The Moscow Times Columns :: Theater Plus

Exile and Honor: Nikolai Erdman in Tomsk

Mon, 04 Apr 2011 00:00:00 +0400

What follows is a small example of how history and personal lives can intertwine over time in unexpected and significant ways. The personal side of this story is largely my own, but not entirely. It usually takes a lot of people coming together to make a story worth telling.

Playwright Yury Klavdiyev Plays Rock

Mon, 28 Mar 2011 00:00:00 +0400

Throughout March, playwright Yury Klavdiyev has been uploading to the Internet album after album of new musical compositions – three albums in three weeks. And those albums have been accompanied by several impressive videos.

Martin Luther King, Jr., Plays to a Russian Audience

Mon, 21 Mar 2011 00:00:00 +0300

American playwright Katori Hall's "The Mountaintop," a fictional depiction of the last hours of Martin Luther King, Jr.'s life, has not yet made it to New York, but it was given a reading in Moscow on Friday.

A Rain of Satire on Russian Television

Mon, 14 Mar 2011 00:00:00 +0300

You rarely will hear me say anything nice about television. But I believe in paying credit where credit is due. So listen up while I change my usual tune, for a moment anyway. The Russian Dozhd, or Rain, television channel, which calls itself the "optimistic channel," is not, I repeat not, your average lumbering, format-bound, blindered television station.

Golden Mask Festival Showcases Riches of Polish Theater and New Drama

Sun, 06 Mar 2011 00:00:00 +0300

There are more theater festivals in this city than, as an old high school friend used to say, you can shake a stick at. And if you've ever tried to catch all the events these festivals offer, you probably feel as though the person shaking that stick has been whacking you over the head with it.

New Names and Developments in St. Petersburg Theater

Mon, 28 Feb 2011 00:00:00 +0300

The atmosphere at the very cool Poryadok Slov was a bit hectic, but Nikolai Pesochinsky is used to keeping his cool under chaotic conditions. In just a few minutes, he delivered a fine impromptu lecture about several important developments in St. Petersburg theater.

Belgorod's Crackdown on 'Spiritually Dangerous' Contemporary Plays

Mon, 21 Feb 2011 00:00:00 +0300

On Tuesday, February 15, news began popping up on my Facebook page with links to numerous other internet sites, including Lenta.ru, Live Journal and Gzt.ru. The reason? Officials at a theater school in Belgorod had banned a performance of Yevgeny Grishkovets' play "The Planet" on the grounds that it was "spiritually dangerous."

The New Intertwining of Russian and American Theater

Sun, 13 Feb 2011 00:00:00 +0300

Under the umbrella of the Bilateral Presidential Commission, a plan for the funding of cultural events in Russia that came into being after a meeting between Barack Obama and Dmitry Medvedev in 2009, a vast array of initiatives, exchanges, partnerships and tours were put into motion.

A Great Russian Playwright Rediscovered as a Great Screenwriter

Mon, 07 Feb 2011 00:00:00 +0300

Nikolai Erdman's comedy "The Suicide" tells the story of a forlorn, unemployed man whom a bunch of creeps, thugs and morons convince to try to commit suicide in order to further causes that they support.

Finding Words for the Death of Anna Yablonskaya

Thu, 27 Jan 2011 00:00:00 +0300

My wife clarified for me this morning why I have not been able to sit down and write about the death of playwright Anna Yablonskaya on Monday in the terrorist attack at Domodedovo Airport. "The form cannot possibly fit the content," she said dryly but with perfect accuracy.

Arthur Kopit's Russian Doppelganger

Sun, 23 Jan 2011 00:00:00 +0300

The British historian James Howell had this to say about the art of translation: "Some hold translations not unlike to be / The wrong side of a Turkey tapestry." Perhaps that is true if you translate like Howell wrote poetry. But, fortunately, it doesn't have to be that way. Take Sergei Task, for instance.

15 Productions to Remember, 2001-2010

Sun, 16 Jan 2011 00:00:00 +0300

You think it's too late for one more New Year's list? Then you don't live in Russia, like I do. Today we're talking directors and their productions. And this one is much harder. I'm already in conflict with myself, wondering why I picked "this" and not "that."

