ONCE UPON A TIME IN KARABAKH

Karabakh, 1848. A French botanist, member of the Royal Academy, Monsieur Jordan comes to Karabakh to study the local plant species. He is a guest of the ruler of the Tekle-Mughanly nomad camp, Hatamkhan-agha. The latter’s nephew, young Shahbaz, is attracted by Jordan's stories about Paris. That’s why he is going to go there with Mr. Jordan to study sciences. But his fiancée Sharafnisa and aunt Shahrabanu-khanim do not want Shahbaz leave for Paris. To achieve this goal, they resort to the help of the famous dervish Mastali, who came from Iran. For a hundred ducats, which the naive and superstitious women give to Mastali, he begins to destroy the capital of France by casting terrible spells, summoning devils whom he orders to destroy Paris in a single blow, same as he destroys the image of Paris. Dervish hits and smashes to smithereens the image of the ‘sinful’ city of Paris laid on the floor. Suddenly there is a strong knock at the door and Monsieur Jordan, who enters in excitement, announces that Paris has been destroyed and that he must immediately leave for France. The women are frightened after learning how quick Mastali's magical tricks worked. Even the dervish himself, in fear of what he has done, hides behind a curtain so that no one can find him. And when Hatamkhan rushes in asking "Who ruined Paris?", Jordan replies that it were devils, villains, and the Satan! Women have no doubts that Paris was destroyed by the dervish Mastali. In fact, there was a revolution in Paris, and the king fled. Frightened by this news, Jordan must immediately depart Karabakh. He leaves but Shahbaz remains. Women are happy.

Karabakh is Azerbaijan!

In mid-October in Makhachkala (Republic of Dagestan, Russia) completed the 6th Festival of Russian theatres of the republics of the North Caucasus, Black Sea, Caspian Sea, as well as the theatres from the near and far abroad. The Samed Vurghun State Academic Russian Drama Theatre of Azerbaijan also joined the event along with 15 theaters from different regions of Russia and the theatres from Germany, Serbia, and Ukraine, which presented their works online. Our performance of Monsieur Jordan, the botanist, and Dervish Mastali-shah, the famous sorcerer was produced by Alexander Sharovsky based on the play of the Azerbaijani writer and playwright Mirza Fatali Akhundov. The play was filmed during the premiere in December 2011 by the national television channel AzTV and, according to the members of the festival's expert group, was in a more advantageous position compared to other participants in the online format. The performance was awarded a participant's diploma and a statuette symbolising the eternally living Theatre.

The jury of the festival included well-known theatrical critics of Russia Valery Podgorodinsky, Yelena Pokrovskaya, Alexander Myagchenkov, Gulizar Sultanova and director Yuvenaly Kalantarov. According to the jury, Monsieur Jordan... impressed with its artistic and staging characteristics, acting, and the development of characters that reliably tell the story of peaceful and ingenuous Azerbaijani population of Karabakh. Vaudeville was used as form of the presentation of the plot, which masterfully showed the ethnic details related to the culture of the people living in the region, their costumes, and decorations. The staged version of A. Sharovsky is an ode to the women and men of Karabakh, who enjoy the life despite its daily routine way of flow. They enjoy everything in Karabakh – the sun, household chores, food and even love experiences. They are what they are, what the Almighty created them for love and goodness: a little naive, open, trusting, not spiteful.

Background story

Mirza Fatali Akhundov's play has a happy fate on stage. It was successfully staged in the 19th and 20th centuries on various stages, including in the Soviet times. The comedy was first staged in St. Petersburg on a private stage in 1851. The magazine “Библиотека для чтения” then called the comedy "cute, lively, graceful and original." In 1977, Shamil Mahmudbeyov and Kamil Rustambeyov made a film called Dərviş Parisi partladır. In 2012, Ramiz Hasanoghlu directed a film on the life and work of M. F. Akhundov called Sülh elçisi (Ambassador of Peace). One of the reincarnated characters of the famous Akhundov comedy is Monsieur Jordan played by the popular actor Mabud Maharramov both in the cinema and in the theatre. It is believed that the main characters of the comedy–Hatamkhan-agha and Monsieur Jordan–were not fictional ones. People's Artist of Azerbaijan, Mabud Maharramov, is our guest today with his interesting narrative of the details related to Karabakh and other things.

"Is it true that the botanist Monsieur Jordan had a real prototype?"

"At least that's what the researchers of M F. Akhundov's work say. They claim that his name was Claude Thomas Alexis Jordan, who was a French botanist who died in 1897 in Lyon. So it is likely that Monsieur Jordan lived as a guest in the house owned by the chief of the nomad tribe, which was quite high in the mountains."

"Why?"

"Because the scientist was interested in the plant species of Karabakh. He studied nature, people of Karabakh and was surprised to discover an unknown world. The world of Karabakh’s nature and the Azerbaijanis living there was interesting for him. And Monsieur Jordan is absolutely sure that his discoveries will shake the world."

“Can we say that the author of the play and the Parisian scientist knew each other in reality?"

