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Anti-Terror Feminist Director Is in Russian Jail for “Justifying Terrorism”
Essay
Anti-Terror Feminist Director Is in Russian Jail for “Justifying Terrorism”
by VIKTOR VILISOV
2 August 2023
The Seagull: Interrupted Flight Workshop Presentation (Russia)
Video
The Seagull: Interrupted Flight Workshop Presentation (Russia)
An Evening with Russian Actor and Director of Theatre and Cinema Alexander Molochnikov
Monday 24 April 2023
New York City
For Some Russian Dissident Theatremakers, the Future Is Unclear
Essay
For Some Russian Dissident Theatremakers, the Future Is Unclear
by Daniel Mesta, Vitaly Kogut
31 January 2023
A woman wearing a lacey crown stands alone on a carpeted floor with a hand extended in a "halt" gesture.
Anti-Terror Feminist Director Is in Russian Jail for “Justifying Terrorism”
Essay

Anti-Terror Feminist Director Is in Russian Jail for “Justifying Terrorism”

2 August 2023

After Russian courts found that Svetlana Petriychuk’s documentary theatre piece Finist the Brave Falcon “justified terrorism” due to its feminist aims, Petriychuk and director Zhenya Berkovich were jailed. Viktor Vilisov discusses the production, clarifying the production’s aims to amplify the experiences of Russian women whose attempts to flea Russian patriarchy has landed them in oppressive marriages to Syrian ISIS fighters.

Segal theatre center logo.
The Seagull: Interrupted Flight Workshop Presentation (Russia)
Video

The Seagull: Interrupted Flight Workshop Presentation (Russia)

An Evening with Russian Actor and Director of Theatre and Cinema Alexander Molochnikov

Monday 24 April 2023
New York City

In 2021, the world premiere of the ballet The Seagull: Interrupted Flight staged by Molochnikov took place on the stage of the Bolshoi Theatre in Moscow—a ballet interpretation of Chekhov’s play, presented in the program at the Golden Mask in 2022. While in exile in New York, Molochnikov is aiming to present the The Seagull: Interrupted Flight. Due to the political situation Molochnikov is no longer able to work in Russia. He will present, with New York actors, excerpts from his ongoing workshop, followed by a discussion.

A person sits in front of a laptop watching actors rehearse on stage.
For Some Russian Dissident Theatremakers, the Future Is Unclear
Essay

For Some Russian Dissident Theatremakers, the Future Is Unclear

31 January 2023

Director Vitaly Kogut is one of many displaced Russian men spending this winter in Batumi, Georgia. Daniel Mesta interviews him about his work, in which uses theatre to communicate the complexities of the Russian soul while enduring censorship and cancellation.

Histories of the Avant-garde event poster.
Histories of the Avant-garde and Contemporary Disruptive Technologies
Video

Histories of the Avant-garde and Contemporary Disruptive Technologies

Cyber Attack: Digital Art and Activism Conference

Wednesday 16 November 2022
Berlin, Germany and international.

Cyber Attack: Digital Art and Activism is an online conference by NORDWIND in cooperation with FuturePerfect Studio (New York), Denis Semionov, Kampnagel (Hamburg), and Hellerau (Dresden). The opening session Histories of the Avant-garde and Contemporary Disruptive Technologies livestreamed on the global, commons-based, peer-produced HowlRound TV network on Wednesday 16 November 2022 at 9:30 a.m. PST (San Francisco, UTC -8) / 12:30 p.m. EST (New York, UTC -5) / 17:30 GMT (London, UTC +0) / 18:30 CET (Berlin, UTC +1) / 19:30 EET (Bucharest, UTC +2).

Five children in a dark room surrounded by cots.
Nothing About Us Without Us
Essay

Nothing About Us Without Us

How Theatre and Performance Art Can Help Migrants and Refugees in Situations of Uncertainty

27 October 2022

Theatremaker Viktor Vilisov examines the important role theatre can play in supporting migrants and refugees.

PUHA Podcast Teaser.
Public Space
Podcast

Public Space

7 September 2022

In the first episode of PUHA (Performative Unity in the Hungarian Arts) podcast, co-hosts Zsófi and Bíborka, along with their guests, search for the meaning of the notion of “public space.” Through the experiences and experiments of interdisciplinary sound artist Dávid Somló; choreographer Flóra Eszter Sarlós; dancer and choreographer Gyula Cserepes; and theatremaker and performer Sarah Günther, this episode will take you on a tour of spaces, from Budapest to Denmark to London and more!

