"Hromovytsia." We sow the strength of the family. And the beauty of Ukraine. And love...

Our people have a wise, time-tested proverb: "You reap what you sow." Therefore, a good farmer always tried to plant the best seeds in the ground, hoping for a bountiful harvest. However, if we delve a little deeper into the meaning of this folk wisdom, it would not be an exaggeration to say that it applies not only to those who work the land. Each of us is a sower in life. Because you can sow not only seeds. You can sow a thought, which has the property of materializing. You can sow a glance. A word. Deeds. Talents bestowed by God. This is what the Ukrainian dance ensemble "Hromovytsia" does, for example — a well-known and beloved artistic collective in Chicago.

Not just a collective, but a family that embraces those who want to sow beauty, love, spiritual height, the strength of the family, historical memory, and generational unity through the language of dance. This is all that has always been and remains important, especially for the leader of the collective — the tireless Roxana Dyka-Pylypchuk, who was born in America, but her blood type is Ukrainian, inherited from her Ukrainian parents. And in her case, this became decisive in choosing her life's passion — choreography. She danced from a young age, never missing an opportunity to improve in this art form. Now she passes on her knowledge and skills to others.

In truth, the word "now" actually means almost half a century, as the year of "Hromovytsia's" birth is 1980. It was "born" by Roxana Dyka, Yuriy Tsepyinsky, Ivan Pylypchuk, and Marta Horodylovska-Kozytska. Their dream became a reality. "And dance stood guard over our genealogical memory, our Ukrainian identity," says Ms. Roxana. And several hundred dancers, who have passed through this masterful school of choreography during the collective's existence, and who are engaged in the collective today, can sign under each of these words. More precisely, in two collectives, because besides "Hromovytsia," there is also "Hromovytsia-2" — the youth ensemble.

Their name fully corresponds to the impression made by the collective's activities. The founders of "Hromovytsia" always wanted the fame of Ukrainian art to truly thunder both in the diaspora and beyond. Various states of America, Canada, Germany, France, Italy, Spain, Ukraine — this is the geography of their performances. And, of course, "Hromovytsia" most often delighted the audience in its, so to speak, maternal womb — in Chicago. As it did last Saturday: at the North Shore Center for the Performing Arts (Skokie), a large concert program of the collective took place under the telling name "SEEDS."

It was incredible. Spectacular. Emotional. High and deep — without words. Sincere — with glances and expressions. Touching — with well-chosen music. Impressive — with the content guessed behind each dance. Beautiful — with costumes. Professional — with movements and sometimes such complex dance steps that took your breath away. After all, there were folk motifs, ballet, and modern dance. But they all aimed at the main thing — to sow. To sow the eternal. That which does not fade with the years. Which cannot be killed or taken away by our fiercest enemy. The strength of the Ukrainian land, passed on to its faithful sons and daughters. Passed on for centuries. From the distant past — to the present troubled time. That's why we (read — Ukraine) did not fall in three days, as the damned Russians wanted. That pseudo-nation, which forgot (or never thought about it): you sow the wind — you reap the storm; you sow evil — evil will return to you; you sow death — expect retribution...

Our seeds are from another sack of life. Life itself. And "Hromovytsia" testified to this with its performances. Each of its appearances on stage was not just a dance. It was a small performance with truly deep philosophy, into the whirlpool of which the audience involuntarily fell. At that moment, their souls turned into fertile soil. And you, "Hromovytsia," were the sower. And you sowed. I tried to discern that "seed." And I saw, felt it like this.

With your dance "Greeting," you sowed pride in Ukrainian culture, you sowed gratitude to the Ukrainian land for the indestructible and deeply rooted heritage of our people.

The dance "Motanky" awakened in each soul a pleasant feeling of love for the folk doll, which for centuries was created in Ukraine both as a child's toy and as a talisman for protection against evil forces.

