Celebrating 35 years of baseball in Georgia
Category: Events
90th anniversary celebration event with Synetic Theater performance of Host and Guest
Please join the Georgian Association in the USA as we celebrate the Association’s 90th anniversary. On October 2, 2022 – at the 2pm closing matinee showing of Synetic Theater’s acclaimed “Host and Guest”, we will experience an ancient Georgian story of a family who takes in a lost stranger as a guest only to discover he is from an enemy clan, and their valiant efforts to protect him when their village seeks vengeance. The performance will be followed by a panel discussion featuring director Paata Tsikurishvili and former president of the Georgian Association, Dr. Nino Japaridze, to discuss the cultural significance of Vazha-Pshavela’s “Host and Guest” and the parallels between the piece and Russia’s ongoing aggression against its neighbors. The themes covered in this play continue to reverberate in Georgia’s political narrative and everyday life to this very day.
Tickets for the show can be purchased here. You can use a special 35% discount code using GA90 for any date. Panel discussion attendance at 3:30pm on Sunday is free and separate from attendance of the show, but registration is required and donations are welcome. All donations will be used to support the Georgian Association in the USA.
Trailer for the show can be viewed below
You can also read the review of the performance by Washington Post
https://www.washingtonpost.com/theater-dance/2022/09/15/synetic-host-and-guest-review/
Introduction to the History of Georgian Cinema
The Georgian Association in the USA co-sponsored event jointly with the Davis Center’s Program on Georgian Studies at Harvard University, on the history of Georgian Cinema has been cancelled. The Association is working to schedule a separate lecture by Levan Lomjaria at a later date and will provide the updated information as soon as it is scheduled.
In November 1896, just months after appearing in Paris, cinema arrived in Georgia. It became very popular – especially in the independence period (1918-1921), with several Georgian filmmakers producing Georgian movies. After the Soviet takeover in 1921, cinema became a chief method of propaganda. Since the collapse of the Soviet Union, the Georgian cinema sector faced 10-12 years of stagnation during which only a few films were made. In recent years, Georgian cinema has been witnessing an astonishing period of revival. A new generation of filmmakers has emerged who have managed to find a new and strong language of cinema in order to speak with international audiences about contemporary issues of Georgian society. Levan Lomjaria will explore these and other aspects of the history of Georgian cinema in his lecture.
Celebrating its 90th anniversary in fall of 2022, the Georgian Association in the USA is an organization committed to the preservation of Georgian culture among members of the Georgian Diaspora in the United States. The Association has been actively supporting music, film and theater events such as the screening of Nana Ekvtimishvili’s film In Bloom and Zaza Urushadze’s film Tangerines in the US.
More events are planned this fall as a part of the celebrations. Sign up for the newsletter to receive updates by email or check the website frequently for announcements.
Event – CEEC policy brief: the US leadership in enhancing Black Sea regional security
Russia’s invasion of Ukraine is spurring the US and NATO members to revisit security in the Black Sea region. This online event took place on Thursday, September 15, 2022 12:00 PM – 1:30 PM EDT.
The panel aimed at examining the new bipartisan Black Sea Security Act (S.4509) and the United States’ new policy toward the six countries of the region (Ukraine, Georgia, Moldova, Romania, Bulgaria, and Turkey) that hold the keys to the collective security of the US and NATO members.
Speakers:
Mr. Ian Brzezinski – Senior Fellow Atlantic Council
Ambassador Kurt Volker – Former US Ambassador to NATO
Michael Hikari Cecire – Senior Policy Analyst – U.S. Commission on Security and Cooperation in Europe
Moderated by:
Michael Sawkiw – Director, Ukrainian National Information Service
Georgian Literature Reading Series
As part of our mission to promote Georgian culture, we were pleased to launch the “Virtual Georgian Literature Reading Series.” The goal of the series is to create an informal and interactive forum for those with an interest in Georgian history and culture to read and discuss important Georgian books, both classic and contemporary.
