InUkrainian culture,vertep (вертеп, fromChurch Slavonic:вєртє́пъ[ʋerˈtep],lit. 'cave'code: chu promoted to code: cu) is a portablepuppet theatre anddrama, which presents thenativity scene, othermystery plays, as well as secular plots withsatirical and comical elements. The original meaning of the word is "secret place", "cave", "den", referring to the cave whereChrist was born, i.e., theBethlehem Cave. Vertep first appeared in the second half of the 16th century under the influence ofWestern European traditions, which spread to Ukrainian lands, then part of thePolish–Lithuanian Commonwealth. It developed from the traditions ofschool drama and is related to the Polishszopka,Belarusianbatlejka and Western Europeanmarionette theatre.[1] Vertep reached the peak of its popularity in theUkrainian Cossack Hetmanate, which would eventually become aprotectorate of theRussian Empire.
The Ukrainian vertep, or puppet theatre, developed in the latter half of the 16th century – beginning of the 17th century and was an adoption of popularWestern Europeanmystery plays. The first documented mention of vertep comes from 1573, and the genre reached its peak of prominence during the second half of the 18th century.[1] It is believed to have been introduced by students of theKyiv-Mohyla Academy.[2] The vertep puppet theatre was made familiar to Ukrainian rural communities by wanderingdeacons and students of the above-mentioned Academy, whose role could be compared to medievalgoliards.[3] The theatre had numerous regional variants, the most notable being created inSokyryntsi,Baturyn andMezhyhirya.[4]
With time, production of verteps was adopted by urban and rural inhabitants and became a part of Ukrainian popular culture. Among others, a song from traditional vertep performance was included into the playNatalka Poltavka byIvan Kotliarevsky.[5] The traditions of "live" vertep first performed in 1918 by actors ofLes Kurbas'Young Theatre were revived during the 1990s.[6]
After theRussian Revolution of 1917, theatheisticSoviet state severely persecutedreligion and the associated elements of culture, and by 1930s the tradition ofChristmas verteps was virtually eliminated, except in the lands ofWestern Ukraine.[7] Between 1923 and 1929 asecularized vertep was created at the Mezhyhiria technical school near Kyiv, performing antireligious and political plays. Mezhyhiria vertep replaced the traditional figures with puppets of aRed Army soldier,Tsar Nicholas II,Kaiser Wilhelm II,Emperor Franz Joseph, representatives of theEntente, thePope, aCatholic priest etc. During the 1930s the vertep was active inKharkiv, where it was operated by the Association of Revolutionary Arts of Ukraine.[6] Elements of vertep tradition were adopted by a number ofpuppet theatres inSoviet Ukraine, and composers such asMykhailo Verykivsky andVitaliy Kyreiko used fragments of vertep drama in theiroperas.[8]
Starting from the late 1980s, the vertep tradition saw a gradual revival, with first urban vertep performances taking place inLviv. In 1989 a vertep festival was organized for the first time at theInternational Centre of Culture and Arts inKyiv, and in 1995 a Christmas vertep contest and an accompanying scientific conference took place inLutsk. In 2003 and 2006 vertep festivals were hosted by theNational Opera of Ukraine, with the second performance involving young performers from theAmerican diaspora.[8]
A typical vertep was a two-storeyed wooden box. The floors had slots through which the puppeteers controlled wooden puppets with the use of wires.[1] The performance was divided into two separate sections: sacred and secular, with the former taking the form of a tragedy, and the latter – a comedy. The upper floor of the two-storeyed box was used for the nativity scene, while the lower was for interludes and othermystery plays (most often featuring theHerod andRachel plots) and secular plays, often ofcomedy character.[4]
The sacred act was based on theNativity scene with interludes, while the secular was based on day-to-day life and introduced comical figures from popular folk culture, such as the Old Man (Did) and Old Woman (Baba),Uniate Priest (Pip),Dyak, heroes ofMalanka plays, stereotypical representatives of different ethnicities (Zaporozhian Cossack,Russian soldier and his girl,Poles,Hungarianhussars,Gypsies,Jews (Zhyd) etc.)[9] Some verteps told of thedestruction of the Zaporozhian Sich.[4] Unlike real-life and allegorical personalities, religious figures such asJesus Christ andVirgin Mary were never included in vertep performances.[10]
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Both the religious and the secular part of vertep involved music performances. The nativity scene would include the singing ofkants, usually based on folkkoliadkas, as a form of commentary. The secular partnormally involvedinstrumental dance music, representing each hero with a characteristic tune:Kozachok,Krakowiak,Kamarinskaya,Jewish dances etc. Some musical elements of vertep would imitate animal noises. The orchestra used for the performance of vertep song usually consisted of three instruments:violin,bubon andsopilka.Cossack songs would also sometimes be included in vertep repertoire.[6]
Along with the traditional puppet vertep, a "live" variety of the performance is popular.[6] In some regions, for exampleGalicia, people in villages would dress as vertep characters and go from house to house, acting out nativity plays during Christmas holidays.[11] This form of vertep provides more variety in acting and also gives an important role to the musical part.[6]
A collection of vertep boxes and puppets is preserved at theMuseum of Theatre, Music and Cinema Arts of Ukraine.[12]
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