Kherson Theater Continues Performances as Brief Ceasefire Ends

Civilians in Kherson, Ukraine, face the expiration of a localized ceasefire that has stood for only one week. The truce, which began Tuesday and ends Sunday evening, represents the most sustained pause in hostilities since Russia launched its full-scale invasion four and a half years ago. Despite the temporary quiet, residents in the southeastern region are bracing for a return to heavy combat as the agreement lapses.

The White House credited First Lady Melania Trump with brokering the limited agreement. The ceasefire allowed for the evacuation of approximately 2,000 civilians from the front-line city of Oleshky. These residents could choose to move to Ukrainian or Russian controlled territory, or remain in the city with new supplies of food and medicine. Family members waited at the Ukrainian border on Saturday to reunite with those who left, while locals in nearby villages lined the highway with flags and flashlights to greet the humanitarian convoy.

Even as the local truce held, aerial attacks continued across the rest of the country. President Volodymyr Zelenskyy reported that Russia targeted energy systems ahead of winter, leaving hundreds of thousands of families without power. He stated that Russian forces were exploiting Ukraine’s shortage of ballistic missile interceptors. Ukraine’s air force reported that Russian forces launched 433 drones overnight, destroying or suppressing 371 of them.

In Kherson, the Mykola Kulish Regional Academic Music and Drama Theater continued its schedule. Oleksandr Knyha, the theater’s head, told the audience on Sunday to hold on despite the coming end of the quiet. The company performs in a basement and is building an additional bomb shelter. About 100 of the theater’s 120 staff members remain in the city, and none have evacuated. Knyha said the show is not canceled, citing the theater’s four years of operating on the front line.

Costume maker Alla Vasylenko, 58, said the silence of the truce remains frightening. She expressed skepticism that the situation would change after the ceasefire, noting that trusting Russian promises feels like not believing oneself. Vasylenko has no plans to leave because she owns 10 dogs. She estimated that traveling to safety would cost between 30,000 and 50,000 hryvnias, a sum she considers high.

Zelenskyy said Ukrainian forces struck a factory making missile components and air defense facilities in Russia’s Rostov region. He described the action as a just defense against aggression. In Russia’s Nizhny Novgorod region, more than 100 Ukrainian drones were shot down, causing an industrial building in Kstovo to sustain major damage and sparking a fire at a local oil refinery.

Local officials in Kherson warn that Russian forces have brought in additional weapons and personnel. Some residents expect shelling to intensify once the truce ends. The theater staged a concert on the final day of the ceasefire featuring songs from across Ukraine, from Crimea to the Carpathian mountains.