ABSTRACT
This chapter explores the portrayal of non-normative gender and sexuality in contemporary Russian theatre through the study of The Voices – a production by the St Petersburg-based independent documentary theatre group, Philomela Project. This verbatim play, which premiered to an audience in Russia’s ‘northern capital’ in December 2018, is based on the testimonies of lesbian and trans women who had escaped the North Caucasian republics after their families had found out about their queerness. While the media reviews of the production have mostly focused on the violence exerted on these women by their families and broader society, the chapter draws attention to what could be called a ‘quare’ dimension of The Voices. Drawing on the theory of a ‘quare’ lens developed by the performance studies scholar E. Patrick Johnson, Klepikova argues that the production underscores the richness of these women’s queer experiences that goes beyond victimhood and encompasses their agency, grounded in their religious and ethnic sensibilities. The chapter examines the mosaic, multi-layered narrative of The Voices that brings together human performers, the puppet theatre and audio and visual scenography to perform the stories of faith and ethnicity.