15 Plays That Made the Decade

Tue, 11 Jan 2011 00:00:00 +0300

Russia's theater can be unnerving or daunting. Our theater critic gives highlights and insights into the 2000-2010 period.

Stop the Presses!

Thu, 23 Dec 2010 00:00:00 +0300

The first thing that came to mind when I saw it was a writer of a very different kind, time and place. "It" is the relatively new Dostoevskaya metro station in Moscow on the Green Line.

Not Getting Serious about Russian Culture

Tue, 14 Dec 2010 00:00:00 +0300

Filipp Kirkorov - Lord, no, that's not culture. During a TV taping, Kirkorov was so unhappy when a director questioned his star quality that he pulled her hair, knocked her down and kicked her.

Cue WikiLeaks: Russia's Image Abroad

Mon, 06 Dec 2010 00:00:00 +0300

"Don't you think that those awful new Russian plays are written expressly to tarnish the image of Russia abroad?" My answer to that question: No.

Theater History Emerges From Jottings

Thu, 25 Nov 2010 00:00:00 +0300

"What a mess!" I wrote in a short review in The Moscow Times in 1997. And I have it on good authority that I was right. Boris Milgram, the man who directed it, told me later that he felt the same way.

When Memories Are in the Program

Wed, 10 Nov 2010 00:00:00 +0300

My wife is to blame for what follows. "Look at this," she said. "It's the program from a performance of Vladimir Vysotsky playing Hamlet that I never got to see."

Snaring Russian Theater in the Net

Tue, 02 Nov 2010 00:00:00 +0300

Recently I did some surfing on the Internet to see what has been written about Russian theater of late. It isn't often that I find something I hadn't seen before. But a handful of surprising pieces cropped up.

From a Scribe's Pen to a Harvard Classroom

Mon, 25 Oct 2010 00:00:00 +0400

Something at which Horace Lunt would rail at least once in every Old Church Slavonic course was "scribal error." Let me point this out: The scribes of old were the journalists of today. Or something thereabouts.

Sheep, Critic Meet Over Sam Shepard

Fri, 15 Oct 2010 00:00:00 +0400

American director Lee Breuer premiered his production of Sam Shepard's "The Curse of the Starving Class" in Saratov, and critic Steven Leigh Morris was there to watch it. Our columnist captures his thoughts on the show and its ruminant.

A New York Take on Moscow Theater

Tue, 12 Oct 2010 00:00:00 +0400

If anyone knows anything about developing new work for theater, it is Jim Nicola. Nicola has been the artistic director of the famed New York Theatre Workshop since 1988.

Lee Breuer Shakes Up Shepard in Saratov

Wed, 06 Oct 2010 00:00:00 +0400

Just three days before this conversation took place I had no idea I would be sitting in a theater in Saratov, talking to the renowned American director Lee Breuer. And nothing is predictable with Lee Breuer.

Russian Answers to American Theatre's Questions

Tue, 28 Sep 2010 00:00:00 +0400

I walked out of the theater and I had no idea what had happened there. All I could recall were costumes that bounced and ruffled and rustled and bloomed so aggressively that the actors ceased to exist.

Theater Great Is Gone, But Legacy Is Just Beginning

Tue, 21 Sep 2010 00:00:00 +0400

Though Alexei Kazantsev died three years ago, the work of this playwright, director, producer and theatrical activist is thriving on the Russian stage and among its artists.

Taking Russian Drama to Extremes

Mon, 13 Sep 2010 00:00:00 +0400

Few discussions stir as much fire, smoke and hot air as one that the Russian theater community has been having for the last decade about the so-called "new drama." What is "new drama"? Who is writing it? Who is not?

Festival Is Host to New Plays, Free Expression

Mon, 06 Sep 2010 00:00:00 +0400

It has become tradition that Moscow's theater season begins with a daunting dose of new drama. This year, at the Lyubimovka playwriting festival, there will be 40 plays read and performed, including new Russian works.

