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Keep calm, the corridor will be open soo

Soso Daughters, representation of trauma and independent creative practice in contemporary Russian theatre

Authors

  • Olga Nikolaeva

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.7146/nts.v33i1.131994

Keywords:

Soso Daughters, Russia, independent theatre, scenography, feminist ethic of care, trauma, The Rhyme

Abstract

This article explores the creative practice of an independent Russian theatre collective, Soso Daughters. The collective was founded in Moscow by theatre
director and playwright Zhenya Berkovich in 2018 and recently premiered their fourth production. The subjects of the productions the collective performs
often delve into girls’ and women’s lives and traumatic experiences that are constantly undermined, dismissed or ignored. Driven by the feminist ethic of
care, this article aims to situate Soso Daughters’ creative work in the context of scan-aesthetic across the Nordic and Baltic regions, and to turn scholars and
spectators’ attention to the issue of an independent theatre practice in Russia. The article is based on interviews with the collective’s director and scenographer as well as first-hand observations of their productions. The article further explores the possibility of representation of trauma and traumatic experience in The Rhyme, the collective’s first production, grounding the analysis in that the holistic approach to scenography.

References

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Interviews

Ksenia Sorokina Skype interview 15.01.2021. Interviewed by Olga Nikolaeva. The private archive of Olga Nikolaeva

Zhenya Berkovich Zoom interview 03.09.2021. Interviewed by Olga Nikolaeva. The private archive of Olga Nikolaeva.

Sources

Soso Daughters, official webpage, https://www.sosodaughters.com/

Teatr., official webpage, http://oteatre.info/

The Union of Theatre Workers of the Russian Federation, official webpage, http://stdrf.ru/

Conciliation Resources, official webpage, https://www.c-r.org/

GULAG History Museum, official webpage, https://gmig.ru/en/

Lubimovka: Festival of Young Dramaturgy, official webpage, https://lubimovka.ru/

Human Rights Centre Memorial, official webpage, https://memohrc.org/en

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Published

2022-03-12

Versions

How to Cite

Nikolaeva, O. . (2022). Keep calm, the corridor will be open soo: Soso Daughters, representation of trauma and independent creative practice in contemporary Russian theatre. Nordic Theatre Studies, 33(1), 87–105. https://doi.org/10.7146/nts.v33i1.131994

Issue

Vol. 33 No. 1 (2021): SCAN-AESTHETICS: Aesthetic strategies in Scandinavian and Nordic-Baltic independent theatre and performing arts: 1960-2010

Section

Articles thematic section

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