Devised by Belarus Free Theatre
Adapted and directed by Vladimir Shcherban
Co-Produced by Natalia Kaliada and Nicolai Khalezin

Welcome to Minsk – the sexiest city in the world!

Strip clubs, underground raves and gay pride parades pulse beneath the surface of a city where sexuality is twisted by oppression. If scars are sexy, Minsk must be the sexiest city in the world.

A love letter to a home that exiles those willing to fight for it, Minsk, 2011 celebrates and mourns a land that has lost its way.

A rare opportunity to experience a provocative and heartbreaking show from a revolutionary company.

Belarus Free Theatre was founded in 2OO5 in Europe's last surviving dictatorship; the company is one of the most outspoken critics of Belarus’s repressive regime. Many company mem­bers have served time in prison, lost their jobs, gone into hiding or been exiled. Despite this, the company continues to develop award-winning work with the sup­port of artists around the world.

Fringe First winner 2011.

Originally presented at the Pleasance. Developed in residence at the Dartington Space with the support of the Dartington Hall Trust. Funded by Arts Council England.

Performed in Russian with English surtitles.

Press Reviews

"At its most affecting when it simply lets us hear at the end from the brave actors themselves, sitting all in a row and facing either the disorientation of exile here or the threat of persecution if they return home." Telegraph ****

"Its energetic messiness is part of its power: these people have something to say, and are saying it loudly and bluntly. Those who step towards the microphone are hurried away by thugs before they even do anything."
The Guardian ****

"Inventive, entertaining and brave" The Observer

"A testimony to a now rare breed of provocative political theater, wherein art and reality are so uncomfortably close" New York Times Artsbeat review