On the stage of the State Drama Theater of the Balkan velayat, a performance based on the Turkmen folk destan of the same name "Asly-Kerem" was staged. The authors of the theatrical play, Batyr Batyrov and director-producer Ovezmammet Galandarov, worked for a long time on the dramatic adaptation of the folk story. And, we can say, the stage version was a success.
A romantic love story unfolds between a young man and a woman whose families are in a long-standing feud. One day Kerem (R. Nazgurbanov), the son of Ziyad-bek (Kh. Khydyrov), loses sight of the bird he is hunting. When, in search of her, he enters the gardens of Genji-Garabag, he meets Asly (A. Nepesova), the daughter of Kara Malik (M. Syatiev), holding her tiger bird.
A boy and a girl fall in love with each other. However, Ziyad-bek opposes the love of his son because of a long-standing enmity and different religious views with the family of Kara Malik. Fearing for her daughter, Kara Malik takes Asli away. Despite the displeasure of his father, Kerem goes in search of his beloved.
“The entire acting troupe of our theater is involved in the play “Asli-Kerem,” says production director Ovezmammet Galandarov. – Of course, in order to bring such a large-scale work to the stage, we needed more than one month and the help of a professional bakhshi. All musical excerpts of the destan are performed by bakhshi Gurbangylych Nurgylydzhov, in the singing manner of daman yola.
In the literary work of the respected President Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedov "Bakhshi – harbingers of people's happiness" it is said:
“The hyrax style is characterized by a leisurely, measured beginning, gradually leading to an average and higher melodic level. This sequence is repeated many times - the music almost stops, then it sounds again in full force.
Such a structure contributes to the deep disclosure of the musical and poetic content of the songs. The daman style has significantly expanded its distribution area, becoming popular especially in the Akhal and Balkan regions.”
The minimalistic scenery of the performance consists of white ropes, as if by magic lining up in the arches of an ancient caravanserai. Flexible threads symbolize the complex interweaving of the fates of the main characters and the inextricable bond between lovers.
On stage, everything comes down to one of the main meanings of human existence, the acquisition of a mutual feeling, without which the world seems empty and nondescript: “To live without love is a real hell. The day has passed. Why?".
– The staging of the “Asly-Kerem” destan was carried out for the first time on the stage of our drama theater and, in my opinion, we managed to implement much of what we originally planned. Despite the fact that the plot is based on a conflict, love conquers everything,” concludes the director of the production, Ovezmammet Galandarov. When a person loves, Allah Himself supports him.