Martha Coigney Recalls Marilyn Monroe and More

Mon, 30 Aug 2010 00:00:00 +0400

If just one person were American theater's connection to the world, it surely would be Martha Coigney. She shares her stories of Marilyn Monroe, Lee Strasberg and Soviet-era actor Mikhail Tsaryov with our theater columnist.

Theater, Social Commentary and the Paradox of Moscow Traffic

Wed, 18 Aug 2010 00:00:00 +0400

Our theater critic interviewed Thomas Irmer, a German journalist and theater critic, who had a keen outsider's view of a controversial play performed in Moscow.

Seeing Past the Present, Part Three

Mon, 09 Aug 2010 00:00:00 +0400

In an exploration of one-time haunts of Moscow's major artists, our arts critic helps you enjoy an artistic stroll while avoiding the city's weather. Here's a virtual tour of Mandelstam, Deineka and others, complete with photographs.

A Russian Fairy Tale in Rural Massachusetts

Thu, 29 Jul 2010 00:00:00 +0400

Double Edge Theater, located on a farm in the tiny town of Ashfield, Massachusetts, is a unique and surprising organization. Its productions have been seen in cities all over the United States and in such countries as Bulgaria, Poland, Hungary and Romania.

Developing Plays for Russia and America at the Eugene O'Neill Theater Center

Tue, 20 Jul 2010 00:00:00 +0400

Eugene O'Neill is one of those American writers whom Russians accept as if he were one of their own. Whether it's his Irish passion or his grand American scale, O'Neill somehow spoke the same language that Russian theater speaks.

Seeing Past the Present, Part Two

Wed, 07 Jul 2010 00:00:00 +0400

In part two of John Freedman's summer series about historical sites honoring Moscow's artistic past, the author takes us down Tverskaya Ulitsa to reflect on some of the city's finest stage actors.

Bringing Russian Theater to Texas

Mon, 28 Jun 2010 00:00:00 +0400

Ever since Graham Schmidt, who hails from Austin, TX, encountered the plays of Anton Chekhov, he has been a man on a mission.

Seeing Past the Present in Moscow, Part One

Tue, 22 Jun 2010 00:00:00 +0400

Over the course of the coming summer, our theater critic will lead you on a few walks around Moscow to offer some glimpses at the monuments to famous Russian artists scattered throughout the city.

Brian Friel's Russian Connection

Mon, 14 Jun 2010 00:00:00 +0400

Irish playwright Brian Friel, who has adapted three of Anton Chekhov's works into original stagings, arrives in Moscow this week to see two of his productions.

Anton Chekhov in Wood

Tue, 08 Jun 2010 00:00:00 +0400

Of all the subjects that Tomsk-based sculptor Leonty Usov has taken on over the years, Anton Chekhov is clearly a favorite.

Remembering Andrei Voznesensky. America. 1987.

Wed, 02 Jun 2010 00:00:00 +0400

In honor of the poet Andrei Voznesensky, who passed away Tuesday, John Freedman recalls a reading he witnessed Voznesnensky give at Tufts University.

In Memory of Roman Kozak, 1957-2010

Tue, 01 Jun 2010 00:00:00 +0400

Roman Kozak, a director, actor and teacher who had an enormous impact on Moscow theater over three decades, was buried Sunday at the Troyekuroskoye cemetery in Moscow. He died late Thursday evening of cancer of the throat at the age of 52.

Repertoire, Innovation Found at Saratov Theater

Tue, 25 May 2010 00:00:00 +0400

Founded in 1908, Saratov Theater Yunogo Zritelya is the oldest professional children's theater in the world. It also is a powerhouse of productions with international partners.

Theory Meets Practice at Towson University

Mon, 17 May 2010 00:00:00 +0400

When two Russian playwrights saw their creations realized and appreciated by American theater students at a conference in Baltimore, it was a moment of reckoning for all involved.

Keeping Track of Russian and East European Performance

Tue, 11 May 2010 00:00:00 +0400

John Freedman sits down with the editor of a small journal published at the City University of New York that has closely followed the development of theater and performance in Russia and East Europe.

Aktovy Zal: A Diamond in the Rough

Mon, 03 May 2010 00:00:00 +0400

Chances are if someone took a vote to determine what the coolest, hippest cultural corner in Moscow is, it would be a place called Aktovy Zal.

