A series of singers and musicians performed at Kingston's Rose Theatre Café last Friday afternoon, 23 February, in honour of the last two years of fighting in Ukraine.

The line-up included Canterbury For Ukraine Ladies' Choir, soprano Tamara Ravenhill, and violist Iryna Andriyenko.

The event was held alongside the tapestry exhibition 'The Flowers We Give To Ukraine'. 

Described as "an ongoing participatory installation" by the Rose Theatre, the five tapestries are the work of over 180 individuals.

The event and exhibition have been inspired by Sasha and Masha: two young Ukrainian girls on the autism spectrum who have used art therapy to express themselves throughout their lives.

'Blue Cornflowers,' the show's headline piece, was started in 2022 at Ariadne's Thread. 

Kingston Mayor Diane White stands next to the exhibition's headline tapestry, 'Blue Cornflowers' (Photo: Oliver Monk)

The weekly meeting of Ukrainian women was founded by the show's Polish curator Magdalena Glowacka, and is held every Monday at Baking Ideas in Tolworth.

Initially the group helped these local women find a sense of community following their nation's invasion through communal needlework.

The project quickly spread beyond Kingston borough, with a range of refugees from across Europe stitching smaller pieces.

One such group comes from Canterbury, as did the event's choir.

Canterbury For Ukraine Ladies' Choir performed a number of Ukrainian songs (Photo: Oliver Monk)

The group's conductor Joanna Chapman introduced the concert as being about "peace and hope."

Along with accompanist David Chapman and their founder Olena Nizalova, the choir performed a series of mostly-Ukrainian songs.

Amongst them was the 1968 folk song Chervona Ruta – translating to Red Flower – which has been associated with Ukrainian resistance movements since before the 2022 invasion.

Amongst the choir was its founder Olena Nizalova, left (Photo: Oliver Monk)

The set finished with the surprise English inclusion: The White Cliffs Of Dover. 

Composed in 1941, the British song came at a time when the country stood alone during World War Two, with the lyrics looking forward to a free, peaceful world after the war.

The song's final verse was performed in Ukrainian.

The White Cliffs Of Dover was a surprising finale in the otherwise Ukrainian set (Photo: Oliver Monk)

Following this were performances from soprano Ms. Ravenhill, violist Ms. Andriyenko, and pianist Matthew Rickard, ending with three pieces from the Ukrainian composer Myroslav Volynski.

Violist Iryna Andriyenko, left, accompanied soprano Tamara Ravenhill, right (Photo: Oliver Monk)

Ms. Andriyenko, left, retriving a new viola bow after her first snapped at the very end of a solo piece (Photo: Oliver Monk)

Kingston's Mayor Diane White delivered a speech at the event, stating: "We are very proud and blessed to have welcomed and supported many Ukrainian families in our borough over the last two years."

She went on to describe the tapestries as "fostering understanding, empathy, and unity," before thanking Ms. Glowacka "for everything you have done for our whole community".

Mayor White speaking with Magdalena Glowacka, the show's curator (Photo: Oliver Monk)

You can learn more about Ariadne's Thread here.