A person on the ground writing on a sign.
When Performance Art Is an Anti-War Instrument, Part Two
Essay

When Performance Art Is an Anti-War Instrument, Part Two

4 August 2022

In part two of his essay, Russian theatremaker Viktor Vilisov delves deeper into the performative nature of war itself and how art can create spaces for collective remembrance and grief.

Person holding a sign.
When Performance Art Is an Anti-War Instrument, Part One
Essay

When Performance Art Is an Anti-War Instrument, Part One

2 August 2022

Russian theatremaker Viktor Vilisov analyzes the power performance protest holds in opposing war, oppressive governments, and state violence.

Six people dressed in fake soldier uniforms protest the war with a banner.
There Was Some Contemporary Culture Left in Russia. Then Putin Started a War.
Essay

There Was Some Contemporary Culture Left in Russia. Then Putin Started a War.

4 April 2022

Russian theatremaker Viktor Vilisov details the rapidly dwindling infrastructure for free expression in Russian culture in a time of war. As theatres and theatre workers navigate the deterioration of their sector, elements of performance persist in anti-war protests and state political messaging alike.

portraits of Thomas Oberender and joulia strauss
SEGAL TALKS with Thomas Oberender and Joulia Strauss (Germany/Greece/Russia)
Video

SEGAL TALKS with Thomas Oberender and Joulia Strauss (Germany/Greece/Russia)

Join us for an urgent conversation with Berlin-based and Russian-born theater artist Joulia Strauss

Monday 21 March 2022
United States

The Martin E. Segal Theatre Center presented SEGAL TALKS with Thomas Oberender and Joulia Strauss (Germany/Greece/Russia), livestreaming on the global, commons-based, peer produced HowlRound TV network on Monday 21 March 2022 at 12 p.m. EDT (New York, UTC -4) / 4 p.m. GMT (UTC +0) / 6 p.m. EET (UTC +2).

The Future is Now
The Future Is Now: Conversations with Leyli Gafarova and Elena Ishchenko
Podcast

The Future Is Now: Conversations with Leyli Gafarova and Elena Ishchenko

11 November 2021

In these episodes of The Future Is Now, two CEC Artslink Future Fellows—Azerbaijan-based filmmaker Leyli Gafarova and Russian art curator and researcher Elena Ischenko—discuss their vision for the future of arts practice.

Two shirtless men standing next to each other on a balcony from their bedroom.
The Future of Theatre and Performance Is Queer, but in Russia This Sounds Unimaginable
Essay

The Future of Theatre and Performance Is Queer, but in Russia This Sounds Unimaginable

1 June 2021

Viktor Vilisov talks about the realities of queer artists and art in Russia today.

on a stage, two people look forward while a person in a white dress looks at them.
Reflections on Moscow’s Golden Mask Festival
Video

Reflections on Moscow’s Golden Mask Festival

Making the best Russian theatre more accessible than ever

Friday 23 April 2021
Russia

The Center for International Theatre Development (CITD) presented Reflections on Moscow’s Golden Mask Festival livestreaming on the global, commons-based, peer produced HowlRound TV network at howlround.tv on Friday 23 April 2021 at 10 a.m. PDT (San Francisco, UTC -7) / 1 p.m. EDT (New York, UTC -4) / 8 p.m. MSK (Moscow, UTC+3).

an actor onstage with a large projection behind her
In Search of Complexities
Essay

In Search of Complexities

Documentary Theatre in Today’s Russia

13 May 2020

Anastasia Patlay talks about creating documentary theatre with the Moscow-based company Teatr.doc.

close up of an actor playing the cello
The Search for Truth in Putin’s Russia
Essay

The Search for Truth in Putin’s Russia

How Teatr.doc’s “Civil Theatre” Is Exposing Injustice

4 June 2019

verity healey looks at Teatr.doc’s latest show, Torture, and the vital need for “truth-telling” theatre.

three panelists
Shifting Sands of Russian Theatre
Essay

Shifting Sands of Russian Theatre

Reporting from Moscow’s Golden Mask Festival

8 May 2019

Howard Shalwitz, Karen Houppert, and Yury Urnov reflect on the productions they saw at this year’s Golden Mask Theatre Festival in Moscow, Russia.

First Foray into St. Petersburg's Theatre Scene
Essay

First Foray into St. Petersburg's Theatre Scene

20 August 2017

David Diamond, curator of the La MaMa Umbria International Symposia, visits St. Petersburg and presents a look at Russian theatre artists today.