The Deep Influence of Russian Theater

Mon, 26 Apr 2010 00:00:00 +0400

Tony Award winner Robert Falls, one of the finest and most successful theater directors in the United States, talks about his connection with Russian drama.

Stray Thoughts on the 2010 Golden Mask Festival

Mon, 19 Apr 2010 00:00:00 +0400

Our theater critic, who got up close and personal with the annual festival, gives his impressions and congratulations in this Golden Mask summary.

What's So Funny About Peace, Love and Understanding?

Mon, 12 Apr 2010 00:00:00 +0400

If you are an American performer, writer or creator and you have visited Russia on any kind of official exchange (and vice versa if you are Russian), chances are that the Trust for Mutual Understanding at least partially made your trip possible.

Selling Theater - Down the River?

Mon, 05 Apr 2010 00:00:00 +0400

A new breed of theater ads are appealing to those who prefer the easy-to-swallow pill that is television; It is as if they are suggesting, "If you don't like all that messy theater stuff, come see our shows. We'll feed you entertainment in one big, happy package."

Russian Theater in Picture Postcards - Part Two

Tue, 30 Mar 2010 00:00:00 +0400

John Freedman brings us another fascinating glimpse of Russian theater from the early 20th century seen through his personal collection of vintage postcards.

Russian Drama in Middle America

Mon, 22 Mar 2010 00:00:00 +0300

Ahead of a production in Ann Arbor, MI, of Maxim Kurochkin's legendary "Kitchen," our theater critic sat down with the play's American director Katherine Mendeloff to talk about her connection to Russian theater.

'Playing Dead' in Baltimore

Tue, 16 Mar 2010 00:00:00 +0300

An encounter with one of the most iconic Russian plays of the last decade, brought something new into the life of writer-director Juanita Rockwell: Never before had she had the need to find so many ways to curse in English.

An Englishman From France Who Writes about Russia

Mon, 08 Mar 2010 00:00:00 +0300

Bernard Besserglik's experience as a reporter in Moscow for 3 years illuminated many a corner of the city's arts scene and helped influence his wacky musical, "A Night in the Kremlin," which imagines Harpo Marx and Joseph Stalin meeting in 1930s Moscow.

Doing the Henry Miller in Moscow

Mon, 01 Mar 2010 00:00:00 +0300

If you read the New York Times, the Boston Globe, Newsweek, Rolling Stone or almost any other major American news publication, chances are you are reading the work of men and women who started out in Moscow.

Snow No Match for Moscow Theater Audiences

Tue, 23 Feb 2010 00:00:00 +0300

As Moscow was gripped by a record-breaking snowfall during a long holiday weekend, our theater critic made a surprising discovery when he headed to the OKOLO Theater on Sunday night.

Art Meets Life in A New Moscow Production

Mon, 15 Feb 2010 00:00:00 +0300

Mindaugas Karbauskis' production of "A Stalemate Lasts But a Moment," which opened last week at the National Youth Theater, affected me so deeply that I was compelled to step out from behind the detached gaze of a critic and offer a personal response now.

Remembering the Great Vsevolod Yakut

Mon, 08 Feb 2010 00:00:00 +0300

Vsevolod Yakut was one of the Soviet Union's great actors from the 1940s to the 1980s, performing more than 150 roles on stage and screen. An actor's actor, he brought to his work scrupulous attention to detail and total devotion to what he believed to be the magic of his profession.

Theater, Radio and the Internet

Mon, 01 Feb 2010 00:00:00 +0300

Thanks to my colleague Pavel Podkladov at Podmoskovye Radio, I recently learned about a web site that combines the media of radio-theater and internet and has collected more than 400 recordings of theatrical and literary works, some going back as far as the 1940s, some having been recorded in recent years.

My Chekhov

Mon, 25 Jan 2010 00:00:00 +0300

Anton Chekhov belongs to the world. In Russia he is Russian. In England he is English. In the United States he is American. Here I am, an English-language American critic in Russia, and I don't know what to make of him.

