WAR AND PEACE, WHAT CAN WE DO?
Questions to Bernard-Henri Lévy, director of the film Glory to The Heroes
During the summer of 2023, Bernard-Henri Lévy co-directed a new documentary film, Glory to The Heroes, with Marc Roussel in Ukraine. Lévy and Roussel spent weeks on the frontline to “capture the horrors of war, the hopefulness of the Ukrainian citizens and their optimism in the face of senseless destruction,” wrote the film’s producer, Emily Hamilton.
Screenings
New York: December 6th at the United Nations with special appearance by Bernard-Henri Lévy
New York: December 8th
Washington D.C.: December 9th with special appearance by Bernard-Henri Lévy
Los Angeles: December 10th with special appearance by Bernard-Henri Lévy
Philadelphia: December 11th
Seattle: December 11th
Chicago: December 18th
(Click here or See below link for all screenings and tickets)
Tag: Ukraine
The Silent Odessa Symphony
THE SILENT ODESSA SYMPHONY
Consider a donation to help Ukraine and Ukrainian by making a donation to Razom for Ukraine, a non-for-profit organization led by by Dora Chomiak. Razom provides critical medical supplies as well as tech-enabled emergency response supplies to facilitate the delivery of aid. Meaning “together” in Ukrainian, Razom believes deeply in the enormous potential of dedicated volunteers around the world united by a single goal. To make a donation, click here and hashtag #OdessaPhilharmonicOrchestra (find also this information at the end of the post).
Special thanks to Delphine Schrank for editing this story
Odessa, Ukraine, March 22nd, 2014. A rhythmic beat pulsed from inside the fish market, a strange percussionist melody composed instinctively, on site, and performed by fishmongers scrapping the scales of black sea bass set against the background chatter of myriad overlapping conversations, and the rustle of shopping bags against the coats of men and women shopping for a meal or two.
It was a typical Saturday morning in a vibrant city, a strategic port and a symbol of European culture and unity. Well, not exactly a typical Saturday. A day earlier, Russia had officially ratified the annexation of the nearby Ukrainian province of Crimea, triggering a shock-wave across the rest of the country and Europe that eventually died out in the torpor of an apathetic world response.
Suddenly, a man armed with a double bass and a band of others carrying violins appeared from different corners of the fish market. Without prelude, one after the next planted themselves in a strategic spot, beside a bronze statue, behind counters stacked with cans and olive oils, and among the fish stalls. They started softly with notes from Beethoven 9th Symphony. Amid shoppers still more concerned with choosing between fresh tuna, mackerel or herring, all the marine life of the Black Sea, others were instantly mesmerized, pressing in on the musicians. The group of performers swelled, some with no instruments at all. Like the perceptive tentacles of a giant octopus, they fanned out throughout the market. From the back of the room, the American conductor of the Odessa Philharmonic Orchestra Hobart Earle took his cue. He pushed his way through the crowd to a place visible to the now-dozens of musicians, raised his hands and with matchless coordination folded in the choir for Beethoven’s Ode to Joy, the European anthem.