YMCA

Why are you called Yabluko?
It is the Ukrainian word for apple. We decided on the name because the fruit represents the first conflict in the Bible, in the Garden of Eden. Our first play, From the Beginning, was about the incident and the apple. We wanted to use the image to spread understanding to other people facing conflict.

How did you come up with the idea for What is Your Name?
2003 was a special year in the Ukraine to tell people about HIV - that's why we decided to do this play. We worked on the mime for a whole year in a YMCA studio. AIDS is a massive problem in our country, and across the world. Our aim was to communicate the message to as many people as possible but, as we cannot speak English that well, we decided to perform without words, only movement. That makes it possible for the play to be seen by many more people - and tell them about HIV and AIDS.

Why did you decide to tell the story of Freddy Mercury and people that died in the same year as him?
We tell the story of five people from across the world including Freddy - this is to show that the problem is not of one man or one country, but is a problem for the whole world. The reason we want to show them theses people's lives and deaths is so that no one can say, 'AIDS is not my problem.'

Where have you performed the show?
The first performance was at the YMCA festival in Prague 2003. That's where [YMCA North East Regional Secretary] Ken Montgomery saw us and invited us to perform in England, first at the YMCA music festival in Darlington and then at Greenbelt.

Have you made plans for any future shows?
We are working on new material about the life of Jesus, and we hope to tell the story in a new way. Alongside that, over the next year we will develop a play which will have Ukrainian stories and songs, called 'Forest Song' - this will also be told with movement only. And it will be a happy play! Many people who have seen What is Your Name? have been in tears, and they come to us and ask if all our plays are sad. We tell them we also have many funny pieces and sketches.

Have you seen any other performances at Greenbelt?
This is my first Greenbelt and I have enjoyed it very much. I like the workshops where you can paint and draw, and the bookshops. One of the best things was the drum workshop but there is so much to see and do - I love it. I want to come back next year.

Would you like to be a professional performer?
I want to be - and will be - a professional performer.

HIV and AIDS is a major problem in the Ukraine. The number of diagnosed infections has dramatically increased in the last ten years from virtually nothing in 1995 to around 20,000 a year from 1996.

By 2002, 52,000 people in the Ukraine had been officially diagnosed with HIV - 80 per cent contracted the virus through drug use. 25 per cent of those diagnosed with HIV were under 20.