Cultural insomnia blurs the boundaries of late evening and early night

The Night of Museums event, first held in Berlin in 1997, is now popular worldwide, taking place annually to mark International Museum Day, on May 18th. On this night, in an atmosphere of romanticism and mystery, thousands of museums throw open their doors to visitors through the dark hours. Belarusian museums presented their own diverse programme from the evening of May 16th through to the early hours of May 17th, encouraging Minsk in cultural insomnia.



Action devoted to eternal values

Spiritual Night of Museums hosted by Brest’s Saved Artistic Treasures Museum.


Eternal Treasures launched this year’s Night of Museums project, at Brest’s Regional Local History Museum’s branch — Saved Artistic Treasures Museum. Devoted to universal Christian values of faith, hope, love, motherland, peace and beauty, Brest-Kobrin Eparchy helped in its organisation. The Pilgrimage Department of the Eparchy offered tours of Orthodox shrines across the Brest Region and Belarus. Meanwhile, Sunday school teachers helped visitors participate in master classes on embroidery with golden threads, and the making of Easter gifts.

Kryly Halopa Theatre premiered its documentary project, entitled Stories of Belarus. Velikoe Selo. The guests to the museum were also able to see the shadow puppet show Stories of Velikoe Selo, staged by the theatre’s artiste Yelena Shtyk and featuring students from Velikoe Selo settlement, in the Pruzhany District.

Other programme events have included exhibits never before displayed publicly, and a performance of Meeting in Feodosia, by the Svetloyar Russian club. The interactive Feast of Feasts exhibition was performed by Brest State Musical College students (named after Grigory Shirma) and the Blagovest Children and Youth Choir of Holy Simeon Cathedral’s Sunday school entertained with sacred choral music.



Night of Museums at Rumyantsev-Paskevich Palace in Gomel

Sounds of Time exhibition presents instruments and possessions of legendary head of Pesnyary, Vladimir Mulyavin, within Night of Museums-2015 at Gomel’s Palace and Park Estate.

From 9pm until 11pm, Gomel’s Palace and Park Estate, within the halls of the Rumyantsev-Paskevich Palace, presented the Sounds of Time musical exhibition, with traditional exhibits accompanied by music typical of the time of their creation and existence. Visitors were introduced to new exhibits, some on loan from other museums, cultural institutions and private collectors from across the Republic.

Of particular note was a display of clocks from the time of Napoleon III and guests were able to join a pottery master class or watch dance and music groups, in the Colonnaded Hall, and on the open ramp in front of the Palace. The highlight of the Sounds of Time project was a performance by Drum Ecstasy, a Belarusian rock band whose tracks have been used for such films as Night Watch, Day Watch, Dark World, Hitler Kaput and Men Don’t Cry. More than 500 museum exhibits were on display for the special evening.