CARMEL, Ind. – Exactly a year to the day after Russia invaded Ukraine, a special evening of remembrance makes its way to the Center for the Performing Arts in Carmel.
The Lviv National Philharmonic Orchestra of Ukraine will perform on Friday night at the Palladium. Russia invaded Ukraine on Feb. 24 last year. Amazingly, Friday night’s performance by the Ukrainian orchestra is all coincidental.
“We book our orchestras 18 months, sometimes 24 months in advance,” said Jeff McDermott, president and CEO of The Center for Performing Arts. “It just happens to be on the date one year to the day after Russia invaded Ukraine they’ll be performing here.”
Though the concert coincidentally fell on a significant date, McDermott said it was clear that the night would now be something special.
“I think for us, not just my thoughts, but everybody here at the Center for the Performing Arts, it’s actually moving,” he said. “We’re really excited about it. It’s an exciting experience. It’s frankly somewhat of a somber experience because of the date this falls on.”
McDermott said he is honored the orchestra will be in Carmel on the invasion’s anniversary, especially as the war continues on.
“We know they have many things going on,” he said. “They have loved ones back in Ukraine dealing with things none of us should ever have to be dealing with, and yet they’re going to be here performing wonderful music and entertaining a capacity crowd. Couldn’t be more, frankly, excited and humbled for that.”
In addition to Ukrainian performers, the audience will include representatives of the Consulate General of Ukraine in Chicago. Two local nonprofit groups, Indiana Supports Ukraine and the Ukrainian Society of Indiana, will also be in attendance helping celebrate Ukrainian culture and gathering items for Ukrainians living through a winter of war.
The Palladium will have collection bins in its lobbies to help gather socks and other items for the drive. The items will especially help Ukrainian soldiers.
The Center will also be serving special blue and yellow “Stand with Ukraine” cocktails during the occasion.
McDermott said the Center is expecting a crowd of at least 1,100 people on Friday night. He said he thinks it will be an emotional and powerful night no one will forget.
“I think it’s going to be an appreciative crowd,” McDermott said. “But I think the somberness of the date won’t be lost on anybody. And the fact that we are the ones privileged to have this particular symphony orchestra here on such a day, I think is really something that we can all feel very special about. It’s going to be I think a historic evening, and one everybody here is going to remember for a long time.”
The performance is scheduled to start at 8 p.m. on Friday.
