Telegrams from the Nose

Russia in 1920: the artistic and social revolution are flourishing but the bewilderment is total when Stalin’s merciless trials start. The lyrics in this musical theatre show consist of a literal transcription of the final minutes in the trial of Fyodor Bukharin interwoven with extracts from the work of Daniil Harms, another victim of Stalin’s terror. William Kentridge is responsible for the animated film and the directing, and François Sarhan, whose fantastic L’Nfer was performed at the Kaaitheater earlier in the season, wrote the music.