THE TOURS OF THE UKRAINIAN SSR STATE DANCE ENSEMBLE NAMED AFTER PAVLO VIRSKY IN THE UNITED STATES DURING THE COLD WAR (1960s⎼1980s)

DOI 10.17721/2521-1706.2025.19.6

Taras Samchuk,

Ph. D. (History), Assistant,

Taras Shevchenko National University of Kyiv,

Kyiv, Ukraine

ORCID: http://orcid.org/0000-0002-6223-7412

Abstract. In the second half of the 20th century, the cultural sphere was an important component of the ideological confrontation between the USSR and the USA. Ukrainian artists were also participants in this process. Therefore, the aim of this article is to highlight the specifics of the tours of the State Dance Ensemble of the Ukrainian SSR named after Pavlo Virsky (Virsky Ensemble) in the USA during the Cold War (1960s⎼1980s), particularly in the context of the politicization of Ukrainian art representation in the international cultural space.

The scientific novelty of the study lies in the introduction of a range of documents from the collection of the Central State Archive-Museum of Literature and Art of Ukraine, declassified documents from the archives of the Central Intelligence Agency of the United States, and interview materials with performers into academic discourse.

The research’s methodological basis is an interdisciplinary approach that relies on a critical analysis of historical sources using historical-genetic and comparative methods, which enable a detailed examination of the cultural and political aspects of the Virsky Ensemble’s tours in the United States during the 1960s–1980s.

Conclusions. The analysis of domestic and foreign archival materials, press sources, and interviews reveals that the Virsky Ensemble’s tours in the USA during the 1960s–1980s were large-scale, commercially successful cultural events of the Cold War era that attracted hundreds of thousands of spectators and became significant artistic phenomena. Despite the ideological orientation of the Virsky Ensemble’s tours, they also represented one of the few opportunities to present Ukrainian culture abroad. At the same time, the tours served as a platform for the Ukrainian and Jewish diasporas in the United States to draw international attention to the oppression and persecution of Ukrainians and Jews in the USSR, as well as a means of countering Soviet propaganda in the countries of the Western bloc.

Key words: cultural exchange, Virsky Ensemble, Cold War, USA, Ukrainian diaspora, Jewish defense league.

Submitted: 12.01.2025

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