Culture

Creative results of the year

We have such a tradition - every year, in the final days of December, we talk about the events of the JINR Cultural Centre "Mir". Director of the Cultural Centre Eleonora Yamaleeva talks about innovations, achievements, concert and exhibition activities, the work of creative studios.

Let's talk about what this year has become for the Cultural Centre. How many events have been held?

- In 2025, our creative team have had 113 events, these are 33 concerts, 11 performances, 7 events in the hall on stage, 11 children's performances, 14 exhibitions, 12 reporting concerts of creative groups, 5 creative meetings with exhibition authors, as well as Open House, lectures, film screenings, holidays for children in the square in front of the Centre and at the Solar System art venue, festivals, proms, master classes and class concerts.

Events are diverse by genre!

- Our task is that each viewer can find an event for his own inspiration. And all this is possible only thanks to the efforts of a team of professionals - and we have one. Technical services are able to solve problems of any complexity, stage workers can do everything, sound engineer Ivan Tsvetkov will make the purest sound and lighting designer Savva Donchenko can illuminate the stage so that the viewer is immersed in the atmosphere of the action as much as possible. Our Head Andrey Tamonov always supports the initiative of employees that wish to improve their qualifications, study, all this is done in order to make the Cultural Centre "Mir" and the world as a whole better!

At the same time, creative areas develop in the Cultural Centre. Tell us about them, please.

- Yes, we have 21 creative teams on the basis of the Cultural Centre, in which 500 people are engaged. This year, we opened five more new creative studios: musical rock groups "Timer for Breath" and "People on the Moon," the ensemble "Live Music", dance aerobics "Allegro" and the open musical group "Applied Acoustics". Our groups give concerts on our stage, perform at city venues and tour. Head of the cultural and mass sector is Ekaterina Bystrova. This activity is both creative and administrative, requiring constant control, diplomacy and constant contacts with the heads of the teams.

More recently, in autumn, several big tours have been held...

- Yes, I definitely wanted to mention it. The combined choir "Belkanto" of our Cultural Centre and the "Choir of Youth and Students" under the direction of E.P. Khritankova, together with the orchestra, again performed on the main stage of the country in the Kremlin Palace. The choristers also went to congratulate the chamber choir "Smolensk" on its 30th anniversary, the founder of which is Elena Pavlovna. The anniversary concert was like a big family celebration, where graduates, friends, admirers, and of course, audience gathered.

I would also like to emphasize the choreographic triumph of the groups of the Cultural Centre that became winners of the All-Russian Competition-Festival "Creative People" in the city of Torzhok. The team "5 Element", led by teacher-choreographer Varvara Gorlanova, showed the highest level of skill and took the honorary title of winners of the 1st degree. Thanks to the unique production and bright performance, the children deservedly received the recognition of the jury and the audience. The performance of the collective "Fantasia" of the Children's Art School "Rhapsody", led by the experienced choreographer Sergey Denisov, was just as impressive. The members of the groups made every effort, showing a sincere love for the art of dance and striving to express their individuality through the art of movement.

Are there any events that were once successfully held and later, were entrenched as a tradition?

- We ourselves really like it when our ideas find a significant audience response and we keep developing our idea, turning it into a tradition. Today, without fail, we hold children's mass events under the auspices of science - this is the New Year tree, Knowledge Day and Children's Day. We continued to develop the "Hall on Stage" format, when artists and audience are together on stage and also, multiply events in the area "Smart World": lectures, meetings, conversations with scientists.

Last season, you opened several art objects, including a historical pen and a mosaic "Synthesis of Arts". And this year, what point of attraction was replenished with the Cultural Centre?

- On the day of memory of V.S.Vysotsky in our lobby, we opened the art object "Autograph of Vysotsky". This was a truly historic event dedicated to one of the greatest poets and actors of the 20th century. In the Cultural Centre, where Vladimir Semenovich's songs and poems once sounded, there is such a memory of him. Vladimir Vysotsky's autograph on a postcard has become a symbol of love and respect for his work and our employees hope that the art object will become a place of attraction for everyone who appreciates the poet's work. Let this autograph be a reminder that art is eternal and lives in the hearts of fans of great people.

Meetings with which artists and groups do you personally remember most vividly?

