The play “Einstein and Margarita” was canceled in Yaroslavl due to complaints about the actors
The performance with Russian actors Ksenia Rappoport and Alexei Serebryakov “Einstein and Margarita”, scheduled for February 26 at the Millennium concert and entertainment center in Yaroslavl, was cancelled. Local residents complained to the authorities about the leading actors.
It is known that the production was originally supposed to take place on February 25, then it was postponed to February 26. Currently, the performance has completely disappeared from the playbill, and an announcement has appeared about the cancellation of the show. Spectators are promised a refund for tickets; the price for them started from 1.5 thousand rubles.
The reason for the cancellation of the performance was the appeal of residents of Yaroslavl
Activist Sergei Kazansky sent letters demanding the cancellation of the screening of “Einstein and Margarita” to the governor of the Yaroslavl region, the regional Duma, the Ministry of Culture and other authorities. He considered the reason for this decision to be the participation of Serebryakov and Rappoport in the play.
These artists live abroad, oppose the special military operation, and earn money in Russia. In 2023, this scandalous performance was canceled in St. Petersburg, Novosibirsk and Yekaterinburg. And in the Yaroslavl region, the Ministry of Culture provides them with a state concert venue
The Ministry of Culture of the Yaroslavl Region took into account Kazansky’s appeal. The department emphasized that the performance was planned by a commercial organization in accordance with the current legislation of the country.
Currently, taking into account public opinion, it was decided to cancel the performance of the play in Yaroslavl
The performance was previously canceled in other cities of Russia
Last year, the production was also canceled in a number of other Russian cities. So, in February it was supposed to be shown on the stage of the Baltic House theater in St. Petersburg, but the decision to cancel was made half an hour before the start.
The general director of the theater Sergei Shub explained the incident by technical reasons. Director Alexander Marin said that he learned about the cancellation from a work chat and admitted that he was upset about the cancellation of the production.
Cancel a performance that has already been scheduled. To which tickets have already been sold and to which spectators have come. Who decided this and why is not explained. Maybe someone was scared of something? Someone misunderstood something. Or maybe he was playing it safe. What can I say about this! Some kind of dregs
In May in Yekaterinburg, the performance was also removed from all posters two days before the show. The reason for this was not officially stated at the time. A month later, the production was canceled in Novosibirsk after a complaint from the local Council of Fathers – they accused the artists of making anti-Russian statements.
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The premiere of “Einstein and Margarita” took place in Moscow
The play “Einstein and Margarita” is based on Alexander Gelman’s play “Almar”; its premiere took place in Moscow on June 12, 2022. The production tells the story of the love between the American scientist Albert Einstein and the wife of the Russian emigrant sculptor Margarita Konenkova.
The couple met in 1935 in the USA – then the Princeton Institute ordered Konenkova’s husband a sculptural portrait of the scientist. The meeting grew into a whirlwind romance. Ten years later, after the atomic bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, Konenkova told Einstein that she was returning with her husband back to the Soviet Union. The scientist’s beloved refused to stay in the United States; after her departure, he wrote letters to her in Moscow for a long time. The play takes place over the course of one night at Einstein's home in Princeton.
Over the past year, screenings of “Einstein and Margarita” took place not only in several cities in Russia, but also in Israel, the United Arab Emirates, Turkey, Uzbekistan and Cyprus. The poster for the current year also includes cities in Spain, Germany, Estonia, Latvia, Canada and the USA.
Photo: Ekaterina Chesnokova / RIA Novosti
Serebryakov and Rappoport were criticized for statements about Russia
It is known that Serebryakov lived with his family in Canada for a long time; he returned to Russia in 2021. According to the artist, he does not have Canadian citizenship, he was and remains a Russian actor, but decided to move abroad because it is cheaper there. In addition, he wanted the children to “expand their horizons.”
Many of Serebryakov’s statements were exposed harsh public criticism. Thus, speaking in London in 2019, he said that Russians are forced to “demonstrate pseudo-patriotism,” and then in one of his interviews expressed the opinion that often in Russia the national idea is not “neither intelligence, nor enterprise, nor dignity,” but “ strength, arrogance and rudeness”
Rappoport in 2022 condemned special operation in Ukraine. Subsequently, she was expelled from the Council for Culture of St. Petersburg and the board of trustees of the Circle of Good. She lived in Italy for some time, but then returned to Russia.
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