Coming Up · Art · Moscow

Today on the Historic Stage of the Bolshoi Theatre: the premiere of the revised version of Rodion Shchedrin's ballet "The Little Humpbacked Horse", after the fairy tale of the same name by Pyotr Yershov

The ballet "The Little Humpbacked Horse" was first staged in 1864 on the stage of the Imperial Theatre in Saint Petersburg. The production was subsequently revived many times at the Bolshoi Theatre in Moscow over the years. In 1960 came the premiere of a new version of the

Faith · Pop Culture · Ethnography

Folklorist Nadya Rychkova discusses the leshy in the podcast “Mrachnye skazki”

Ever heard the story of the leshy who took a fancy to a village girl and came courting her in the guise of a wealthy merchant, and her parents gave her to him as a wife? After a while the girl came back to return her cross to her father,

Observations · Nature · Ethnography

Two explanations for the origin of the Malay word belanda for primates and the Dutch

In Malaysia and Indonesia the proboscis monkey, or Nasalis larvatus, is called the Dutch monkey, or more precisely simply the Dutchman, literally orang belanda. The curiosity has two explanations. The first is that with their faces these primates reminded the local population of the Dutch, who had once held colonial

Observations · People · Ethnography

New podcast episode on Svetlana Zharnikova and her theories

Friends! A new episode of the podcast is already on air! This time we talk about my darling Svetlana Zharnikova and her mad and brilliant theories You can listen to the episode on Apple Podcasts, Yandex Music, VK, Soundstream, Litres and on other platforms. Share your impressions, subscribe to the

Geography · Nature · Humour

Brazilians call the bald uakari the English monkey for its likeness to English colonists

The small New World monkey, the bald uakari, or western cacajao, is known in Brazil by a far simpler name: macaco inglês, that is, the English monkey. Popular rumour has very accurately noticed the outward resemblance of this inhabitant of the tropical forests of Amazonia to English colonists, especially after

Architecture · Books · Moscow · Observations · Reportage

Only in Moscow could this happen: you stroll along a boulevard of an evening and find yourself at an open meeting with a writer

Only in Moscow could this happen: you stroll along a boulevard of an evening and find yourself at an open meeting with a writer. Yesterday that is precisely what befell me. Passing the monument to Sholokhov, I heard Alexandr Tsypkin say something like "what if the cultural capital is

Archive · Books · Moscow · Saint Petersburg

Suvorin's bookshop on Nevsky Prospect and his publishing business from 1872

Stocktaking at the Bookshop of the A. Suvorin Partnership on Nevsky Prospect in Saint Petersburg in the early 1900s. Photograph by Karl Bulla. In Moscow, Suvorin's shop stood on Nikolskaya Street and later on Neglinnaya Street. Suvorin took up publishing in 1872 with the issue of a universal

NB! · Monarchies · People

The Only Monarch in History Whose Fate People Genuinely Fret Over

Old Russian icon of an angel with a halo and grey wings, in a red robe, holding a round object in one hand.

Mores · Society

Sofia and Mikhail lead the list of children's names in Russia since the start of the year

Mikhail and Sofia Become the Most Popular Names for Children in Russia in 2025. Since the beginning of this year, 7,177 children have been named Sofia. Second place in the popularity stakes goes to Eva, third to Anna. This year Russia has also acquired 8,830 new Mikhails. Among

Architecture · Museums · Society · Paris

Funding for the €1 billion Louvre renovation remains uncertain

Never Enough for Them! Funding for the Louvre renovation project remains in question, reports TANR. Since 2021 the director of the Louvre, Laurence des Cars, has been promoting the "Grand Louvre" project, which envisages a large-scale reconstruction of the museum, including the building of a new entrance

Moscow · Observations · Society · Saint Petersburg

Changing titles of the heads of Moscow and Saint Petersburg from the 18th century

Ever wondered why Moscow has a mayor, while Saint Petersburg has a governor? The titles of the highest officials in the constituent entities of the Russian Federation are governed by regional legislation. Both Moscow and Saint Petersburg are constituent entities of the Russian Federation, and each decides for itself what

NB! · Art · Museums · Society · Saint Petersburg

Subsidies for Saint Petersburg museums to buy works of art to resume this year

Subsidies for Saint Petersburg museums to buy works of art are to resume this year. In 2025 around 100 million roubles will be allocated for the purpose, the Governor of Saint Petersburg, Alexander Beglov, has announced

Latest