Glory to Christ! (Fedot Sychkov, 1935)
This depicts one of our Russian Christmas customs. Children would go from house to house singing Kolyadki (Carols). Often, they would carry a “star” and a “cave”. The “cave” was a small stage for a traditional folk puppet show concerning the events of the Nativity. Contrary to what is commonly thought, this was not confined to the Ukrainian regions, but, it was common all over Russia. Many of the Kolyadki were sung in their original dialects, wherever they were sung, so, the mistaken belief took root that they were “Ukrainian”. Nothing could be further from the truth. All Russians know these “songs of the season”, and we all sing and love them.
