Soviet leader Leonid Ilyich Brezhnev would have been 110 on December 19. There are plenty of fun facts and surprising jokes behind the eyebrows.

An excerpt from the fine new novel Zuleikha, by Guzel Yakhina, about a woman's survival in Siberia exile, inspired by childhood memories of the author's grandmother.

It is a common trope that Russians never smile. Which of course is interpreted to mean they are unfriendly, gloomy, sullen – positively Dostoyevskian. This, of course, is a complete misreading of body language and cultural norms.

Why is Georgian food so popular in Russia? Turns out there's more to it than deliciousness.

The body of Joseph Stalin was removed from the mausoleum on Red Square on October 31, 1961. It may not be as spooky as Halloween, but the former leader still haunts Russia today.

On the occasion of Pushkin's birthday, we offer a post on the challenge of translating his most famous love lyrics, "Я вас любил," with a bonus look at Innokenty Annensky's "Среди миров."

One of the most formidable Prokofiev players of our time, Yefim Bronfman returns to the San Francisco Symphony to summit the towering peaks of the Second Piano Concerto.

The Sacred in the Profane offers a survey of Simun’s unique capacity to find forms that appear in ancient art and Christian iconography in molded plastic and other consumer objects since his arrival to the United States from Russia in the early 1980s.

In the semi-staged event of the season, this enchanting program explores the wonderment of youth. The fantastic world of a young imagination comes to life in a dazzling production of Ravel's The Child and the Magic Spells. Don't miss this one-of-a-kind performance by an all-star cast and featuring mezzo-soprano Isabel Leonard!

Jacques Hnizdovsky's art expressed his capacity for joy, humor, and hope, most often in of animals from the Bronx Zoo, and has been widely recognized and beloved for over half a century. This exhibition presents a single collection of Hnizdovsky prints (woodcuts, linocuts, and etchings), as well as one of his paintings, which are rarely seen.

Michael Tilson Thomas leads the SF Symphony in the inaugural series performance of an all-Tchaikovsky program featuring the Russian composer's exhilarating Symphony No. 4 – a whirlwind of electrifying emotion and cinematic imagery – and his achingly beautiful Violin Concerto, performed by the brilliant Gil Shaham. Famous for his formidable technique and generosity of spirit, Shaham ranks among the greatest violinists of our time.

The Balalaika and Domra Association of America presents their Russian Festival Concert at the Bates Recital Hall, Butler School of Music, University of Texas on Saturday, July 27, 2019 at 7:30 pm.

Learn to paint icons with renowned instructor Vladislav Andrejev in this six-day intensive icon workshop. Registration deadline: July 12

The Body in Soviet Art examines the depictions of the human form in Soviet art, featuring more than fifty works created in the 1950s-1970s.  Representations of the human body have varied over time and across cultures.  Soviet art placed a unique emphasis on the working body as part of a Soviet collective.

The Virgin of Vladimir, also known as Virgin of Tenderness, a micro mosaic icon by Oksana Prokopenko is now on view at the Chapel of the Sheen Center.

Irina Nakhova: Museum on the Edge is the artist’s first museum retrospective in the United States. Nakhova stands apart both from the first generation of Moscow conceptualists and from her younger peers. Unlike many of her colleagues, in whose works the narrative or textual component plays a prominent role, Nakhova draws on the visual and cultural dimensions of her dialogue with art history for the conceptual content of her work.

A new mini-exhibition of trays and boxes painted in the traditional Zhostovo-style will be on view in the lobby at the Museum of Russian Icons through October 20.  These treasures are created by American decorative painter and teacher Tricia Joiner, and Zhostovo Master Painter Vyacheslav (Slava) Letkov.

Don't miss the Annual Russian Festival, marking more than 45 years in Baltimore. During this festive weekend, we invite you to savor the authentic foods, prepared by the parishioners, browse the import kiosk, visit the children's corner, and enjoy the dance groups and musical ensembles.