,” Lawrence said. “Because this play is so beautifully acted and the actors are so passionate and it is so poetically presented I could feel the emotion coming right through.” Another significant motivation for bringing the group to Dartmouth was to give members of the community a chance to see something different than what they might be used to. “It really has to be a project that we think is going to open a window into a very different part of the world,” Lawrence said. “We want to bring something no one else can bring here.” While in Hanover, the Ilkhom Theatre Company will be exposing students and faculty to Uzbek culture and the role of the arts in former Soviet states by visiting a linguistics class and having a dinner discussion with students. Although some might be hesitant to attend a play with subtitles, Lawrence does not anticipate a lack of interest, citing the intellectual curiosity of the Dartmouth community. “We encourage people to check it out even if they don’t know much about it,” Lawrence said. The Ilkohm Theater will perform “White White Black Stork” in Moore Theater at the Hopkins Center this Friday and Saturday. It might seem as though nothing could be more exotic than a play performed in Russian and Uzbek with English subtitles. But to consider “White White Black Stork” foreign is to ignore the universality of its themes and forget that the play’s common threads — love, religion, tradition and familial disputes — transcend time and nationality. “White White Black Stork,” written by Elkin Tuichiev and Mark Weil and performed by Ilkhom Theatre, is akin to an inverted “Romeo and Juliet” set in early 20th century Uzbekistan. A tale of two individuals pushed into marriage against their will, the play confronts issues of family obligations, homosexuality, art and the collision of tradition and the individual. Bloody politics underlie the poetic productions of Ilkhom Theatre’s productions. Unknown assassins murdered Ilkhom’s founder Mark Weil seven months ago in Uzbekistan’s capital, Tashkent. Although the murderers have not been identified, the murder appears to be ideologically motivated. The Ilkhom Theatre was the first non-state sponsored theater company in the former Soviet Union and remains the only such company in Uzbekistan, a central Asian nation with a population of approximately 27 million. The company navigated totalitarianism during the waning years of the USSR and continued to face challenges in the political upheaval following the disintegration of the Soviet Bloc. Ilkolm was scheduled to premiere in Seattle the day after Weil’s death. According to a March 21, 2008 article on Variety.com, shortly before his death, Weil said, “I’m opening a new season tomorrow no matter what happens.” According to the web site, “The company performed the next day, wishing to honor Weil’s commitment, and though grief-stricken, its members have managed to carry on.” Despite the politically-tinged drama surrounding the group, Ilkhom actor Maxim Turmenev told the Seattle Times that while many of their plays contain controversial themes, the focus is not on any specific message. Instead, “people see what they see and make their own decisions.” Margaret Lawrence, director of programming for The Hopkins Center for the Performing Arts, worked for four years to bring the Ilkhom Theatre Company to Dartmouth. After seeing them perform several plays, including “White White Black Stork” in Uzbekistan, Lawrence was impressed despite the language barrier. “I saw them without translation,” Lawrence said. “Because this play is so beautifully acted and the actors are so passionate and it is so poetically presented I could feel the emotion coming right through.” Another significant motivation for bringing the group to Dartmouth was to give members of the community a chance to see something different than what they might be used to. “It really has to be a project that we think is going to open a window into a very different part of the world,” Lawrence said. “We want to bring something no one else can bring here.” While in Hanover, the Ilkhom Theatre Company will be exposing students and faculty to Uzbek culture and the role of the arts in former Soviet states by visiting a linguistics class and having a dinner discussion with students. Although some might be hesitant to attend a play with subtitles, Lawrence does not anticipate a lack of interest, citing the intellectual curiosity of the Dartmouth community. “We encourage people to check it out even if they don’t know much about it,” Lawrence said. The Ilkohm Theater will perform “White White Black Stork” in Moore Theater at the Hopkins Center this Friday and Saturday.
