“Rozy / Donbass” as an example of correct PR

No regret

A sensation has been stirred up in the Ukrainian network: “Rozy / Donbass,” a video of the band Dakh Daughters has gotten nearly 120,000 votes on YouTube website over past three weeks. This is too little to “tear the Internet to pieces,” like someone said (you need to have at least 500,000 votes, or even better – a million), but the number of votes is growing.

This is amazing, taking into consideration the fact that Dakh Daughters was created less than a year ago, but they have given only two or three concerts in Ukraine.

The band is a new project of the founder of Dakh Theater, producer and director Vlad Troitsky, and is apparently meant to replace the quartet DakhaBrakha, which seems to have run out of steam in its development. Dakh Daughters include actresses from Troitsky’s theater who also have experience in other projects: Nina Harenetska is a member of DakhaBrakha band, Ruslana Khazipova – performs with the cult rock band Perkalaba, Tania Havryliuk has a solo project “TaniaTania,” Solomia Melnyk comes from Potuzhni divchata (Strong Girls), Anna Nikitina from Kabare-shanson, Natalia Halanevych and the girl with the pseudonym Zo – from БiZoH ballet. Seven performers, a dozen of instruments, ranging from piano and drum to accordion and cello.

Although there are numerous video of Dakh Daughters on the Internet – they have quite a diverse repertoire for a young band – namely “Donbass” became the most famous.

Dakh Daughters call themselves a freak cabaret, but this is a tautology: a cabaret is already a deviation from norm. It would be a mistake to perceive it as a light variety-erotic revue (although such versions abound). It should be reminded that entire artistic streams appeared in cabarets. There would not have been Dadaism without the Zurich-based cabaret “Voltaire,” Toulouse-Lautrec got inspiration from the atmosphere of Paris-based “Mirmilton,” and the founder of Berlin-based “Ueberbrett” baron Erich Ludwig Freiherr von Wolzogen dreamt to use the establishment to bring up Nietzsche’s “Superman.”

Cabaret, due to its syncretism of genres, is close to theater. Here music, poetic recitals, provocation performance, as well as ugly and beautiful, funny and touching, intellectual and crazy things can coexist quite seamlessly. Dakh Daughters are aware of this contrast aesthetics. The girls in short white dresses put on gymnast tights, with their faces painted white, like clowns, present the grotesque material in an impenetrably serious way. However, they don’t limit themselves to grotesque only: in some performances they use poems by Joseph Brodsky and an OBERIU (Union of Real Art) member Alexander Vvedensky, an old Provence song “I saw a wolf, a fox, and a hare,” and a song from Vira Vradii’s repertoire. In “Donbass” one can hear the beginning of Shakespeare’s 35th sonnet:

No more be grieved at that
which thou hast done:
Roses have thorns
and silver fountains mud,
Clouds and eclipses stai
both moon and sun,
And loathsome canker
lives in sweetest bud.

Each line is followed by terrifying shout: “Don-bass!” The sonnet takes turns with Ukrainian folk songs, and in the end everyone gets involved in wild pandemonium with shouts “Rozy-rozy-rozy (Roses)!”

Of course, the song above all enchants with its quick rhythm, a melody that easily sticks in memory, and apt theater show. Besides, probably unwilling, Troitsky’s fosterlings touched the nerve of the time.

Formerly Donetsk was called a city of million roses. That was one of numerous Soviet mythologem which wrapped the entire region into a comfortable cocoon. Today, by whim of destiny, the Donbas became for Ukrainians not just a geographic or political notion, but an ontological concept, as kind of myth, too. Unsmiling, with histrionic pathos a la German band Rammstein, all possible expression, and mocking irony, the girls with their yells and dances show the entire wild, fantastic (fantastische Donbass) and inexplicable absurd that is reigning around us. Namely for this reason “Rozy” has taken the lead.

This is a good song, which will sound good in Maidan, when the time is ripe.

No more be grieved at that / which thou hast done.

COMMENTARY

Vlad TROITSKY, founder and leader of Dakh Daughters:

“We created the song ‘Rozy / Donbass’ a year ago within the framework of one of Dakh Theater’s plays. So, this is an author’s story. Later we decided to create a special project for music material. In my opinion, this song – although the band has much more interesting compositions – became popular, because people always actively react to topical words or phrases – the word ‘Donbass’ in this case.

“As for the formula of success of Dakh Daughters, it is simple: bright performers, good music and texts. There is always a demand for cabaret format – we can recall in this concern legendary Russian band Kolibri or Belarusian Serebryannaya svadba. However, Dakh Daughters are not limited to chamber stage only: they successfully perform before a 10,000 audience. The fusion of theater and music is win-win here.”