Protest and rock music, two movements that work great together. The long suffering Pussy Riot know the struggle. Nadya Tolokonnikova, Maria “Masha” Alyokhina, and Yekaterina Samutsevich of the band were arrested and charged with “hooliganism” in 2012, after a protest at a Moscow cathedral. Nadia and Masha served two years in prison of hard labor.

UPDATE: Masha and Olga Borisova were arrested briefly today after an unauthorized protest of the imprisonment of Ukrainian filmmaker Oleg Sentsov. They were later released after the judge found flaws in the case (The Washington Post)

Now in 2017, Nadya of Pussy Riot with the theater troupe Les Enfants Terribles are planning a work for this fall, and have a Kickstarter to fund the production. The work is based on Nadya’s experiences in Russian prison, and will be entirely audience participation. Nadya explains it this way on the Kickstarter page, “This wild theatrical experience will allow the audience to become a participant, experiencing exactly what Pussy Riot went through during our imprisonment – from the original Church performance, to the court trial and prison cells. We’re going to recreate Russian courtrooms, a real Russian labour colony, solitary confinement cells, priests who shout about banning abortions and many more absurd, but real-life things that exist in Russia today.” The campaign, as of today, has $68,782 pledged of $78,338 goal, with 10 days to go. $10,000 of that was donated by Johnny Stevens of Highly Suspect, who plans to meet up with the band on H.S. very first tour stop in Moscow in a few months.

Why should music fans care about what’s going on in Russia? The current political climate in the U.S. has our president so far up Vladimir Putin’s ass, that the public can’t tell where Putin ends and Trump begins. There’s only one planet, and what happens to musicians in Russia affects all rock fans. An interactive play that let’s people experience the persecution members of Pussy Riot endured is a needed bit of enlightenment for westerners. Hopefully, with its success, Nadya might be able to bring the show stateside eventually. I, and most, might not be able to donate on Johnny’s scale, but every dollar helps.

To donate:

“Inside Pussy Riot on Kickstarter”

Pussy Riot official website in Russian

Pussy Riot YouTube

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