Russian Theater for American Students

Tue, 19 Jan 2010 00:00:00 +0300

Travelling to Russia as a student is something of a rite of passage for a good many young people from all over the globe, and right now there is a group of 18 students here from multiple disciplines who have been immersing themselves in the world of Moscow theater.

The Perfect Fit of the Russian New Year and Eldar Ryazanov

Thu, 14 Jan 2010 00:00:00 +0300

You would be forgiven for believing that Eldar Ryazanov is the sole embodiment of the Russian New Year. His 1975 comedy "The Irony of Fate" is easily the most-showed, most-watched and most-loved New Year's film in Russian cinema history.

Stories Lurk Behind a Forgotten Photo of Vsevolod Meyerhold

Tue, 29 Dec 2009 00:00:00 +0300

There's something intriguing about group portraits. The visages of famous people peer out at us from a sea of unfamiliar faces, reminding us that at one time all of these individuals were mortals who walked the same earth. All were connected as players in a process that led to the making of culture and history.

Yegor Gaidar, New and Old Vocabularies and the Revival of Russian Theater

Thu, 17 Dec 2009 00:00:00 +0300

It surely would be a gross exaggeration to draw a direct line from Yegor Gaidar to the renewal of Russian theater. But by the time Gaidar began moving onto the fringes of politics - or, more properly, by the time he was pushed out of the big picture - his work was showing tangible results in all spheres of life, including theater.

Yury Klavdiyev, an 'Atom-Smashing' Playwright

Sun, 13 Dec 2009 00:00:00 +0300

Yury Klavdiyev's mix of violence and tenderness, vulgarity and poetry, is now clearly beginning to make a mark in English, and his plays are not for the squeamish. But if you appreciate theater that puts you on the spot, Klavdiyev is ready to do that.

Olga Mukhina's 'Tanya-Tanya' Leads Russian Drama Season in United States

Mon, 07 Dec 2009 00:00:00 +0300

Towson University in Towson, Maryland, is currently hosting an entire season of Russian drama in English - ten plays by six authors presented in English translation by various production teams consisting of a Russian director, two Russian choreographers, three American directors, two American playwrights and several American translators.

The Noise of Time

Mon, 30 Nov 2009 00:00:00 +0300

Stihophone.ru, or the Virtual Theater of Poetry, offers mp3 recordings of poets reading themselves and actors reading poets. The selection is relatively small - it features just 48 Russians and two foreigners - but what a treasure trove!

Kristin Marting From HERE to Moscow

Mon, 23 Nov 2009 00:00:00 +0300

Director and producer Kristin Marting has found the time to travel to Moscow several times in her life, and it has intrigued her enough to keep coming back looking for interesting theater.

Turning Our Backs on Anton Chekhov

Mon, 16 Nov 2009 00:00:00 +0300

In his new production of "The Seagull," Kristian Smeds did what any self-respecting contemporary visionary would do when confronted with a work groaning under the weight of its own mythology: He took the play on, shook it hard and created something new that responds to it.

Lee Breuer 'Comes Home' to Moscow with 'Dollhouse'

Mon, 09 Nov 2009 00:00:00 +0300

Lee Breuer's "Mabou Mines Dollhouse" is an often bracing, often hilarious and always eclectic and hectic show that turns Henrik Ibsen's "A Doll House" on its end.

Maksym Kurochkin Cooks Up Great Drama

Wed, 04 Nov 2009 00:00:00 +0300

"Kitchen," a weird, wild and wonderful force of nature that was commissioned by Oleg Menshikov - Russia's one and only true matinee idol -was a monstrous hit when it premiered in 2000, and suddenly new plays were the hot item in Russian theater.

Did Bob Dylan Shed Tears of Rage in Russia?

Mon, 26 Oct 2009 00:00:00 +0300

"What do Russia, Bob Dylan and Christmas have in common?" One of the projected answers was this: "Dylan's ancestors immigrated to the United States from Russia around 1906 and his Christmas album features a cover drawing of a sleigh and driver that looks like something off an old Russian postcard."

