Serebrennikov, authorized to leave Russia in January, at the opening of the Avignon festival in July
Banned from leaving the territory because of a conviction, the Russian director will present his play on July 7 The Black Monkbased on the fantastic short story by Chekhov.
The Russian invasion has sometimes surprising consequences for Russian artists. In testimony to the projects of the director Kirill Serebrennikov, who never spared his criticisms against the absence of artistic freedom under the regime of Vladimir Putin. Prohibited from leaving Russian territory until 2023 after a conviction in a contested trial in his country and abroad, the director obtained an exit permit in January. “I probably behaved well“, he quipped during a conference organized in Germany in January, but admits having “no ideaof what prompted this decision, his previous requests having been denied. The director had thus not been able to go to the Cannes festival last year, while his film Petrov Fever was in the running for the Palme d’Or.
Thus, this pass allowed Kirill Serebrennikov to go to the Thalia Theater in Hamburg in January, in order to present his staging of black monkbased on the fantasy novelAnton Chekhov of the same name and published in 1893. The black monk follows the character of Andrei Kovrin, a Russian intellectual. Overworked by work, he decides to go to the countryside to visit old friends. In the garden that fascinates him so much, Andreï sees a black monk, a presence that makes him lose his mind.
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Acclaimed on the evening of the premiere, the show intends to create a new sensation at the Avignon festival. The director general of the festival Paul Rondin confirmed it a few days ago at the World. The artist is even in charge of the opening, in the Cour d’honneur, and intends to adapt his staging for the occasion. The Avignon press services neither confirm nor deny his presence in France in July. Kirill Serebrennikov’s last appearance at the Avignon Festival dates back to 2019. His play Outside laid bare the life of the Chinese poet and self-taught photographer, Ren Hang, who committed suicide in 2017. An existence that upset the Russian director, whose works, like Serebrennikov, have been attacked and censored.
Without openly opposing Russian President Vladimir Putin, Kirill Serebrennikov has repeatedly criticized the pressures aimed at the country’s artists while his works, dealing with themes such as politics, religion or sexuality, are regularly criticized by Orthodox activists or authorities.
The 76th edition of the Avignon Festival will be held from July 7 to 26. The program will be unveiled at a press conference on March 24 at 2 p.m., broadcast live on the event website.