Inside Pussy Riot at Saatchi Gallery

It starts with a giggle, it ends with a shiver. In the year of the centenary of the Russian Revolution, Les Enfants Terrible with Bird & Carrot and Pussy Riot’s Nadya Tolokonnikova bring to life an original theatre experience of the authoritarian Russian system. Taking hostage the second floor of the Saatchi Gallery, the immersive production reenacts the crucial stages of the punk feminists’ revolt in 2012, from their protest in Moscow’s Cathedral of Christ the Saviour, to the trial, the conviction and imprisonment.

As in the words of writer and producer Oliver Lansley, art asks questions. The production brings to life the squalid and oppressive conditions those indicted in Russia are subjected to. More than that, the audience is invited to reflect on the value of freedom, so many times taken for granted on this side of the continent.

Bright garments and harsh tones, with shouting voices in the background, are requisite features throughout the play. The public is at the centre of the show, moved from the Cathedral of a Calumnia state, to the police station, to the court-circus and so on. The rooms are mostly dirty and the flickering lamps add to the miserable situation. The tension starts to built after our arrest, as the performers’ orders become stricter. A clue: pay attention to what you sign.

Suggestive are the extracts from the narrative of Tolokonnikova and the factual material scattered along our route, there for the audience to read and hear while forced to wear anonymous uniforms and work on factory tasks.

The grotesque style, so typical of the theatre company, is put to use, especially to accentuate the circus nature of the system. Excessive makeup and extravagant settings – partly folklore mimics, partly emphasising the absurdity of the regulations – gradually lead us to the cold and depressive cells, which still are in use in some countries.

By raising our indignation and giving theatregoers a strong sense of which is the right battle to fight, the poignant performance is effective, really making the participants think and question how much a single voice can help in the awakening of a revolution against a cruel totalitarian machine. However, more from the real narrative of the band’s experiences would have benefited the show – more facts and less moral teaching. The production is to be experienced together with the current exhibition Art Riot: Post-Soviet Actionism at the Saatchi Gallery. The expectation, then, was to see more of the elements reenacted.

Cristiana Ferrauti
Photo: Denis Sinyakov

Inside Pussy Riot is at the Saatchi Gallery from the 14^th November until 24^th December 2017. For further information or to book visit the official website here.

Watch the trailer for Inside Pussy Riot here: