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Feminist lab "Nichya" 2021
The word Nichya [ni-ʧja'] has two meanings in Russian
  1. free, that doesn't belong to anyone
  2. draw, equal score, nobody wins

In 2021 we created a theatre lab where women staged plays made by women. The lab was created in partnership with social, artistic and communicative project "Eve's Ribs".

In Oct2020 we had an open call for feminist plays with a quote for 1 man writing about the crysis of masculinity. We also accepted plays by gender-fluid, non-binary and transgender people.

In Nov2020 our expert board chose the short-list.

Idiots, Olesya Likhacheva, Voronezh
recording interrupted, Elina Petrova, Saint-Petersburg
The first presentation of the play "recording interrupted" was in 2019 on The Lubimovka Young Russian Playwrights Festival.
Mastectomy, Kacia Chekatouskaya, Minsk
Me for you the sea, Marta Raytses, Saint-Petersburg
Mukti, Zukhra Abakarova, Moscow
Immaculately, Lidia Golovanova, Saint-Petersburg
Flesh, Dasha Che, Saint-Petersburg
Fish, Natasha Tuleshins, Saint-Petersburg
For Her, Olga Kazakova, Moscow
The first presentation of the play "For Her" was in 2019 on The Lubimovka Young Russian Playwrights Festival.

Please contact the authors for staging the plays or any other work.

In Dec2020 we had an open call for the director's applications.

In Jan2021 the expert board chose 6 applications that were implemented in the lab. The participants' names are:
1. Karina Besolti (Moscow), "Mukti" by Zukhra Abakarova
2. Anastasia Bytsan (Saint-Petersburg), "Immaculately" by Lidia Golovanova
3. Ekaterina Davydova (Saint-Petersburg), "recording interrupted" by Elina Petrova
4. Angela Datskaya (Volgograd), "Flesh" by Dasha Che
5. Anna Kulikova (Moscow), "Me for you the sea" by Marta Raytses
6. Elina Kulikova (Moscow), "For Her" by Olga Kazakova
7. Maria Sapizhak (Saint-Petersburg), "Mastectomy" by Kasia Chekatovskaya
8. Ekaterina Shiryaeva (Moscow) , "Fish" by Natasha Tuleshina

As a special part of the program there was a stage reading of the play "Body awareness" by Annie Baker, staging and translation by Maria Kritskaya.

Feb2021 was a rehearsal time.

The lab took place in Mar2021!

We also had an educational program, where Russian and foreign specialists shared their experience of using femoptics in theatre. All interested were able to participate after registration.

All the performances and lectures in the lab were 18+.
FAQ of the lab Nichya 2021
What is that?
Nichya is a feminist lab, where women stage plays made by women.
Why are we doing this?
Postsoviet theatre almost never discusses the feminist problems. Yes, there are feminist plays but they are being staged too rarely. Many people understand feminism as something aggressive and scandalous, as a concept that is way too far from real problems of women.

We want to use art to share the topics that feminist community works with. We want to offer the complicated issues of feminism separated from its typical theoretical and political language but in an active and sensual form. We want the spectators to go through recognition and acceptance of the characters and their problems, and then discuss it as their own.
What's going to be on the lab?
  1. Open call for plays with feminist optics
  2. Open call for director's applications
  3. The show of the stage drafts of future performances
  4. Feminist dialogues : discussing the stage drafts and the social issues that they describe
Who chooses the plays and the applications?
The expert board:
Darya Apakhonchich (StPetersburg) - artist and pedagogue
Natasha Borenko (Siberia/StPetersburg/Berlin) - fluid theatre maker
Anastasia Vasilevich (Minsk) - theatre critic, head of the Centre of Belarusian Drama
Vanya Demidkin (StPetersburg) - theatre researcher, participant of theatre company "Perfobufet"
Maria Sizova (StPetersburg) - theatre critic, reader and pedagogue
Leda Garina (StPetersburg) - director, scriptwriter, performer
Oxana Kushlaeva (StPetersburg) - theatre critic
Valeria Nikolaeva (StPetersburg) - theatre critic, blogger
Olga Tarakanova (Moscow) - critic, artist, curator
Anna Tereshkina (StPetersburg) - artist, curator, participant of interdisciplinary artistic collaborations
Is it only for feminists?
No-o-o-o! It is for everyone who wants to see the feminist issues in theatre form.
Can men watch\take part in the lab?
Yes, of course!

Except for men audience (any quantity), we have a section "Men about men" in the lab. It contains plays about masculinity, problems of expressing feelings, new behaviour models etc. We also made a special quota for men: 1 man in the expert board, 1 male author, 1 male director.
...
Since the plays written by male authors did not get to the short list, the section "Men about men" is cancelled in 2021. We are waiting applications only from female directors!
Can children come by?
Alas, we have the age restriction 18+... But in future we will maybe make the children femlab!
When will the Nichya lab happen?
Oct2020 - open call for plays
Dec2020 - open call for apps
Jan2021 - open call for education program
Mar2021 - Nichya feminist lab!

More detailed schedule will appear on this page later.
Why is it interesting?
There'll be funny, romantic, scary -- different fun stories by cool playwrights. Feminism includes lots of different topics, from serious and frightening to funny and tender. Something's gotta touch you!
What's going to be next?
We will publish on this website the plays that from the short list + the plays that did not get to the short list but may be interesting for theatres.
PHOTOS of Nichya 2021
Trailer of Nichya 2021
Partners of the lab Nichya