Maria “Masha” Alyokhina will speak at Sound on Sound Festival.
Two members of the Russian feminist punk group Pussy Riot will present a lecture at the inaugural Sound on Sound Fest at Sherwood Forest Faire in November. Maria “Masha” Alyokhina, one of the three members of the anti-Putin collective who was arrested and imprisoned for “hoolaginism” in 2012 after a protest at Moscow’s Cathedral of Christ the Savior, will be present. Collective member Sasha Bogino will also appear.
As part of the presentation, the group will screen documentary footage chronicling Pussy Riot’s evolution as a radical activist organization. Speaking through an interpreter, the women will also participate in a question and answer session with the audience.
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Members of Pussy Riot began a limited run of public engagements at colleges and universities last year, and one of the organizers contacted SOS Fest booker Graham Williams about a possible Texas engagement. The timing for their planned visit lined up fortuitously with the dates for Williams’ new fest which takes place November 4-6.
It also fit with Williams’ vision of expanded programming in the non-music portion of the fest. This year, the stage that traditionally featured comedy when Williams was booking Fun Fun Fun Fest will include live podcasts, interviews, panel discussions and more.
Next year, Nadia Tolokonnikova of Pussy Riot will appear as a featured speaker at the South by Southwest Music Festival and Conference.