Summer 2022
Guram Dochanashvili’s The First Garment (სამოსელი პირველი)
We are delighted to announce that the next edition of the “Georgian Literature Reading Series” will discuss Guram Dochanashvili’s novel The First Garment (სამოსელი პირველი). For this edition of our series, the meetings will be conducted in Georgian – though you don’t need to be a native speaker to join us. There will be a total of 4 meetings virtually via Zoom on Saturdays from 10:00am to 11:15am ET on the following dates: July 16, July 30, August 13, and August 27. You can sign up here.
Meetings will be discussion-based and facilitated by Georgian theater and film director, professor Manana Anasashvili, who is currently teaching this novel at Ilia State University. As before, our goal will be to create an informal/interactive forum that allows the participants to share their thoughts about the book. To help make the digital environment as interactive as it can be, participants will be asked to enable their device’s video functionality and have it on during the meetings. The book can be accessed in Georgian on Saba book app as an e-book — Georgian Association might also be able to assist in accessing a PDF version of the book for those who sign up.
The deadline to sign up is June 16. You can sign up by clicking here.
— About the Book —
The novel follows a young, inexperienced, adventure-seeking man named Domenico who is deeply affected by the appearance and stories of a mysterious refugee in his village, and thus decides to take his inheritance and leave the village to go on adventuring. In this novel, traditional motifs of good, evil, love, morality, and the like are illuminated in a new light and unfold as a dramatic narrative against a background of an odd merging of humor and aesthetics.
Spring 2022
Mikheil Javakhishvili’s Kvachi Kvachantiradze
The second edition of the series discussed Mikheil Javakhishvili’s classic novel Kvachi Kvachantiradze. Members of the Association’s Board of Directors, Stephen Jones and Valerian Sikhuashvili, led the sessions.
— About the Book —
An epic landmark of Georgian literature, Javakhishvili’s novel was published in 1925, 12 years before its author’s murder in the Stalinist Purges; but given its treatment of the Russian elite, it’s a grim marvel he was able to escape the authorities so long. Kvachi Kvachantiradze is a born conman, a wily and indefatigable survivor—as much a distillation of the Georgian character as a great anti-hero in his own right. Beginning as a charismatic youth on the outskirts of Tbilisi, Kvachi demonstrates a taste for money and a talent for obtaining it, posing as a noble after traveling to Russia to seek his fortune.
— Additional/background Reading —
– Charles King. The Ghost of Freedom: A History of the Caucasus.
– Stephen Jones. The Making of Modern Georgia, 1918-2012: The First Georgian Republic and Its Successors.
– Stephen Kotkin. Stalin, Volume I: Paradoxes of Power, 1878-1928.
Summer 2020
Nino Haratischvili’s The Eighth Life.
The first edition of the series discussed Nino Haratischvili’s internationally acclaimed novel The Eighth Life. Members of the Association’s Board of Directors, Stephen Jones and Valerian Sikhuashvili, led the sessions. The association will provide complimentary copies of the book to those who are currently undergraduate students.
— About the Book —
At the start of the twentieth century, on the edge of the Russian empire, a family prospers. It owes its success to a delicious chocolate recipe, passed down the generations with great solemnity and caution. A caution which is justified: this is a recipe for ecstasy that carries a very bitter aftertaste… Stasia learns it from her Georgian father and takes it north, following her new husband, Simon, to his posting at the center of the Russian Revolution in St Petersburg. Stasia’s is only the first in a symphony of grand but all too often doomed romances that swirl from sweet to sour in this epic tale of the red century. Tumbling down the years, and across vast expanses of longing and loss, generation after generation of this compelling family hears echoes and sees reflections.
