
Ilya Vidrin’s “OtherWise”: An Evening of Song, Dance, and Poetry
Presented by Davis Center for Russian and Eurasian Studies at Harvard University
Centering on intergenerational trauma in refugee experience, “OtherWise” is a multidisciplinary production that investigates and responds to Soviet-era songs of oppression and hope. Drawing upon and interpreting the censored texts of iconic singer-songwriters, or “bards,” Bulat Okudzhava and Vladimir Vysotsky, “OtherWise” fuses dance, music, and spoken word to illuminate the sublime social power of poetic practices. Directed by Dr. Ilya Vidrin, collaborators include first-generation singer/song-writer Alec Hutson, Slavic scholar Dr. Vera Koshkina, and choreographic assistant Jessi Stegall, dramaturg Valeria Solomonoff, and a cast of 12 performers.