"I would not rule out such an option. It is quite possible that M. F. Akhundov, who knew and loved the culture of his people, customs and the way of life of Karabakhi nomads, knew about the research of the French scientist. However, the plot of the comedy reflects a typical lifestyle of the era. For more than 150 years, this play has been very popular and demanded among both the audience and directors. Every time directors find new colors and ideas to create original stage versions."

"Have you ever been to Karabakh?"

"Sure! Our theater has been there twice on tour. I've been only once during the Soviet times, in the early 1980s. Our performances were staged in Khankendi, Hadrut, Shusha and Aghdam."

"How long did the tour last?"

"Two weeks..."

"Were you able to see the landmarks of Karabakh?"

"It was not only me. The Department of Culture organised excursions for us. I visited both the Albanian monastery and the Maragha-150 monument in the Aghdere district. The latter was built in 1978 for the 150th anniversary of the resettlement of 200 Armenian families to Karabakh. I also saw the ancient Azerbaijani cemetery with tombstones and slabs..."

"Was there something special about them?"

"Yes. But I realized this only decades later! It was what Armenians did that caught my attention. Even then, they pretended to do restoration works, but in fact they destroyed the artifacts of our cultural heritage, which could refute the fact of their “ancient” presence on these lands. They tried to rewrite the history with a chisel and a hammer disguising the ancient Albanian and Arabic inscriptions under their owns. And now they present such a man-made artifact as an Armenian national heritage!"

"Why did no one pay attention to this?"

"Back in the time no one could imagine such a cynical treachery was possible at all. We thought they were doing restoration works indeed. But in fact they did it their own way. Perhaps smiling at us ‘the Soviet style’ they had completely non-Soviet plans to detach and seize the ancestral lands of Azerbaijan."

"Have you read the book of Fuad Akhundov On the reasons for the disappearance of Joseph Orbeli’s book, where he declassifies all these Armenian tricks for the appropriation and shameless theft of historical artifacts of Azerbaijan?"

"Unfortunately, no. But I've heard a lot about it. My wife and I will read with pleasure. We support historical truth and justice. My wife was in Shusha and Khankendi when she was a student at the conservatoire in the beginning of the 1980s. We belong to the generation of those who saw Shusha, Khankendi, and Aghdam firsthand. And we are not the only ones who can testify about facts that are carefully overwritten by the aggressor."

"But back to your role of Monsieur Jordan. Your colleagues said that when the theatre was on tour in Smolensk, Pskov and Velikiye Luki, the audience admitted to you that your character looked as a real Frenchman. This is the highest praise for an actor. What do you think about the visit of a French national to Azerbaijan in the mid-19th century?"

"Claude Thomas Alexis Jordan’s stay in Karabakh is well documented. And he's not the only one. We know that Marco Polo and Dumas the Father were there. They documented their impressions of both the land and the people of Karabakh. And nowhere, none of them mentions our ancestors as thugs."

"This is the most offensive of all the descriptions that Russian TV channels spread about us these days..."

"Absolutely! The entire staff of our theatre was outraged by such blatant statements. That’s why we sent a letter to Mr. Yevgeny Primakov, the head of Rossotrudnichestvo. We demanded to stop the extremely biased dissemination of information, which presents Azerbaijan as a "world aggressor"  to millions of people around the world."

"I heard that during the pandemic, your colleagues (in attempt to compensate the time off the stage) created numerous groups on social networks to provide material assistance to the Azerbaijani army..."

"That’s true. But there is nothing special. This is a matter of honor for every person, every citizen. This is not an act of bravery but our sacred duty. My wife and I also made our contribution by transferring a certain amount to the account of the Armed Forces. This is how we all support our army and our Commander-in-Chief."

"Does the staff of the theater share your views?"

"We think so. We are a large team and represent that ideal model of multicultural values that Azerbaijan has always been famous for. Our theatre hosts the representatives of all nations and nationalities that live in our country. The management of our theater on behalf of the entire staff made contributions to the fund to support our army. There are initiative groups of actors who periodically travel to the combat zone and take the most necessary items for our soldiers. I was very pleased to realise that now, during the ongoing Patriotic War for the liberation and independence of our lands, not only my colleagues, but the entire people of Azerbaijan, all nationalities living here have united around our president. He goes ahead of us fulfilling the will of the people, saving the people of Azerbaijan from becoming slaves dependent on someone’s unfounded claims..."

"Indeed, we are all lucky that the leader of Azerbaijan is a wise and prudent politician..."

“Everyone living in Azerbaijan is thinking the same. I think that newborn babies will soon be named after our president. Both girls and boys. And you know what? I am glad that I live now going through a period of great changes, which our president has become the guarantor of. I'm proud of him. I am proud that now he is creating the new history of his multinational people. This is not only my opinion. My wife, my large family, my friends and, of course, my colleagues and the entire staff of my theater think the same! Because we now live by faith in our President, faith in historical justice, our righteousness and strength. Therefore, on behalf of the people I mentioned above, I would like to wish our President Ilham Aliyev strength, health and long life for the glory and independence of the people of Azerbaijan.”