No 4 (2025)
ARTICLES
On the Idea of Transforming the Stage Model: The Theatrical Potential of the Contemporary G. A. Tovstonogov Drama Theater
Abstract
The established terminological pair "theatrical space" and "space of the theater" is widely used in art criticism, dramatically defining the difference in approaches to studying various phenomena, including modern theater. This article examines the problem of forming theatrical potential not so much from the perspective of organizing space as a whole, but through the application of a particular professional, theater studies "lens" – a view of the technological features of the stage itself. The author analyzes the experience of the last decade of the contemporary G. A. Tovstonogov Big Drama Theater under the leadership of A. Moguchy (2013–2023) in terms of the influence of the results of the renovation of the reconstructed building on the new potential for shaping the theater's image. The historical research method used in this article allows for a broader examination of the issue: from the technology of constructing a new stage platform to the idea of the technology for constituting a new theater. The methodological basis of the article consists of monographs by historians and theorists of theater, as well as interviews with practitioners in the contemporary theatrical process. The study includes an overview of the organizational and technological process of restructuring the BDT stage platform from 2011 to 2014. The author hypothesizes that changes related to the very architecture of the theater building and the rethinking of the technical possibilities of the stage in the academic theater directly corresponded to the literal sign of the beginning of a new chapter in the history of the G. A. Tovstonogov BDT. This research material is presented as unique and represents the first attempt at a scientific understanding of the significance of the specificity of the stage platform model on subsequent artistic and creative works that define the dynamics of theater development in historical perspective. The scientific novelty of the subject matter claims to assert the idea of the mutual influence of technological processes on the results of theatrical-dramatic action.
Man and Culture. 2025;(4):1-16
1-16
Urban planning regulation and the placement of theatrical institutions in the largest urban agglomerations.
Abstract
The theatrical infrastructure plays a key role in the sustainable development of modern megacities, serving not only as a cultural center but also as an important driver of urban transformation and sociocultural development of urban areas. The spatial organization of theaters, including their location and architectural solutions, is directly dependent on current regulatory mechanisms and governing tools. The focus of the research is made on the analysis of how, today, regulatory and urban planning documents define the formation of a network of theatrical institutions, taking into account the planning features of megacities. The object of study is the regulatory framework for urban planning, as well as strategic documents in the field of theater development, which determine the principles of location for theatrical institutions in the largest Russian agglomerations at all levels of governance: federal, regional, and municipal. The methodology of the study combines the analysis of the actual placement of theaters with the study of regulatory regulation. This approach allows for the identification of both spatial patterns and systemic problems in the organization of cultural infrastructure. The relevance is due to the reorientation from managerial to spatial-environmental principles of organizing cultural infrastructure, which is particularly significant for dynamically developing agglomerations. The study showed that the current placement regulations for theaters, based on outdated quantitative indicators (the number of seats, the number of theaters, and formal accessibility), ignore modern challenges—suburbanization, new theatrical formats, and real zones of cultural attraction—thus reducing their role in the development of the urban environment. Regulatory documents do not take into account the comprehensive architectural and urban planning criteria necessary for the harmonious integration of theaters into the urban environment. A particular issue is the duality of theater regulation (as a cultural institution and an object of urban planning) creates a disbalance between quantitative standards and the quality of cultural space.
