Natalka Poltavka[1] is a 1936 Ukrainian feature film directed by Ivan Kavaleridze and shot by the Ukrainfilm studio. The film was remade in 1969 at the Dovzhenko Film Studios. The film was based on the opera by Mykola Lysenko (1842—1912), based on the play of the same name by Ivan Kotlyarevsky. The film was then reshot in 1937 by Vasyl Avramenko, the first Ukrainian film produced in the United States,[2] and again in 1978 under the direction of Rodion Yukhymenko. This new version was extended to 90 minutes.[3]
History
The opera was the first opera-based film for the Ukrainian film industry and the first Ukrainian sound film in which the actors sang "under the plywood" for the first time. On December 4, 1936, the film had its United States premiere.
Cast
Character
Actor/Actress
Natalka
Kateryna Osmyalovska (vocals sung by Maria Lytvynenko-Wolgemut)
Makogonenko
Ivan Patorzhynsky
Mykola
Stepan Shkurat
Wozniy
Hryhoriy Manko
Petro
M. Platonov
Terpylyha Horpina
Yuri Shostakivska
Film Crew
Director and screenwriter: Ivan Kavaleridze
Operators: G. Khimchenko, Fedir Kornev
Artists: Mylitsa Simashkevich, Iunia Mayer
Costume designer: Vera Kutynska
Sound operators: O. Prakhov, Andriy Demydenko
Music editor: Volodymyr Yorish
Editing director: Tatyana Demitryukova
Conductor: Mykhailo Kanerstein
Postal stamps of Ukraine: "75 years. Film-opera "Natalka Poltavka" (No. 1132, No. 1133)
Legacy
On September 30, 2011, the Ukrainian state postal company Ukrposhta circulated artistic postage stamps printed with a hook from two stamps to immortalize the first film opera in Ukrainian art: "75 years. Film-opera "Natalka Poltavka" (No. 1132, No. 1133), an envelope "The First Day," and a special redemption stamp. The artist for the stamps was Larisa Melnyk.[4] The materials for creating stamps were provided by the State Museum of Theater, Music and Film Arts of Ukraine. One of the postage stamps depicts the main character of the film, Natalka, played by actress Kateryna Osmyalovska. The second shows the key scene of the film, where the mother blesses Natalka and Peter for a life together.
