Finist - Heller Falke

In the organizer's words:

Solidarity reading/performance "Finist - Bright Falcon"

Documentary interviews and court records are interwoven in the play with the plot of the traditional Russian fairy tale of the Finist. The central idea of the play is to show stereotypical sexist myths associated with the expectation of love and the acceptance of male supremacy in relationships, destroying the psyche of women and making them easy prey for terrorists.

On May 4, 2023, the author Svetlana Petriychuk and the director and poet Yevgeniya (Zhenya) Berkovich were arrested in Moscow. The period of pre-trial detention has already been extended three times, currently until January 10, 2024. Both playwrights have been charged under Section 205.2 (2) of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation with "public incitement to terrorist activities, public justification of terrorism or propaganda of terrorism", which carries a prison sentence of up to seven years.

The official reason for the criminal proceedings and arrest was a two-year-old complaint claiming that the play "Finist, Bright Falcon" posed a threat to the security of the Russian state. The play was written by Svetlana Petrychuk in 2019 and staged in 2020 under the direction of Zhenya Berkovich.

Another court hearing took place on November 2. The public prosecutor's office again applied for an extension of the stay in the pre-trial detention center without presenting evidence of the theater makers' guilt. The court granted the prosecution's request and kept Zhenya and Svetlana in custody despite the presence of elderly relatives, children under guardianship and no evidence of their guilt. The theater makers will celebrate this Christmas behind bars.

In solidarity with those arrested in this important Russian criminal case against female artists, in which the reason for the repression is the artistic product itself, the Berlin-based Russian-language theater director Oleg Hristolübskiy, supported by a team of like-minded people, staged the play "Finist, bright falcon".

The events will take place on November 28 and December 7 at 8:00 pm.
There will be a discussion after each performance.

On 28.11 the discussion will be on the topic: Propaganda.
Moderator of the discussion: Mikhail Kaluzhskii - playwright, host of the podcast "Make a Scene"
Language of the discussion: English

On 07.12 the discussion on the topic: The justice system. Why are victims of terrorist recruitment treated by society as criminals rather than victims?
Moderator of the discussion: Elena Stein (CISR e.V. Berlin)
Language of the discussion: German

By Svetlana Petriichuk. Translated from Russian by Elena Gerasimova and Juliane Schiller. Adapted by Katharina Spiering

Director & Producer: Oleg Hristolübskiy
Actresses: Katharina Spiering, Suse Wächter, Elisabeth Heckel
Sound engineer and activist: Anastasiia Nasonkina
PR: Ira Posrednikova, Kseniia Ignatova
Assistant: Nadja Froh

The play is organized in cooperation with EQUAL PostOst e.V.
The project is supported by the Initiativfonds Demokratie in der Mitte and CISR Berlin.

Price information:

10.00 - 15.00€