All things Russian to highlight 20th annual Russian Festival

KALAMAZOO, Mich.—Area residents can experience a complete Russian atmosphere by attending the 20th annual Russian Festival from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday, Nov. 7, in Western Michigan University's Fetzer Center.

The event annually attracts some 1,000 attendees who immerse themselves in Russian history, music, art, dance and crafts while mingling with people wearing authentic Russian costumes.

This year's festival will feature a series of humanities lectures and poetic readings in addition to performances, exhibits and children's activities. Other attractions include Russian cuisine, souvenir vendors and a silent auction.

Opening ceremonies for 2015 will be led by local, state and University dignitaries at 9:30 a.m. 

Speakers will include Victor Afanasenko, president of the Chamber of Commerce of Pushkin, Russia; U.S. Rep. Fred Upton; Kalamazoo Mayor Bobby Hopewell; WMU President John M. Dunn; and WMU Provost Tim Greene.

Academic presentations

The humanities lectures and poetic readings will begin in late morning and run throughout the day. This year's academic talks and related activities will highlight poetry, history, literature, cultural symbolism, painted pysanki eggs and study abroad.

• At 11 a.m., Dr. Inna Molitoris, a professor from Eastern Michigan University, will kick off the series with an interactive lecture and workshop on "Russian Symbolic Culture and Its Impact on Relations With China." Born in Kyrgyzstan in a Kyrgyz-Ukrainian family, Molitoris will follow up her talk with a workshop on two types of Russian fabric dolls. Participants will have an opportunity to create their own dolls to take home as an artifact of Russian culture.
• At noon, Nina Vasilyevna Paulova, a former theatrical speech consultant and professor at the Khabarovsk Institute of Arts and Culture, will read and perform a number of Russian poems focused on love and romance and written by renowned authors such as Alexander Pushkin, Alexander Blok, Nikolai Gumilev and Anna Akhmatova. Although she will read in Russian, translations will be provided.
• At 2 p.m., Lorraine Fedorchak-Kraker will conduct a workshop on the famous pysanki eggs, giving the audience a chance not only to learn about the symbolism of the elaborately decorated eggs, but also to create their own designs.
• Also at 2 p.m., WMU's Judith Rypma, master faculty specialist in English, will present a multimedia reading from her collection of poems, "Looking for the Amber Room." The book traces the history and fate of the long-lost treasure of the Amber Room, stolen when the Nazis disassembled and carted away an entire room made from amber that had graced Pushkin's Catherine Palace since the 18th century.
• Following the "Looking for the Amber Room" reading, Rypma will offer a slide presentation to introduce a new study abroad program in Russian that has been created by the Department of English and Haenicke Institute for Global Education at WMU. Scheduled for the first half of the 2016 summer I session, the program gives students a chance to study literature in translation at Leningrad State University in Pushkin, Russia, as well as in St. Petersburg, Russia.

Additional festival information

The Kalamazoo Russian Festival is staged annually by the Kalamazoo Russian Culture Association and jointly sponsored by the WMU departments of English and Theatre. The association is a nonprofit organization that, in addition to hosting the festival and supporting other events throughout the year, maintains community ties with Pushkin, Russia—a partnership city with Kalamazoo.

WMU's Rypma, who has been involved in the Russian festival for nearly all of its 20-year-old history, says putting on the event this year is more important than ever.

"As the political relationship between the U.S. and Russia sadly continues to deteriorate," she says, "it is more important than ever that we hold events that foster better understanding between our peoples and our cultures."

Admission to the festival costs $10, or $6 with a student ID. There also are special rates for children and families.

For more information, visit the 20th annual Kalamazoo Russian Festival on Facebook or contact Rypma at judith.rypma@wmich.edu or (269) 387-2628.

For more news, arts and events, visit wmich.edu/news.