Worker and Collective Farmer by Nikolaev, ned. 26 sep. 2021, Od (2021/2021), Režija: Evgeny Kulagin, Dirigent Philipp Chizhevsky, Zaryadye Hall, Moscow, Russia

The “Worker and Kolkhoz Woman” is a tale of love, jealousy and betrayal inspired by the story of how the most famous Soviet sculpture, the key symbol of the VDNKh (Exhibition of Achievements of National Economy), was created. The creator of the sculpture Vera Mukhina happened to have superpowers. She animated her protagonists, the Worker and the Kolkhoz Woman, who immediately fell in love with each other. However, Mukhina sets a very tough condition. If they fail to comply with it, it would be a real tragedy. The Worker and the Kolkhoz Woman went to attend the World Exhibition in Paris, representing their country. Meeting with Marlene Dietrich and Pablo Picasso was a fatal moment in their love story. Rock star Sergey Mazaev as Joseph Stalin and ballet star Ilze Liepa as Dietrich-Picasso deserve special mention.