Polish Theater Festival Highlights the Past and Present

Mon, 19 Oct 2009 00:00:00 +0400

While directors like Ivo van Hove surprise and challenge us with works that, to quote Moscow critic Yelena Kovalskaya, come to us from the 22nd century, Russian directors most likely will continue to seek their path forward based on the lessons of their resonant past.

How New Russian Drama Came to Slovakia

Tue, 13 Oct 2009 00:00:00 +0400

Romana Maliti is well-known in Europe as one of the most important figures in the Slovakian theater world, but her affair with Russian drama had precious little to do with her professional interests.

Eda Urusova Teaches a Critic Some Lessons

Mon, 05 Oct 2009 00:00:00 +0400

Urusova was one of those people whose individual lives somehow embraced the entire history of a nation; an imposing, yet warm and gracious woman, a descendant of the great Urusov line of Russian princes.

Russian Theater in Picture Postcards

Mon, 28 Sep 2009 00:00:00 +0400

Our theater critic gives us an in-depth look at some rare Russian theater postcards, all of them fascinating glimpses into the past.

Unforgettable Theater

Mon, 21 Sep 2009 00:00:00 +0400

Theater is arguably the most perishable art form; no two nights are ever the same. So what is left, then, when a show is gone?

Russian Playwrights Leap From Stage to Screen

Mon, 14 Sep 2009 00:00:00 +0400

These aren't just cases of talented writers getting a chance to see their names on screen - we are talking about important writers potentially having a serious impact on the quality, themes, style and prestige of Russian cinema.

Ken Reynolds on Shooting the Satirikon

Tue, 08 Sep 2009 00:00:00 +0400

The Satirikon is not merely one of the best theaters in Moscow - it is a photographer's dream.

Carrying the Russian Aesthetic, From Lithuania to Georgia

Mon, 31 Aug 2009 00:00:00 +0400

Eimuntas Nekrosius and Robert Sturua are arguably the greatest directors to emerge from their homelands in many decades - Nekrosius from Lithuania, Sturua from Georgia. FEATURES VIDEO

Emerging Playwrights Make It to U.K.

Tue, 25 Aug 2009 00:00:00 +0400

Discussing the four plays that will be staged at the forthcoming Russian Theatre Festival in London. FEATURES VIDEO

Tracking Lev Dodin Across Europe

Mon, 17 Aug 2009 00:00:00 +0400

Of all the Russian directors whose productions Ken Reynolds has captured on film, Dodin is second only to Kama Ginkas. FEATURES VIDEO

Seeking Complexity in Selecting for the West

Tue, 11 Aug 2009 00:00:00 +0400

What should British theaters look for in new Russian playwriting?

100,000 Photos and 23 Chekhov Shows

Mon, 03 Aug 2009 00:00:00 +0400

A small numbers game provides a lot of insight into the scope of the portfolio Ken Reynolds has accumulated since turning his lens toward theater stages about 15 years ago. FEATURES VIDEO

How Kama Ginkas Changed a Photographer's Life

Tue, 28 Jul 2009 00:00:00 +0400

After beginning his career shooting patterns created by rust, British theater photographer Ken Reynolds met director Kama Ginkas, a figure who became central to Reynolds' future. FEATURES VIDEO

Discovering Russian Art in Paris, Part Two

Thu, 23 Jul 2009 00:00:00 +0400

The Zhar-Ptitsa periodical was of extraordinary quality, something that is especially obvious in our age of fast and forgettable journalism.

Discovering Russian Art in Paris, Part One

Mon, 20 Jul 2009 00:00:00 +0400

Of all the inanimate objects that have entered my life unexpectedly, a find obtained on the quai de Gesvres one fall day in 1986 is probably the nearest and dearest to me.

A Personal Remembrance of Vasily Aksyonov

Tue, 07 Jul 2009 00:00:00 +0400

I have a personal connection to Vasily Pavlovich, who entered my life after he had already become the world-famous author of several of the most important novels in Soviet literature.