Rule of Law in Georgia – challenges and opportunities 30 years after the independence
Georgian Association in the USA is pleased to invite you to a panel discussion on current challenges and opportunities for strengthening the rule of law in Georgia. This webinar will feature experts from Georgia and the US who have been working to strengthen various aspects of the rule of law. The World Justice Project defines the rule of law as a durable system of laws, institutions, norms, and community commitment that delivers: Accountability, Just Law, Open Government, and Accessible and Impartial Justice. These principles have been ideals that Georgia has been striving towards since the country reclaimed its independence in 1991.
Georgian people have on multiple occasions expressed their commitment to a democratic, western oriented future, which hinges on a strong rule of law. While important strides have been made in the areas of curbing corruption, strengthening transparency, and improving the legislative framework, strengthening the rule of law requires a sustained effort, especially at a time of rising trends in authoritarianism around the globe.
The panel will feature experts looking back at the thirty years of successes and challenges, and looking into the future and discussing ways that Georgia and the United States can work together to support the Georgian people on this arduous and virtuous journey.
Speakers:
David Usupashvili – Former Chairman of the Parliament of Georgia, former chairman of the Republican Party of Georgia, current chairman of the Political Council of Lelo for Georgia. Founding member of Georgian Young Lawyers’ Association
Suren Avanesyan – Democracy and Governance Division Chief, former Senior Rule of Law Advisor, USAID
Giorgi Chkheidze – Chief of Party, USAID Promoting Rule of Law in Georgia Activity (PROLoG), East West Management Institute
David Rubino – Director, Europe and Eurasia Division, American Bar Association Rule of Law Initiative
Time Jul 13, 2021 11:30 AM in Eastern Time (US and Canada)
After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the webinar.
Webinar on Georgian Parliamentary Elections 2020
On behalf of the Georgian Association in the US we are delighted to invite you for a virtual discussion on “Georgian Parliamentary Elections 2020.” The panel examines and assesses how prepared the Georgian government is to successfully hold the elections at a time of the pandemic. The speakers highlight the role of the United States in supporting Georgia’s efforts to hold free and fair elections and to combat disinformation efforts on the part of the Russian government and other actors. The panelists also address the importance of the election from the regional perspective.
Keynote Remarks
Ambassador David Bakradze, Embassy of Georgia to the United States
Panelists
Cheryl Fernandes, U.S. Department of State
Alex Sokolowski, The United States Agency for International Development
Nino Japaridze, Edison Research
Melissa Muscio, National Democratic Institute
Stephen B. Nix, International Republican Institute
Moderator
Ia Meurmishvili, Voice of America
Georgian Female Artists
In this series of conversations, Tbilisi-born and New York-based curator and art writer Nina Mdivani will profile twelve Georgian women artists. Some of them are known to the wider audience, while some deserve to be rediscovered. Each presentation will include interviews with experts or artists and will be followed by a Q&A session.
In this series of conversations, Tbilisi-born and New York-based curator and art writer Nina Mdivani will profile twelve Georgian women artists. Some of them are known to the wider audience, while some deserve to be rediscovered. Each presentation will be followed by a Q&A session. Below you can find the schedule of our meetings:
Meeting One: Natela Grigalashvili & Rusudan Khizanishvili
Date: June 13, Sunday 2:00 PM EST
Meeting Two: Vera Pagava & Elene Akhvlediani
Date: July 18, Sunday 2:00 PM EST
Meeting Three: Natela Iankoshvili & Tamar Abakelia
Date: August 15, Sunday 2:00 PM EST
Meeting Four: Gayane Khachaturian & Ema Lalaeva-Ediberidze
Date: September 12, Sunday 2:00 PM EST
Meeting Five: Esma Oniani & Keti Kapanadze
Date: October 10, Sunday 2:00 PM EST
Meeting Six: Tamara Kvesitadze & Mariam Natroshvili
Date November 14, Sunday 2:00 PM EST
You choose below which session or sessions you would like to attend. Please note that we will send everyone who registered reminders one week ahead of each meeting and you may thus get an email about a meeting that you might not have selected.
