YEREVAN, FEBRUARY 7, ARMENPRESS. The premiere of “Artsvabuyn” dedicated to the Karabakh war will be held on February 7 in the National Academic Theater after G. Sundukyan.

“Armenpress” talked with director of the performance Davit Harutyunyan on this occasion.

-How did the idea come to stage a performance on the Karabakh events?

-I have long wanted to address this topic since there are a number of movies on the Karabakh war, but there are almost no performances in the theater on this topic. The topic is very actual, it is our life: today the participants of the Karabakh war are with us. It is possible we will stay long in the trenches. We have started the rehearsals in 2015. We were planning to play it in Shushi on May 16, 2016, however, the April events started, and we temporarily suspended our work. We didn’t manage to present the premiere in the 25th anniversary of the establishment of the Armenian Army on January 28. I think this topic is long-lasting: it is about our mothers, sisters, soldiers, families. We must give a spirit, a meaning to everything, worship, bow mothers, sisters who educate soldiers, like the heroines of our performance.

-Will you talk about the episodes?

-Main part of the events is taking place in a semi-destroyed village where a woman from Karabakh lives who, seems, became a mother for all soldiers. There are also interesting characters, such as the journalist girl who appears in the battlefield, or a wounded Kamo, who, despite the injured legs, wants to stand together with his friends. The performance reflects simple human relationships. It manages to certainly present our concerns of 25 years.  

-The performance is based on the dramatic play of writer, poet Hrach Beglaryan. Did the play undergo certain changes?

-We have edited it. We took a very responsible topic and don’t want to ignore anything. We are doing everything the performance to be true. Hrach Beglaryan included in the play stories that are real, and we have tried to properly present them.

-What was the criteria for selecting the artists?

-13 actors are playing in the performance. The leading actors are Julieta Stepanyan, Mariam, Davtyan, Tsovinar Martisoryan, Andranik Zakaryan. Of course, we have took into account the capabilities of actors while selecting them. All heroes are interesting and unique. The performance lacks pathos since our soldiers are ordinary people.

-Are you afraid of failures?

-Of course, I am. I am afraid of those people who underwent through the war. Their memories are still fresh, there are still open wounds. I am afraid of hurting the feelings of those people. I want very much everything to be maximal and to be well in the stage. Every new performance is an experiment: the most important speech belongs to the audience.

Interview by Angela Hambardzumyan

Photos by Felix Arustamyan