'Welding and Fusing' American and Russian Culture

Fri, 03 Jul 2009 00:00:00 +0400

As a former mathematician who now runs her own theater in Los Angeles, Olga Petrakova clearly is not cookie-cutter material. FEATURES VIDEO

'Russia and U.S. Are Like Romeo and Juliet'

Tue, 30 Jun 2009 00:00:00 +0400

The man many people believe to be Los Angeles' best theater critic, Steven Leigh Morris, shares his thoughts on Russia and Russian theater. FEATURES VIDEO

In Search of Russian Theater

Sun, 21 Jun 2009 00:00:00 +0400

A duo of British theater makers came to town last week in search of material for a new project. David Farr, associate director at the Royal Shakespeare Theatre, and Ferdy Roberts, one of the founders of Filter Theatre, Ltd., had previously collaborated on a work called "Water," which was a huge success in London in 2007. Now they have their sights set on Russian theater.

The Plain, Hard Truth About Klim

Mon, 15 Jun 2009 00:00:00 +0400

Pardon me if you have heard me tell this one about the director Alexei Yankovsky. But Yankovsky himself loves to repeat the story. In fact, he did it again this weekend at a small gathering following the Moscow premiere of his production of "An Angry Play," a new work by the playwright and director known as Klim. Why should I not indulge?

Notes of Latino Los Angeles at the Usadba Jazz Fest

Mon, 08 Jun 2009 00:00:00 +0400

Los Angeles-based Latino group Kimera performed at the popular summer music festival outside Moscow on Sunday, following a tour of Russia embarked on by the band that included a concert from a Bolshoi Theater vocalist and a dip in a frigid holy spring.

A New York Actress in Moscow

Mon, 01 Jun 2009 00:00:00 +0400

While in Moscow on a recent visit, OBIE award-winning actress and playwright Heidi Schreck found time to check out a number of shows. I cornered her in a cafe with my trusty digital camera and coerced her into spilling the beans: So, what did she think?

A Critic's Dubious Premiere in a Moscow Theater

Wed, 27 May 2009 00:00:00 +0400

My job in "The Epic of Lilikan" was to perform as badly as I possibly could, a task for which I have no limitations.

Photo Gallery: Moscow Bids Farewell to Oleg Yankovsky

Fri, 22 May 2009 00:00:00 +0400

Photos of Muscovites lined up around Lenkom Theater on Friday to bid farewell to actor Oleg Yankovsky, who died last week at age 65.

Moscow Bids Farewell to Oleg Yankovsky

Fri, 22 May 2009 00:00:00 +0400

Oleg Yankovsky died at the age of 65 on Wednesday, May 20, in the wee hours of the morning. On Friday it seemed that half of Moscow's residents left their homes and workplaces to come to the Lenkom Theater, where Yankovsky had worked since 1973, to say farewell.

Anatoly Vasilyev's School of Dramatic Art (Now Destroyed)

Tue, 19 May 2009 00:00:00 +0400

Ever since it became clear that Vasilyev would never again have control over the theater he created, I have wondered how I would feel setting foot in it again. Would I feel like a barbarian? Would I be condoning what was done? Would I feel anything at all?

Lee Breuer in Moscow: 'The Gospel,' the Beats and the Blues

Mon, 11 May 2009 00:00:00 +0400

Lee Breuer, the brains and brawn behind Mabou Mines, one of the finest and most innovative theater organizations in the United States, has connections to Russia that go way back.

Festival of Student Productions 'Your Chance' Hits Moscow

Fri, 08 May 2009 00:00:00 +0400

For the fifth time in as many years, the Theater Center Na Strastnom will host one of Moscow's most unusual and fastest growing theater events: the Your Chance festival of student productions.

Bulat Okudzhava's 85th Anniversary

Thu, 30 Apr 2009 00:00:00 +0400

I have always had a soft spot in my heart for Bulat Okudzhava, who would have turned 85 this coming Saturday (May 9) were it not for his sudden death after a heart operation in Paris in 1997. Part of the reason for my fondness is understandable: He was the first Russian writer I met in person.

Playwright Olga Mikhailova Turns Critic

Mon, 27 Apr 2009 00:00:00 +0400

In addition to being a playwright who is one of the inspirations of the influential Teatr.doc and a screenwriter whose scripts have had particular success in France where most of them have been filmed, Olga is one of the finest conversationalists in Moscow.

