BOSTON – Some 20 Ukrainian American activists led by Dmitry Smelansky and Julia K. Bezborodov from Arts Against Aggression set up a display and picket in front of the New England Conservatory of Music (NEC) titled “Putin and Matsuev House of Horrors” on Saturday, October 29, protesting a performance by Russian pianist Denis Matsuev.
The performer is one of more than 800 Russian cultural figures who signed a collective letter supporting Russian President Vladimir Putin’s invasion and illegal occupation of Crimea. He also made further statements personally supporting Mr. Putin and called for even more aggressive action against Ukraine, particularly in Donbas.
In keeping with the fact that Halloween was being celebrated that weekend in Boston, protesters positioned a number of skeletons carrying signs detailing the horrific results of Mr. Putin’s hybrid war in eastern Ukraine along the sidewalk in front of NEC’s Jordan Hall to greet concert-goers.
One of the protesters was dressed in a Putin costume. He took a number of strolls up and down the street and ultimately positioned himself in front of the steps leading to the concert hall. He told all who stopped that Russia was a horrific aggressor and that the people in Ukraine, Syria, Georgia and other places knew all too well that when Russia appeared there would be no treats and that all the tricks would be horrific. He also pointed out that true artists had no business supporting such aggression.
As a result of this action, several concert-goers decided not to attend the performance after learning of Mr. Matsuev’s support of Mr. Putin, and a number said that this would be their last Matsuev concert.
“Matsuev, one of Russia’s most prized cultural emissaries, is a classical pianist who likes to say that he is an artist and a messenger of peace,” Mr. Smelansky pointed out. “Somehow, in the West he doesn’t like to talk about his shameful signature on the infamous letter of the Russian cultural figures in support of the Russian president’s ‘position on Crimea and Ukraine’ or about taking an active part in the sham election of 2012 as Putin’s surrogate.”
“We believe that Matsuev’s actions supporting Putin should be as well-known to Western concert-goers, concert venues and critics as his favorite concert pieces and that is why we are here today,” Mr. Smelansky continued. “We also have questions for the NEC and other premier concert locations across the United States, namely: why Matsuev and other signatories on the list are still welcome on iconic stages and whether these locations will continue inviting vocal supporters of Putin for performances in the future.”
“We ask whether an artist can be considered divorced from politics while continuously supporting unprovoked aggression against sovereign foreign states; whether Matsuev should be allowed to position himself as a messenger of peace in the West while not be held to account for his support of Putin’s policies; and whether Matsuev should be enabled in earning ‘dirty’ American dollars while he continues to support Kremlin propaganda in promoting virulent anti-American attitudes among Russian citizens,” Mr. Smelansky continued
“The financial well-being and professional reputation of Matsuev and other prominent Russian artists supporting Putin’s policies depend on their ability to package their active support for Putin for domestic consumption only while projecting the image of a world-class artist totally above the fray for the West,” Mr. Smelansky pointed out.
“The aim of Arts Against Aggression is to make sure that all of these individuals are closely linked to Putin and the crimes of his regime in the minds of Western audiences, critics and concert venue administrators,” Mr. Smelansky concluded.
This is the second time that Arts Against Aggression has picketed Mr. Matsuev and the second time that it has succeeded in gaining considerable media attention. The Russian television station TBK in Krasnoyarsk, Russia, carried a story on the protest in Boston (see https://goo.gl/TD2EpZ), as did Euromaidan Press, Radio Liberty’s Russian service and Hromadske Radio.