Man and Culture. 2025;(4):17-31
17-31
The influence of the Gnosticism of the Cathars (Albigensians) on the formation of courtly culture in Europe through the court of Eleanor of Aquitaine as an experience of cultural hegemony of elite culture
Abstract
The article is devoted to the study of the influence of the Gnostic and dualistic ideas of the Cathars (Albigenses) on the formation of courtly culture in Europe in the 12th century, when there was an active growth of cities, the formation of a new court culture and the strengthening of the role of the educated nobility as a carrier of the secular code. During this period, the cultural role of women increased, especially in the southern French regions, where courtly poetry transformed the lady into a figure defining a symbolic vertical of values. The object of the analysis is the cultural transformation of esoteric religious meanings into secular forms of poetics, symbolism and court ritual. The subject of the study is the interpretation of courtly love as a form of sacral service, similar in structure to Gnostic initiation. The author examines in detail such aspects of the topic as the anthropology of the Cathars, the dualistic worldview, the metaphysics of love and the poetic discourse of the troubadours. Special attention is paid to poetry as a symbolic system that reproduces the structure of the Gnostic myth: the hierarchy of light and darkness, choice, suffering and rejection of the world as a path of inner ascent. Courtly culture is seen as a channel of cultural hegemony, through which esoteric knowledge is anchored in an elite norm of behavior and feeling, turning into an instrument of symbolic power. The research methodology is based on an interdisciplinary synthesis of philosophical, historical, religious, cultural, and literary analysis. Hermeneutics by Hans Jonas reconstructs the structure of the Gnostic spirit as an existential rejection, while Foucault's critique of power analyzes courtly poetics as a mechanism of normalization. The tools of the Annals school and the semiotics of Yu are used. Lotman, who considers courtly poetry as a carrier of deep meanings. The scientific novelty of the research lies in a refined analysis of the mechanisms of cultural translation of gnostic-dualistic ideas into courtly aesthetics and symbolism. The structure of courtly poetry as a form of sacred representation is analyzed in detail: suffering, distance, election, and ritual service in troubadour poetics are correlated with the Gnostic myth of the alienated soul and its return to the light. Special attention is paid to the language of love as a ritual code that integrates spiritual austerity into the court norm of behavior. The work traces how courtly culture transforms esoteric knowledge into a stable elite discipline of feeling and symbolic order. Courtliness is interpreted as a form of cultural hegemony that ensures the secular institutionalization of sacred meanings that previously belonged to religious tradition. Thus, the study demonstrates how aesthetics becomes a channel of legitimization of esoteric anthropology in the secular context of feudal society.
Man and Culture. 2025;(4):32-54
32-54
A cappella choir «How to cross the river?» Yu. A. Evgrafova: folklore and composer
Abstract
The subject of this study is the problem of «folklore and composer» as one of the most relevant in modern Russian musical culture. The object of the study is the consideration of modern methods of composer's work with a folklore source. The purpose of this article is to study the implementation of the Russian folk tale «Bubble, Straw and Bast Shoe» in the a cappella choir «How to cross the river?» by Yu.A. Evgrafov. The author examines in detail such aspects of the topic as attribution of the literary-textual source; disclosure of the features of the composer's choral writing. A number of key positions are identified: the composition of the performers, form, choral texture. Particular attention is paid to the coverage of issues related to the method of quotation in neo-folklore works of Russian composers. The author states that at the present time, a wide palette of means of musical expression opens up virtually limitless possibilities in the synthesis of tradition and innovation, which brings constant updates to both the individual author's style and to the general development of neofollorism as the most striking trends in contemporary musical art. The methodology consists of a synthesis of historical and theoretical methods. On its basis, historical prerequisites for the emergence of a «new folklore wave» in Russian musical art in the second half of the 20th century are revealed. Special attention is paid to the role of I.F. Stravinsky. The research experience is aimed at establishing the relationship between Russian folklore and the development of modern Russian choral music. The main conclusion of the conducted research is the paradigm of a deep connection between folklore and professional academic music in modern Russian art. In particular, such a position became a determining factor for the work of the Moscow composer of the second half of the 20th – early 21st century Yuri Anatolyevich Evgrafov. The author's special contribution to the disclosure of the topic is the study of the a cappella choir «How to сross the river?», which has not previously been the subject of special research. The novelty of the study lies in the fact that for the first time materials are presented on the refraction of folklore tendencies in the choral creativity of a cappella Yu.A. Evgrafov. The emphasis is placed on the need to study the historical and theoretical aspects of the formation and development of neo-folklore stylistic tendencies in modern Russian choral music. In this regard, it is the achievements of the Moscow School of Composers, and in particular the a cappella choral work of Yu.A. Evgrafov, that are becoming a landmark phenomenon.
Man and Culture. 2025;(4):55-69
55-69
"They will suffer – they will learn": the difficult path to the education of Orthodox inhabitants of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth in the first half of the 17th century
Abstract
The subject of this article is the education of Orthodox inhabitants of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth in the first half of the 17th century, which is considered an important tool for preserving cultural identity in the context of religious conflicts triggered by the Union of Brest in 1596. The emphasis is placed on how systematic violence and persecution by Catholics and Uniates affected the educational initiatives conducted by Orthodox brotherhoods. The article addresses the following issues: the organization of Orthodox education, the reflection of the educational problem in religious polemics, and the challenges faced by students in Orthodox schools. The brotherhood schools faced a complex dual task: they had to compete not only with Jesuit colleges but also to fight for the preservation of their own faith as such. The confrontation between Orthodox and Catholic educational systems is highlighted, as well as the consequences of systematic attacks on brotherhood schools organized by Catholics and Uniates. The research is based on textual analysis of complaints from the clergy and the gentry, writings of polemical literature, and the complaints of townspeople, employing historical-comparative, historical-typological, and historical-systems methods. The scientific novelty lies in addressing the little-studied topic of religious violence related to Orthodox education in the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, including archival materials from complaints, which provides a unique opportunity to explore the opinions of not only the elite but also the masses on the subject. As a result of the study, the author concluded that the clergy, gentry, and common townspeople perceived violence against students of Orthodox schools differently. For the latter, attacks on schools were another brutal act of violence, while for the former two, it represented a threat not only to personal safety but also to the future of Orthodox doctrine. The author's special contribution to the study of the topic lies in the attempt to see how education and faith became closely interconnected in the context of interdenominational conflict by examining the integration of emotional and rational arguments in the complaints of various social strata. It is emphasized that education during this period not only performed the function of transmitting knowledge but also became an important instrument of social discipline.
