On June 5, 2015, the German-Russian Soceity in Göttingen held a celebration dedicated to Russian Language Day and the birthday of Alexander Pushkin, which are marked on June 6.
This event, which was held with the support of the Russkiy Mir Foundation in two languages – Russian and German – was attended by the pupils and teachers of the Russian school “Beryozka”. The hall was decorated with portraits of Russian writers and poets as well as publications of the works of Alexander Pushkin and other masters of the Russian word.
Following a few words about Russian Language Day and the great legacy of Russian writers, the younger pupils read excerpts from “The Tale of Tsar Saltan” and the older pupil acted out “The Tale of the Priest and of His Workman Balda”, demonstrating not only their acting talents but also a good understanding of the humor of this work. Several of the participants of the celebrations, enthused by the atmosphere and positive energy of Russian literature, also read their favorite verses. Also, a musical duet of pupils of the Beryozka school performed a piano piece for four hands.
Another part of the program was the viewing of a historical documentary dedicated to the 200th anniversary of the lyceum at Tsarskoye Selo, where Alexander Pushkin spent his youth. The film was kindly provided by the Russian Museum of Alexander Pushkin and the Slavic Studies Department of the University of Göttingen.
The evening concluded with an acapella performance of love songs by Darina Butenko, followed by tea and informal conversations about Russian prose and poetry.
Lana Spreitz
Deutsch-Russische Gesellschaft Göttingen