The Golden Mask's Curtain Call

Mon, 20 Apr 2009 00:00:00 +0400

Awards in the arts must be one of the strangest creations on earth.

Olga Mukhina on Anton Chekhov

Thu, 16 Apr 2009 00:00:00 +0400

"Chekhov wrote in an impossible style. You can't write that way. But by doing so, he gave us the right to write in impossible ways, too."

An American in Moscow

Wed, 15 Apr 2009 00:00:00 +0400

Philip Arnoult, a former actor, director and producer and founder of the Theatre Project in Baltimore, has traveled the world for over two decades helping theaters in the United States find directors in Hungary, introducing dancers in Kenya to choreographers in Chelyabinsk, and bringing innovative productions in Russia to the attention of festival managers in Poland.

New Drama Festival Dies

Mon, 13 Apr 2009 00:00:00 +0400

The Festival, originally a complement to and off-shoot of the Golden Mask, has ceased to exist after a seven-year run, marking the end of an era.

Thoughts Prompted by the Golden Mask Festival: Acclaimed Director Accused of Pornography

Thu, 09 Apr 2009 00:00:00 +0400

Yevgeny Marcelli is one of Russia's most distinctive directors, as well as a modest, soft-spoken man prone to smiling when engaged in conversation. The last thing you'd expect to be discussing with him is his troubles with the law.

Thoughts Prompted by the Golden Mask Festival: English Drama in Russia

Tue, 07 Apr 2009 00:00:00 +0400

There is no lack of irony in Russia, but it is a completely different animal than that which shapes the British sense of humor.

Thoughts Prompted by the Golden Mask Festival: Chekhov or Not Chekhov?

Fri, 03 Apr 2009 00:00:00 +0400

Apparently, Anatoly Praudin's production of Anton Chekhov's "The Lady With the Lapdog" for the Bolshoi Drama Theater of St. Petersburg has caused some people a good deal of consternation.

Thoughts Prompted by the Golden Mask Festival: On Leo Tolstoy

Wed, 01 Apr 2009 00:00:00 +0400

I am filled with thoughts of Tolstoy thanks to the Golden Mask Festival, the Bolshoi Puppet Theater of St. Petersburg, and their production of "Kholstomer: The Chronicle of the Saving of a Soul."

Theater on a Farm

Thu, 26 Mar 2009 00:00:00 +0300

I found myself wondering this week what I was doing on a farm in the middle of Western Massachusetts.

Front Row Center? Give Me an Aisle Seat!

Thu, 19 Mar 2009 00:00:00 +0300

Have you ever spent as much time thinking about where, on what and between whom you are going to sit in a theater as you (expats) do when you go online to make seat selections before heading home for the holidays? You might find it worth your time.

Boogie-Woogie and Russian Theater

Thu, 12 Mar 2009 00:00:00 +0300

I took in a cool concert at Moscow's House of Composers last week - a show featuring the boogie-woogie piano duet of Bob Baldori and Martin Schmitt. It got me thinking about all kinds of things, some even connected to what I usually do, which is write about Russian theater.

One Small Victory in the War on Cell Phones

Thu, 05 Mar 2009 00:00:00 +0300

The battle with cell phones in Moscow theaters has taken on an interesting new twist.

Inter-Pollination in the Russian Avant-Garde

Fri, 27 Feb 2009 00:00:00 +0300

There is something about the Russian arts of the first three decades of the 20th century that will not let us go.

British Connection

Fri, 20 Feb 2009 00:00:00 +0300

Russian and British theater have enjoyed a rich, if curious, symbiosis for some time. After all, Anton Chekhov is almost regarded as a native English soul on the British Isles, and what playwright could possibly be more Russian in temperament than Shakespeare?

Remembering a Beloved Patron of Moscow Theater

Mon, 16 Feb 2009 00:00:00 +0300

It is next to impossible to imagine Moscow as we know it without Margarita Eskina.

The Sound of 'Glamur' Dying

Fri, 13 Feb 2009 00:00:00 +0300

Have you ever wondered what the sound of "glamur" dying is like? Listen closely.