The article states that due to decrees and prohibitions of the imperial government until the second half of the XIX century, the repertoire of the Ukrainian stage was monotonous and uninteresting. Ukraine was artificially deprived of its national theater for a long time. Nevertheless, conscious Ukrainians did not pay attention to any oppression and obstacles, and stubbornly searched for optimal ways to solve the urgent issue. One such way was to spread the national performing arts through amateur creative groups. However, for the formation and development of a new professional theater in Ukraine, it was necessary to change and supplement the old theatrical repertoire and create a new one. I. Tobilevych, an outstanding artist and a great playwright with a clear and broad worldview, undertook to enrich the stage repertoire with great enthusiasm. The playwright tended to move away from the established patterns of theatrical art, specifically made his plays more psychological by deepening and revealing the souls of ordinary people. In the drama “The Miserable”, which is considered to be the first psychological drama in Ukraine, I. Tobilevych deliberately abandoned the excessive number of minor actors minimizing the stage fuss, and the events in the play unfolded in close to real life conditions, mostly in ordinary peasant houses. The author of the play did not seek to create external spectacular spectacles or to fill the whole action with everyday ethnographic pictures, but he directed all his talent to reveal the psychological drama of the protagonists. The article analyzes the moral, ethical and psychological problems that are clearly traced in the play, reveals the inner moods of the characters, their confrontations, the struggle of the individual with himself, psychological conflicts. The author of the article emphasized that in the drama “The Miserable” I. Tobilevych quite successfully and convincingly recreated one of the many moments of life that often occur in human life; the main protagonists of the drama, such as Gnat, Varka, Sofia, were shown in their usual environment, particularly among young people, at vechornytsi or in everyday household chores. The playwright not only created a fascinating, spectacular spectacle to show it in the light of the ramp, but also revealed the complex psychological drama that took place in the lives of each of the main characters. He directed all his talent to the realization of his plans, delving into the souls of ordinary people and truthfully revealing the tragedy of each hero of the drama. Who is to blame for the tragic conflict between the characters? I. Tobilevych did not give a clear answer to the question, and critics of literature did not find it as well, believing that none of the protagonists was to blame for this. The author of this article tried to understand and show that the blame for the tragic end of the drama “Talentless” lies to some extent on each participant in the conflict as all the actors destroy their happiness and each other with their own hands. In the end, it is proved that the playwright skillfully, artistically and convincingly revealed the psychology of the main characters, presented the tragedy of each of them, giving the play the features of psychological drama.
Keywords: I. Tobilevych, new professional theater, dramaturgy, stage repertoire, stage drama, actors.
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DownloadDOI: https://doi.org/10.17721/2520-6346.60.70-81