Man and Culture. 2025;(4):70-83
70-83
The Tragic Nature of the Yue Opera Xianglin Sao
Abstract
This article examines the Yue opera production Xianglin Sao as a subject of research, with the aim of identifying innovations in the expression of tragedy during the modernization of Yue opera. It analyzes the historical context and the motivations behind the creation of the play, which is based on Lu Xun’s short story Blessing (Zhufu, 祝福 – a ritual New Year sacrifice), as well as the specific features of its adaptation. The study focuses on three aspects of tragic aesthetics: the tragic theme, stage embodiment, and symbolic imagery. The first part draws on Lu Xun’s literary thought, revealing the mechanism of “cannibalism” (“chi ren” 吃人) inherent in feudal ethics, which manifests as economic oppression, spiritual suppression, and social coldness. The article explores how these tragic elements are transformed into visual and auditory impact through theatrical means. The second part highlights artistic innovations in various versions of the production featuring Yuan Xuefen – particularly in the vocal expression of suffering, staging techniques depicting madness, and changes in costume color schemes to intensify the tragic atmosphere. The evolution of the performance from 1946 to 2021 is traced, demonstrating the increasing expressiveness of tragedy within Yue opera. The third part examines the uniqueness of the tragic style in Yue opera, where symbolic stage images such as “wind and snow” (feng xue, 风雪) and “offerings on the threshold” (juan menkan, 捐门槛) serve a dual function: emotional release and cultural critique. The research methodology includes literature analysis and musical dramaturgy of the opera. The author concludes that the Yue opera Xianglin Sao, through its stage adaptation, vividly conveys the profound critique of feudal morality embedded in Lu Xun’s original work. The production is marked by strong social orientation and contemporary relevance. The artistic boldness shown by Yuan Xuefen and other masters in singing and stage movement infused Yue opera with new lyricism and tragic intensity, expanding its expressive potential. Recurring symbols such as “wind and snow” and “offerings on the threshold” effectively visualize social oppression, transforming the abstract violence of tradition into a tangible theatrical image. This attests to the artistic vitality and humanistic essence of Yue opera in the course of its modernization.
Man and Culture. 2025;(4):84-99
84-99
Classification of Live-Action Role-Playing Games in Contemporary Culture
Abstract
Live-action role-playing game (LARP) constitute a significant cultural phenomenon that blends elements of gameplay, theatrical art, and social interaction. Despite their considerable popularity and active development, academic literature still lacks a unified and detailed classification system. This gap stems from the diversity of forms, regional peculiarities, and constant evolution of gaming practices. The purpose of this study is to analyze existing LARP classifications, develop a structured descriptive system, and determine their place among diverse gaming formats, including computer, tabletop, business, and educational games. The research examines key theoretical approaches to understanding play activity proposed by J. Huizinga and R. Caillois, while assessing their applicability to LARP classification. The research methodology incorporates analysis of academic literature and practical electronic sources (thematic sites, pages on social networks), autoethnographic data (personal gaming experience), and comparative analysis contrasting LARP with other gaming forms. The scientific novelty of this work lies in its attempt to overcome the fragmented nature of existing research by proposing a holistic classification model that accounts for both theoretical foundations of games and practical aspects of their organization. Particular attention is given to specific characteristics of live-action role-playing games, including their spatial-organizational forms (field games, resort-based games, urban games, and chamber games), genre diversity (fantasy, science fiction, historical, post-apocalyptic), settings and participation formats (open-access games, casting-based games, and closed/invitation-only games). The study also addresses the position of LARP in contemporary gaming culture, emphasizing their uniqueness as an interactive format that combines physical and mental immersion in a game reality. The research findings may prove valuable for further study of LARP as social, cultural, and psychological phenomena, as well as for developing new gaming formats.
