Exploring Winter Traditions of Ukraine

Saturday, December 9, 2023

7:00 PM - 9:00 PM PST

In the lantern-lit sanctuary of Secret Headquarters we’ll sip warm tea and learn about the Ukrainian winter celebration Koliada. Musician and storyteller Beverly Dobrinsky will explain the cultural aspects of traditions such as the clothing, food, songs, stories and rituals that mark the mysterious time of winter darkness. She’ll help us prepare for the Winter Solstice by sharing her own stories and recipes, and she’ll teach songs representative of the different times of the winter cycle: one koliadka (Christmas carol) and one shchedrivka (New Year’s carol) sung during Malanka, the Ukrainian New Year festivities. We’ll explore myths such as the spider magic that decorates the Yalynka (Christmas tree), and the Malanka ritual of acting out goat prophecy that brings great abundance for the coming year.

●     Tickets are available by sliding scale: $30-$50. Suggested admission: $35. 

●     Doors open at 6:30 PM and the event will start promptly at 7:00 PM. Please do your best to be on time as late arrivals will be disruptive to activities in progress.

●      Space is limited to 30 participants so please register early.

●     Beverly will bring a traditional kolach (festive bread) and either kutia or piroshky. If you are so moved, please bring some fruit to share. 

●    Please feel free to wear vyshyvanky (embroidered shirt, dress or scarf) or other beautiful adornments.

●    Your donation contributes directly to supporting our programming to continue ongoing learning and cultural sharing. We thank you for your support. If you have financial barriers preventing you from purchasing a ticket, please email admin@secretlantern.org and we will do our best to accommodate.

Artist Bios

Beverly Dobrinsky is a Vancouver musician and storyteller who works both as a soloist and in various artistic collaborations. In 1991, inspired by the centenary of Ukrainian immigration to Canada, she founded “Zeellia”, a Slavic Soul sextet which specializes in E. European traditional music with a contemporary edge. She produced three Zeellia CDs, and performed with Zeellia across Canada and in NY city. She was the musical director of the Barvinok Choir, a choir based in Vancouver’s historic Ukrainian Hall from 2001-2022. In 2009 she was the artist in residence at the Carnegie Community Centre in Vancouver’s downtown east side and led “The Carnegie Village Project,” a community engaged project using song, poetry and story to express the uniqueness of that particular community. Over the years, she has been involved in several projects with Vancouver Moving Theatre, including “Bread and Salt” in 2013, and the evolving “Big House” from 2009-2015. She is currently working on creating a podcast series—Finding My Own Voice— a legacy project which allows her to look back at the arc of her career as a musician and storyteller; and in so doing honour ancestors, family and community who have supported her along the way. In this series, she will be examining her own process of uncovering and divesting colonial expectations and inviting other artists to present their work and discuss their own process of colonial divestment and cultural retrieval.

Getting Here: Secret Headquarters is located at 1398 East 3rd Avenue, Vancouver, BC. Bus # 22 is within walking distance; VCC Clark and Commercial Skytrain Stations are within 10 minutes' walk. Free parking on the street and in the large parking lot in the alley between 3rd and 4th.

Accessibility: Secret Headquarters is wheelchair and walker accessible. If you have specific accessibility needs, please get in touch with us at (778) 323-9489 or admin@secretlantern.org.

Omi, our lovely resident feline, loves to attend our gatherings. Please let us know if you have allergies and we will gently explain to him why he needs to stay home that night.