July 09, 2022

A Theatrical Ousting


A Theatrical Ousting
The idea will continue to live on. Wikimedia Commons user Shuvaev

On June 30, Alexei Agranovich directed his final premier at the Gogol Center in Moscow. He and Alexei Kabeshev were set to have their contracts renewed in the first week of July, but the Moscow Department of Culture had other plans. While the reasoning behind the changeover has not been officially released, it's likely their ousting is due to their promotion of anti-war messages.

Prior to the start of the Ukraine War, the play "I Am Not Participating in the War" premiered. As the war was fully set into motion, actors have refused to bow after performances, and a dove of peace has also been displayed. Both are clear indications of the opinions of the cast and directors.

Kirill Serebrennikov, who headed the Gogol Center from 2012 until February 2021, addressed the audience of the Gogol theater via a virtual call, encouraging his viewers:

"The Gogol Center is an idea, an idea of ​​freedom. The idea of ​​freedom can only end with us. We are such people, very unpleasant for the authorities, very unpleasant for someone, but loved by each other and needed by each other."

The Gogol Center has been on Moscow's radar since it was established in 2012, not usually for its content, but for its avant-garde flavor and its heavy use of technology.

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