Man and Culture. 2025;(4):100-118
100-118
Cinematic field of experiments: historical reality in the film “Captain Volkonogov Escaped” (2021)
Abstract
This article examines the specificity of representing the past in contemporary cinema, in which the principle of strict realism is no longer absolute. In modern feature films, interpretations of historical events are constructed not on the basis of historiographical evidence, but through the deployment of cinema’s expressive resources. Consequently, the past is apprehended via the viewer’s visual perception of the constructed historical reality. Such films thus become distinctive documents of historical culture, prompting the development of new methodological approaches for their analysis as historical sources. Using "Captain Volkonogov Escaped" (2021), directed by N. Merkulova and A. Chupov, as a case study, the authors identify the cinematic strategies by which a historical reality is generated. The analysis integrates narrative, visual, and semiotic perspectives, focusing on the structuring of the film’s storytelling, the chromatic solutions, cinematographic and editing techniques, as well as the use of symbols and metaphors. The film’s departure from the realist method, its engagement with the theme of violence, its pluralistic interpretive stance, and its allegorical mode of narration allow it to be classified as a “new historical film.” This category challenges audience expectations shaped by conventional realism and offers an alternative vision of the Great Terror in Leningrad in 1938. Viewer responses indicate that, despite criticisms of historical inaccuracy, the film’s cultural references remain legible and meaningful. The film draws upon the aesthetics of comic books and endless runner video games. This “clip-like” quality differentiates it from traditional historical film, which seeks to evoke authenticity. As a result, the boundaries between reality and imagination, the familiar and the fantastic, the past and the present become fluid. This raises critical questions regarding the capacities and constraints of artistic representation in historical cinema, and underscores the value of film reviews as supplementary materials for research.
Man and Culture. 2025;(4):119-138
119-138
Activities of V.K. Makarov in the Council of Keepers of Suburban Palace Museums
Abstract
The Council of Keepers of Suburban Palace-Museums began its work in mid-1918. The main task of the Council was to consolidate efforts to transform the royal residences into museums. The keepers of Peterhof, Tsarskoye Selo, Gatchina, and Pavlovsk solved numerous problems at their meetings regarding the future of the royal palaces, the daily activities of the organizations, and discussed reforms in the management of the palace-museums. The study is devoted to the activities and role of Vladimir Kuzmich Makarov in the Council of Keepers. He is the only one of the keepers of the suburban palaces who took part in the activities of the Council from the first to the last meeting. A graduate of the Faculty of History and Philology of the Imperial St. Petersburg University, he stood at the origins of the creation of the museum on the basis of the former royal residence in Gatchina. The Council of Keepers was a platform for him to solve pressing problems. The study is based on the application of the principles of historicism, objectivity, and systematicity of scientific analysis. The article is based on documents from the archives of St. Petersburg, materials from the repositories of the State Hermitage, the Russian National Library, and the State Russian Museum. The position of the custodian of the Gatchina Palace Museum is of great importance in studying public opinion on the status of imperial residences in the early years of Bolshevik power. The scientific novelty of the work lies in studying the strategy of museum workers' behavior in preserving historical heritage in the context of Soviet cultural policy. A staunch supporter of turning former royal palaces into museums, V.K. Makarov consistently defended the right to preserve national heritage throughout the years of the Council's existence. The activities of the custodian of the Gatchina Palace Museum in the work of the Council influenced the development of all suburban residences to varying degrees. V.K. Makarov resisted attempts to transfer the palace premises to third-party organizations. He carefully preserved the Gatchina museum collection, openly confronting the position of the central museums.
Man and Culture. 2025;(4):139-147
139-147
Three Approaches to Interpreting the Concept of "Postmodern" (using the works of W. Welsch, H. Foster and A. Huyssen as examples)
Abstract
The article examines three different approaches or three relatively early attempts to clarify the concept of "postmodern" undertaken by Wolfgang Welsch, Hal Foster and Andreas Huyssen in the 1980s, after the term "postmodern" entered the philosophical discourse thanks to the work of J.-F. Lyotard "The Postmodern Condition" published in 1979. Each of the authors "deals" with such a "controversial", according to W. Welsch, concept in his own way, using a different strategy. W. Welsch tries to cover different groups of researchers in order to highlight the main features of postmodernity. A. Foster gives other authors a chance to speak, collecting them under one cover in a collection of essays "The Anti-aesthetics", providing his own preface. He contrasts "postmodernism of resistance" with "postmodernism of reaction" or neoconservatism. A. Huyssen tries to find out how the concepts of postmodernism, avant-garde, poststructuralism, and neoconservatism are related. This study uses comparative analysis as the main method used to identify the features of the author's interpretations of the concept of "postmodern". Comparison of these three attempts allows us to better understand both the scheme of perception of "postmodern" characteristic of Russian humanitarian science, and the alternatives that could make significant adjustments if they were more influential. The debates about the content of the concept of "postmodern" were missed by Russian scientists, as a result of which a kind of consensus was formed in the Russian social sciences, which was then institutionalized. One of the features of the Russian perception of postmodernism is the recognition of French poststructuralists as the philosophical basis of postmodernism, regardless of whether they worked with this concept, what their personal attitude to postmodernism was, etc. Another marker is the depoliticization of debates about postmodernism.
