There was not a Topol missile nor a Kalashnikoff in sight as Ireland’s Russian-speaking community came together for Victory Day, writes Viktor Posudnevsky
Victory Day on 9 May is one of the biggest official holidays in Russia, when the nation remembers some 20 million who died in the war and honours its war veterans.
Back home it is a spectacle of military might, with massive shows of force in Moscow’s Red Square, but in Ireland the festivities were much more peaceful and cultural.
Dublin’s Russian school, based at the Russian Orthodox church in Harold’s Cross, hosted a multinational program of events, with dance shows, music from three continents and a real Russian-style barbecue.
“Victory Day is one of the most important holidays for all Russians,” said the school’s principal Lana Zaverhinskaya. “So it’s great that there’s such a good turnout and that so many international talents have gathered here today.”
Up to 200 people turned up for the event. And joining in with the Russian community were performers from Slovakia, Lithuania, Nigeria, China, Ireland and Mauritius, among others.
Irish integration officials were also on hand, urging people to register for the upcoming local elections.
“If the Russian community have a reputation of voting at local elections, then representatives will address their concerns,” said Cormac O’Donnell of Dublin City Council.
The community can already be grateful to some representatives, explained Svetlana Horeva, a parishioner at the Orthodox church.
Thanks to Green Party Cllr Tony McDermott’s repeatedly raising the question at Dublin City Council meetings, the council has finally started addressing the problem of flooding that the school faces every time it rains heavily, she said.
The wall protecting the church from overflow from the River Dodder has recently been fortified and more work is expected to be done.
The festive event last Saturday was opened by a surprise performance from Elena Mordvinova, who has developed her own brand of eclectic dance moves which borrow from a range of world traditions.
“The dance I performed was a dance of love,” said Mordvinova, clad in a rich costume reminiscent of Middle Eastern belly dancers. “It is meant to charge everyone who gathered here today with energy.”
An international choir from Clondalkin, led by Russian Anna Shubina, also surprised the audience with its multinational array of performers. Singers from Nigeria, China and Ireland mingled with Russians as they sang traditional Russian tunes, later followed by songs from Africa and east Asia.
“It’s actually quite easy to learn a tune from a totally different culture,” said Shubina. “The main difficulty is with languages.”
Slovakian folk ensemble Ostroha also joined in, impressing viewers with the country’s traditional music and dance. The group’s leader Andrew Zahorec said: “We love our music and traditions, so why not show them to other people?”
Ukrainian dance troupe Vereneya is now a near permanent feature at Russian community events. This time the women, led by Ella Tyshkovskaya, prepared a dance based on the Ukrainian tradition of divination by flower wreaths.
“We honour Victory Day and we bow to the ground before all the war veterans,” said Tyshkovskaya. “What they achieved in defeating the Nazis is tremendous.”
“Most countries in western Europe didn’t suffer as much as Russia, or the Soviet Union, in the war,” added David Galbraith, an Irish visitor to the event. “So obviously this day is much bigger in Russia.”