The composition "Night on Ivan Kupala" was seeds of folk Kupala traditions with a premonition of love, which each girl wove into a wreath before letting it float on the water: let it reach the betrothed... No less romance, youthful dreams, jokes, fortune-telling, surprises (and not only due to the participation of a group of gypsies) — all this intertwined in the composition "Andriyivsky Evening," which captivated the stage with beauty, the skill of the dancers, plot twists, and a variety of emotions.

And then — "Dovbush." Seeds of respect for the folk hero. The echoes of the Carpathians, the spirit of the opryshky, rebellion, justice, indomitability, suffering, love for one's people, its beauty and grandeur... All this was in the four dances that were part of the composition, touching the most delicate and strongest strings of the human soul.

The heart of the program was the powerful contemporary dance "Seeds" and its extraordinary presentation. It seemed as if the stage was indeed covered with stalks of golden ears, which the dancers, with their quick movements, picked up from the ground, gathering grain, which is associated with the symbol of resilience, abundance, and respect for the indomitable spirit of Ukraine, and then sowed it into the fate of each for a peaceful and happy life.

Seeds of tales, legends, and stories, often bordering on mysticism, were sown by "Hromovytsia" through the composition "Witches and Werewolves," demonstrating the richness of Ukrainian folklore.

With the shimmering of ringing mountain streams and the fiery nature of the Hutsuls, the bright dance "Rakivchanka," characteristic of the Transcarpathian region of Ukraine, was filled. And with its emotionality and joyfulness, "Kozachok" from Poltava pleasantly delighted.

And finally, the beloved "Hopak"... Such energy! Such drive! Such a variety of costumes, folklore symbolism, elements of Ukrainian culture, acrobatics, and lyricism, the Cossack fighting spirit! This is the dance that has no time dimension, but it has a great power to surprise, awaken to action, sow the souls of the audience with seeds of pride for Ukraine, seeds of indestructibility and resilience.

...This was the concert program with the telling name "Seeds," presented to fans by the incomparable "Hromovytsia." It was organically complemented by the performances of talented guests of this creative meeting — virtuoso violinist Vasyl Popadiuk and soloist Maryana Balash, who, accompanied by light phonograms and a "live" guitar in the hands of Elvis (Volodymyr Olensky), presented the audience with authorial and Ukrainian folk songs — with special charm, with a special manner of performance, with special stage elegance.

And then there were thanks. From "Hromovytsia" — to all the audience, parents, and families of the collective's participants, their inspirers and sponsors, among which the collective primarily names the parish of the Church of Saints Volodymyr and Olha, Ukrainian Cultural Center and Geri Abramiuk, the credit union "Samopomich," the "Heritage" foundation, and the Illinois Arts Council. For "Hromovytsia" — from numerous guests, and special ones — from the charitable foundation "Revived Soldiers Ukraine" and wounded Ukrainian soldiers, from the charitable organization UWAA (Ukrainian Women's Association of America), which helps children from the largest shelter in Ukraine — the unique "City of Goodness." It was to them that part of the proceeds from ticket sales and funds collected in the hall by the beautiful dancers were donated for charitable purposes.

And, of course, everyone tried to say special words to her — delicate, but incredibly strong with her talent, her activity, her life position, her inexhaustible energy, to her — the artistic director of the collective Roxana Dyka-Pylypchuk. And to her extraordinarily good creative family, through whose hands and hearts each number, each performance of "Hromovytsia" passes. And primarily — to her daughter Danyusha Vasylyshyn. She is not just an indispensable talented assistant to her talented mother, she is her mother's pride, she is a student who has gone further than her teacher, she is a wonderful choreographer, she is the person to whom her mother calmly and confidently passes on her life's work.

This year, "Hromovytsia" thundered in Chicago at the calendar mid-point of the first spring month. And I immediately wanted to come up with a new omen of our time, which might sound like this: "‘Hromovytsia’ in March — for a peaceful spring!" Because behind every moment of the concert program, there was a sense of pride for Ukraine, pain for its current bloody day, and faith in tomorrow — peaceful. Because with every moment of their performance, they sowed from the stage the strength of the family, the beauty of the native land, and love — the seeds with which our incredible "Hromovytsia" has always been rich and remains so.

Photo by Maksym Prokopiv.