Man and Culture. 2025;(4):148-159
148-159
Images of the transformation of the "feminine" in the cultural code of China: nü dan and chan zu.
Abstract
The subject of the study is Chinese traditional culture within the system of national "codes," while the object is the ritual practices of women's gender identity. The aim of the research is to identify the symbolic architecture of the cultural code in the socio-religious practices of gender image transformation using the example of Taoist teachings on "female alchemy" and the foot-binding tradition. The authors see the tasks of the study as: defining the "cultural code" in the system of traditional Chinese rituals and ceremonies, identifying symbols of gender differences in "female alchemy" and in the tradition of "golden lotuses," describing the sacred significance of the state of "xianei" in women; representations of gender and cultural identity in the foot-binding tradition; and the symbolic reconstruction of the ideal image of the "lotus woman." The authors sequentially reveal the content of the scientific discussion on key issues of the topic, explaining the symbolic significance of "female alchemy" as a Taoist ritual practice, they also justify the connection between the ritual of "decapitating the Red Dragon" and ancient archetypes of "Hero" and "Victim"; they consider the socio-cultural norm of foot-binding as a marker of gender identity, revealing the archetypical nature of "chan zu" in the image of the sacred rebirth of a girl and the symbolism of her "dying." The methodological basis of the research consists of the principles of semiotic analysis of cultural phenomena in the context of the Jungian concept of archetypes, which dictated the use of methods of cultural-analytical theory to identify unique cultural "codes" responsible for normative regulation, gender behavior ethics, adherence to accepted ideals and values. As a result of the research, the authors have produced new scientific positions and evidence that two practices of gender institutionalization – "nuy dan" and "chan zu" – simultaneously exist in Chinese traditional culture as types of ritual transformation of the female nature. The cultural interpretation of the foot-binding tradition as a practice of symbolic sacrifice during the initiation of a girl and preparation for her gender roles as "wife" and "mother" is new. The connection of the ritual complex of "female alchemy" with the "revivification" in the collective memory of ancient archetypes of the "Dragon," "Victim," "Hero," and the sacred symbolization of "blood" as the life energy of being has been substantiated in a new way. For the first time, through the method of amplification, an interpretation of the hidden psychodynamic processes of transformation of the symbolism of the female gender and "blood" has been conducted by referring to the practices of "dying," "punishment," and "guilt."
Man and Culture. 2025;(4):160-175
160-175
Mass culture of the second half of the twentieth century in the theories of postmodernity
Abstract
The article examines the reasons for the rise of mass culture in the West in the second half of the 20th century, as well as some modern trends in its development. Mass culture has often become a target for various kinds of intellectuals, but has not been subjected to deep analysis. In particular, the spread of mass culture temporally coincides with the period of "postmodernity". "Postmodern" / "postmodernism" is considered within the framework of the theories of F. Jameson and A. Huyssen. That is, as a phenomenon that initially appeared in the United States - the largest country, the least affected by World War II. Simultaneously with unprecedented standards of consumption and the development of technology, there was a "domestication" and institutionalization of modernist art. As a result, protest cultural movements against official, elitist, corporate modernism arise in the United States. The work uses methods of historical-genetic, comparative, cultural analysis. In the theory of postmodernism as the cultural logic of late capitalism, formulated by the American philosopher F. Jameson, mass culture has finally received recognition as an object worthy of study. In this article, the author highlights a number of trends inherent in the development of mass culture. On the one hand, this is a significant loss of originality, secondary processing of old material. On the other hand, it is necessary to note not the simplification, but the complication of many works of mass culture, the emergence of niche products, initially designed for an informed, jaded and critically minded reader or viewer. However, this should not mislead the consumer, but only provide material for the construction of one's own identity in the conditions of the total dominance of economic discourse.
Man and Culture. 2025;(4):176-186
176-186