Theatre as Resistance
Essay

Theatre as Resistance

12 May 2017

Robert Stanton for #FairWageOnstage considers the recent success of negotiations for salary increases for Off-Broadway actors and how theatre can support and lead the resistance to oppressive political administrations.

Natasha’s Dream
Essay

Natasha’s Dream

a Foreign and Familiar Vision

21 March 2017

Erik Nikander discusses Yaroslava Pulinovich's Russian play Natasha's Dream, presented in New Repertory Theatre in Massachusetts.

Elyse Dodgson on Sarah Kane
Essay

Elyse Dodgson on Sarah Kane

“She Was a Pure Writer”

11 January 2017

Interview with Elyse Dodgson, the International Director at the Royal Court Theatre, at the Stanislavsky Electrotheatre in Moscow about her work and relationship with playwright Sarah Kane.

Conversation about Sarah Kane’s 4.48 Psychosis with Elyse Dodgson of The Royal Court Theatre, London and Director Alexander Zeldovich at the Stanislavsky Electrotheatre
Video

Conversation about Sarah Kane’s 4.48 Psychosis with Elyse Dodgson of The Royal Court Theatre, London and Director Alexander Zeldovich at the Stanislavsky Electrotheatre

Sunday 9 October 2016
Moscow, Russia

The Stanislavsky Electrotheatre in Moscow, Russia presented a conversation about Sarah Kane’s 4.48 Psychosis livestreamed on the global, commons-based peer-produced HowlRound TV network at howlround.tv on Sunday 9 October at 12:15 p.m. PDT (San Francisco) / 3:15 p.m. EDT (New York) / 19:15 UTC / 8:15 p.m. BST (London) / 21:15 CEST (Berlin) / 22:15 MSK/UTC+3 (Moscow). On Twitter, follow @HowlRoundTV and @electrotheatre_.

"Migrating Modernist Performance: British Theatrical Travels Through Russia"
Video

"Migrating Modernist Performance: British Theatrical Travels Through Russia"

Wednesday 13 July 2016
Moscow, Russia

The Stanislavsky Electrotheatre presented Dr. Claire Warden's Lecture: Migrating Modernist Performance: British Theatrical Travels Through Russia, livestreamed on the global, commons-based peer-produced HowlRoundTV network at howlround.tv Wednesday 13 July at 8:00 a.m. EDT (New York) / 7:00 a.m. CDT (Chicago) / 5:00 a.m. PDT (Los Angeles) / 12:00 p.m. BST (London). Twitter @electrotheatre and #howlround.  

Talk Travels with a Dilettante: Moscow by John Freedman
Video

Talk Travels with a Dilettante: Moscow by John Freedman

Saturday 11 June 2016
Moscow, Russia

Stanislavsky Electrotheatre in Moscow presented a talk Travels with a Dilettante: Moscow by John Freedman livestreamed on the global, commons-based peer-produced HowlRound TV network at howlround.tv Saturday 11 June at 19:00-20:30 MSK/EEST (Moscow) / 18:00-19:30 CEST (Berlin) / 5pm-6:30 p.m. BST (London) / 16:00-17:30 GMT / 12pm-1:30 p.m. EDT (New York) / 11am-12:30 p.m. CDT (Chicago) / 9am-10:30 p.m. PDT (Los Angeles). Share your comments on Twitter with #howlround.

Masterclass by Tim Supple at MIR-5 Studio of Individual Directing
Video

Masterclass by Tim Supple at MIR-5 Studio of Individual Directing

Tuesday 7 June 2016
Moscow, Russia

Stanislavsky Electrotheatre and Boris Yukhananov's MIR-5 Studio of Individual Directing in Moscow presented a masterclass conducted by British director Tim Supple on space and the creation of atmosphere livestreamed on the global, commons-based peer-produced HowlRound TV network at howlround.tv Tuesday 7 June at 18:00-22:00 MSK/EEST (Moscow) / 17:00-21:00 CEST (Berlin) / 4pm-8pm BST (London) / 15:00-19:00 GMT / 11 a.m.-3 p.m. EDT (New York) / 10 a.m.-2 p.m. CDT (Chicago) / 8 a.m.-12 p.m. PDT (Los Angeles). Share your thoughts and media using #howlround.

To Moscow?
Essay

To Moscow?

4 February 2016

verity healey on what four new Russian plays performed at London’s Frontline Club say about the present and future of theatre in Russia.