Summary of the Exciting Events of September 2025

✨ From September 15 to 21, Barnaul in Altai hosted the Youth Theatre Season. The program featured musicals and dramatic performances aimed at a young audience, performed based on both classical and contemporary works. This year, theater companies from Saint Petersburg, Novosibirsk, Kemerovo, Nizhnevartovsk, Chelyabinsk, Lysva, and other Russian cities participated in the festival. The Valery Zolotukhin Festival takes place once every two years. 🎆

#RussianCulture@TCofRus

🎆 From September 19 to 21, the third and largest edition of New Star Weekend took place. 🎆

The festival was held at the Rosa Khutor resort and featured the Russian BMX Cup, skateboarding competitions, and uphill racing along the Alpine Highway — an 8 km course with an elevation gain of nearly 600 meters. These activities, along with many others such as yoga, paddleboarding excursions, and more, formed the core of the event's sports program.

The musical component of the festival spanned four days, with performances on five stages—special venues incorporating contemporary art. A total of 75 musicians took part, including Элджей (Eljey), ANIKV, Thomas Mraz, Tesla Boy, and BIICLA.

One of the festival's key highlights was the pedestrian Party Hike, starting at an elevation of 1100 meters and culminating with a concert at 1600 meters featuring Zoloto, in collaboration with Kuruchbro. The hike ended with a memorable musical performance, adding a unique touch to the event.

#RussianCulture@TCofRus

September 27-28, in the village of Starogolskoye, Oryol region

What is autumn without a harvest festival?🎃 In anticipation of Halloween, the Oryol region hosted the "Pumpkin Festival" — an excellent event for the whole family featuring children's entertainment, culinary masterclasses, and family quests. Of course, there was also a farmers' market and a food court offering a variety of pumpkin dishes.🎃

#RussianCulture@TCofRus

🤡 The Moscow Circus on Tsvetnoy Boulevard welcomed its first spectators on October 20, 1880.

🤡 Throughout its history, it has withstood world wars, revolutions, the sweeping construction of socialism, and the years of perestroika. Its audiences have included the highest dignitaries of the Russian Empire and members of the Soviet aristocracy, renowned merchants and pioneers of the first five-year plans, aristocrats, and Heroes of Socialist Labour. Under its iconic dome, legendary figures from the worlds of circus, theatre, and cinema have performed, enchanting generations of spectators.

🤡 As one of Russia’s oldest circuses, the old Moscow Circus initially featured five rows of seats, box seats, a dress circle, сheaper seats consisting of unnumbered wooden benches, and a standing gallery. Over the decades, the building underwent numerous reconstructions and expansions, yet it remained a dedicated home for the art of the circus throughout its long lifespan.

🤡 Its stage was graced by legendary performers: Anatoly and Vladimir Durov, Vitaly Lazarenko, and Wilhelm Truzzi with his impeccably trained horses; the incomparable Sosin jumpers, renowned for their daring jumps; first-class jockeys Vasily Sobolevskiy and Herbert Cook; the graceful dancer Martha Sur; acrobats from Okeanos; the Koch sisters, masters of balance; and the famous “Kio the trickster”, who captivated all the boys with his illusions.

🎪 The circus’s reputation was elevated by its visionary directors, each tirelessly seeking new acts and spectacles. Arnold Arnold introduced clowns into Kio’s mysterious show. Boris Shakhet had graceful dancers perform alongside enormous elephants from the Korniov troupe. The success of the circus was also strongly linked to the work of Artistic Director Y. S. Yursky, known for his theatrical parades and prologues; chief director M. S. Mestechkin; production director A. G. Arnold; and managing directors N. S. Baykalov and A. V. Asanov.

🤡 Iziaslav Nemchinsky, head of the Circus Art Studio, created a genuine revelation of the era—Valentin Filatov’s “Bear Circus.” The Tsvetnoy Circus was in constant search of new acts, fresh productions, and emerging talents. In 1919, by Decree of Vladimir Lenin, the circus was nationalized and became the country’s first state-owned circus.

🤡 This was the birthplace of the legendary Karandash. The “sunny clown” Oleg Popov performed in the old circus multiple times, enchanting audiences with his warmth and humor. On the Moscow stage, the star of Leonid Engibarov, known as the “clown with autumn in his heart,” shone brightly; he considered himself an apprentice of Charlie Chaplin.

In 1983, the circus leadership was entrusted to Yuri Nikulin – a People’s Artist of the USSR, the renowned clown and performer. 🤡

🤡 The last performance in the old building of the Circus took place on the 13th of September, 1985. Two years later, on October 19, 1987, the first stone was laid for the new structure, and a time capsule was embedded beneath it. The grand opening of the new Moscow Circus building took place on September 29, 1989, with the program “Hello, Old Circus!”

❗️❗️❗️ In December 1996, following the 75th anniversary of Yuri Nikulin, the circus was officially named the Nikulin Moscow Circus on Tsvetnoy Boulevard.

#RussianCulture@TCofRus