Young Edmontonian Takes on the Big Apple

Ukrainian-Canadian Elizabeth (Eta) Archer is currently studying at New York’s American Academy of Dramatic Arts (AADA)—alma mater of many well-known names in the American entertainment industry. The 17-year-old Edmonton native holds an impressive portfolio of achievements as a student, musician and singer, community leader, volunteer and active member of the Ukrainian Youth Organization. She is also the compiler of a book of Ukrainian Christmas and New Year carols, called Persha Zirka.  Eta Archer speaks to Halyna Klid about her new life in the Big Apple.

H.K.: What are your overall impressions of New York?
E.A.:  New York is loud, brash, abrupt, bustling, stressful, magical and chaotic. One is as much a New Yorker after 10 minutes of being here as after 10 years. You walk down the street and can hear 20 different languages, see famous landmarks; your senses are just attacked by everything. It’s hard to take it all in. Every neighbourhood has a different mood and feel. Each little division is a country of its own.

H.K.: What are your plans for “conquering” New York?

E.A.: My plans were initially just to survive here. However, survival is different than really truly living, and so if I can actually live in this big city, I will have been able to conquer it by my standards. I don’t know if I could or would want to live here for the rest of my life. The grand life plan I created for myself when I was seven has taken a few detours, so who knows where I’ll end up?

 Sometimes I am a little girl, lost and wandering around this giant playground wondering why I ever came here. Other times I feel like I can take on this city with no problem. Mostly I am just Eta, a kindergartener with a sword, but the thing that keeps me strong is my family and friends. Sometimes it’s hard to get up in the mornings, knowing that they’re so far away, but knowing that I have these amazing people in my life, having their love and support in my heart, I can keep going. I guess that’s pretty cliche and trite, but it’s the bald and sincere truth.

 H.K.:  Is being of Ukrainian heritage currently playing any part in your life, as a student in New York?

E.A.: My Ukrainian heritage has played a huge role in my life, and living in New York is no exception. I’ve been to Little Ukraine a few times, and I find I feel really at home talking to people in stores or restaurants in Ukrainian. I was excited when I spotted ‘Taras Shevchenko Place.’ I am eager to attend some Ukrainian plays and concerts here and have been delighted to see people walking around casually in vyshyvani sorochky or using red dancing boots as everyday accessories.  It’s that link that ties me back to Edmonton and to my roots, which, in a new city, is rather nice.

 I also find myself so much more patriotic, and so much more grateful that I can and will always call Canada home. I listen to CBC radio on the internet and I watch CTV news on an online newscast, which gives me a little taste of home. I never thought Lloyd Robertson would make me so happy!

H.K.: Can you tell me a bit about your book, Persha Zirka?

E. A.: These vinshuvania [that have been compiled in the book] have been around for generations. Simply put, the book is a celebration of tradition; it allows us to look back and see how people lived before us and, embracing that, we can, in turn, use it to create our own traditions and foster a pride in who we are and where we have come from.

 H.K.: Now that Persha Zirka has been published, what are the next steps in this project?          

E.A.:  Persha Zirka has been in my life for almost four years now, and I am so proud of what the book has become. The initial project is done. Now the next step has begun — a step that rests on the Ukrainian community — wherein people have to care about learning about and preserving their culture.

Halyna Klid  works at the Canadian Institute of Ukrainian Studies (CIUS), University of Alberta, developing and preparing print and digital publishing of Ukrainian-language resources for bilingual education.

Persha Zirka is published by the Ukrainian Language Education Centre (ULEC), CIUS, University of Alberta. To purchase a copy ($14.95, plus taxes, shipping and handling), contact the ULEC: 450 Athabasca Hall, University of Alberta, Edmonton, Alberta or e-mail ulec@ualberta.ca