- Not a single event passes without a trace, this is always a certain chapter of our history but if we talk about personal discoveries and the highest impressions, then I immediately recall the lecture of the FLNR Scientific Leader RAS Academician Yuri Oganessian about the work of the great Dutch painter Peter Brueghel the Elder, as well as the earlier creative meeting with Yuri Oganessian with the screening of the documentary "Element of Knowledge". Of course, a landmark event was the visit to us of the People's Artist of the Russian Federation Konstantin Raikin with the poetic solo performance "In his own voice", a concert of the Russian State Symphony Orchestra of Cinematography (conductor People's Artist of the Russian Federation S.Skripka). Great audience interest was aroused by the lecture of the Doctor of Physical and Mathematical sciences A.M.Semikhatov entitled "Parallel universes are completely serious. What does quantum mechanics say?" Recently, the Bolshoi Children's Choir named after V.S.Popov has performed on our stage directed by A.L.Kislyakov. I remember the organization of the concert of the chamber orchestra "Moscow Virtuosi" (conductor V.Spivakov) that we embodied on the site of the synchrophasotron. And completely enthusiastic emotions from the theatrical concert "The Nutcracker and the Mouse King" performed by People's Artist of the Russian Federation Maxim Averin and the Dubna Symphony Orchestra.

How often do artists meet full halls?

- In 2025, the Cultural Centre "Mir" was visited by about 30 thousand spectators, on average, we have 13 events a month and we strive to increase the sold-out. This year, there were especially many of them!

There is a wonderful exhibition hall in the Cultural Centre, what events did it host?

- During the year, we held 14 unique exhibitions uniting science, art and cultural heritage. This is a great merit of the curator of the exhibitions - Deputy Director Elena Troyan that has a subtle feeling and constantly looks for new topics, names and angles. Thanks to a large and complex work, we held exhibitions from the series "Smart World", uniting scientific achievements, the work of scientists and cultural diversity, demonstrating the relation between science and art.

The JINR Artists Club "Quarks" presented the exhibition "Tales of the Peoples of the World" emphasizing their importance as the cultural heritage of mankind. These tales were seen as the epitome of universal wisdom, relevant at all times.

The exhibition "Physics-Lyrics", the author's project of the Cultural Centre "Mir" spoke about the creative, that is, artistic and poetic talents of Dubna scientists.

An exhibition dedicated to the 80th anniversary of Victory in the Great Patriotic War, together with the Historical Archive at the Museum of History of Science and Technology of JINR and the weekly Dubna: Science, Commonwealth, Progress. A special place in the exposition was taken by three letters from M.G.Meshcheryakov - a living evidence of the time, inscribed in the history of the city and the country.

Photo exhibition dedicated to the centenary of the birth of Yury Shcherbakov (1925-1994) - a veteran of the Great Patriotic War, professor, doctor of physical and mathematical sciences, scientist.

Exhibition of technological art "Potok". Master's students of NUST MISIS presented art projects prepared after the expedition to JINR. The exposition united technological art and scientific topics, demonstrating innovative approaches to art.

Exhibitions on science and art were harmoniously united with art exhibitions, wasn't it?

- Indeed so. At these exhibitions, the unique world of the artist opened up to the audience. We hosted personal exhibitions of artists Boris Makarov (Bob Makar), Anastasia Werner and Arina Belyaeva, Vlad Kravchuk, Dmitry Korotkov, Marina Mishchenko, Alexander Pasko, Elena Shishlyannikova, as well as an exhibition of sculpture by Vladislav Chuvashev. These exhibitions allowed audience to learn about the individual style of each author, immersed in a variety of forms of artistic expression. The 2025 exhibition season demonstrated the harmonious interaction of science and art, expanding the boundaries of viewer perception and inspiring new discoveries and research. This experience confirmed the importance of integrating interdisciplinary approaches in the development of cultural initiatives that enrich the intellectual space of our beloved city. In addition, the exhibition "JINR basic facilities" still welcomes everyone in our country, 2,445 people visited it in 2025, and 11,018 people - during the entire exposition.

What will be your New Year wishes?

- They're traditional. From the entire team of the Cultural Centre "Mir", we wish our audience discoveries for themselves such fascinating facets of the world of creativity, inspiration for their own achievements, faith in the power of art and in the absolutely unifying value of culture! Ahead is the new year, new events, new plans and their accomplishments. Everything that the team of "Mir" does is solely to create a mood for our audience, to increase positive, bright, enthusiastic emotions and the desire to return to us again!

Photos from the archive of the Cultural Centre "Mir"