Soft power or a threat to order? Is Russian culture being cancelled in the world?

Switzerland refused to hold Anna Netrebko's concert, in Korea they did not allow ballerina Svetlana Zakharova to perform. On how else are trying to exterminate the ‘Russian spirit’ - in the material RIA Novosti.

Lucerne against the opera

The concert of opera singer Anna Netrebko was scheduled to be held on June 1 in Lucerne, Switzerland. However, the organizer, the Centre for Culture and Congresses of Lucerne (KKL), deemed it unsafe.

"KKL Lucerne will not provide a venue for Anna Netrebko's concert on June 1, 2024. The public perception of the soloist remains contradictory. Due to the geographical and temporal proximity of Mrs. Netrebko's performance to the peace conference on Ukraine, a threat to public order was to be expected. For this reason, the cantonal and city authorities have asked KKL Lucerne to cancel the concert," the venue said in a statement.

© RIA Novosti / Kirill Kallinikov

Opera singer Anna Netrebko during a news conference on the premiere of Giacomo Puccini's opera ‘Manon Lescaut’, in Moscow, Russia

The opera diva has opted for Europe. Under pressure from foreign concert organizers, she admitted that she was not a member of any political parties and did not support any of Russia's political leaders. But this did not always help: in 2022, Netrebko's performances were canceled by New York's Metropolitan Opera and then by the Bavarian State Opera. After a long pause, she was given the opportunity to go on stage again, but the singer's situation remains unstable. The artist herself did not comment on the cancellations on social media but announced other performances in Germany and Italy. Her posts are in both English and Russian.

Seoul Against Ballet

There seems to be a whole campaign against Russian ballet dancers in South Korea. The April tour of Bolshoi Theatre prima ballerina Svetlana Zakharova in Seoul was canceled at the last minute. The Modanse performance about the life of Coco Chanel was scheduled for four years ago, but then the pandemic interfered. Now, despite public interest, the event has been canceled at the state level, with the local Ministry of Culture intervening.

© RIA Novosti / Alexei Maishev

Ballerina Svetlana Zakharova

‘There was a lot of interest in our performance. And, of course, for the organisers of the tour, who have been working so hard for so long to make this project happen, and for the audience, who bought tickets, and for us, it was a shame that everything fell through,’ Zakharova admitted.

Organiser: performance of the Bolshoi Theatre artists in Seoul may be disrupted 13 April, 03:25

Also, for unknown reasons, the "Ballet & Model Super Concert" with the participation of Bolshoi ballet dancers was canceled. They were to present fragments of the most famous productions: "Swan Lake," "Sleeping Beauty," "Spartacus," and "Don Quixote." Choi Jung-seok, the general director of the organizing company Ballet & Model, cited government dissatisfaction, reluctance to issue visas to Russians, and the unexpected change of the concert's name among the reasons. In fact, any excuse to prevent the artists from going on stage was deemed suitable. Despite the efforts of the organizers, the problem could not be resolved.

Shortly before that, the Ukrainian embassy in South Korea issued a statement demanding the suspension of cultural cooperation with Russia and calling it "absolutely unacceptable" to show performances of Russian artists as it "belittles the suffering of the Ukrainian people."

The South Korean Foreign Ministry said that it was not involved in the cancellation of the tour of the ballet from Russia

Lithuania against its own

In March, the Lithuanian authorities decided that they had given the ballerina Ilze Liepa citizenship in 2000 for nothing. Since the artist supported Russia and the NWO, she should be deprived of her Lithuanian passport. The local Interior Ministry, citing the assessment of the State Security Department, the Foreign Ministry and the police, said that Liepa posed a threat to the interests of the state. The ballerina reacted with dignity.

© Photo : provided by the organisers of Ilze Liepa's anniversary party

Russian ballerina and actress Ilze Liepa

‘Of course, I have given a lot to Lithuania, I have many relatives, friends, acquaintances there. But there comes a time when you have to make a choice, a moral choice. And I confirm that I am with my country and with my president,’ Liepa said.

She was granted Lithuanian citizenship on an exceptional basis for her performances at the Bolshoi Theatre with Lithuanian artist Petras Skirmantas.

Venice vs. artists

They are also trying to boycott artists. For the second time in a row, the Russian art sphere is not represented at the Venice Biennale. Instead, the large-scale pavilion was given to artists from Bolivia and other Latin American countries. It is all the more prosaic that the slogan of this year's Biennale is ‘Strangers Everywhere’. The event opened on 20 April and will run until 24 November.

Russia has participated in the largest international exhibition since 1914, with works by Ilya Repin, Kazimir Malevich and other famous masters on display. The split occurred in 2022 - then the artists exhibited in the pavilion refused to participate and spoke out against the NWO.