The multitude of people one meets in life can easily be divided into two groups: those who lift us up and those who drag us down. The first group outweighs the second, and the earlier we choose it, the more interesting and fulfilling our existence becomes. In my youth, I had the incredible fortune of meeting many exceptional people who influenced me. James Baldwin is one of them.
The Siberia Job in its original version is the fourth novel overall and the second thriller of American Josh Haven. It was published very recently, in 2023, and one should congratulate Éditions Buchet/Chastel for having it quickly translated into French and published under the surprisingly English title: Wild Wild Siberia.
It so happened that over the past couple of months I have plunged headlong into the work of the 35-year-old Russian director Timofey Kulyabin, towards whom I had previously – and now it can be admitted – felt a certain wariness: the scandalous story with Tannhäuser had indeed left that notorious taint.
On 29 May, the Mikhailovsky Theatre in St Petersburg will host a gala concert marking the 40th anniversary of the artistic career of the distinguished Georgian singer. I had the opportunity to speak with him shortly before this event.
Paata, you were born in Tbilisi, studied in Milan and Odessa, yet you describe yourself as a representative of the Russian bass school. Why?
Nadia Sikorsky grew up in Moscow where she obtained a master's degree in journalism and a doctorate in history from Moscow State University. After 13 years at UNESCO, in Paris and then in Geneva, and having served as director of communications at Green Cross International founded by Mikhail Gorbachev, she developed NashaGazeta.ch, the first online Russian-language daily newspaper, launched in 2007.
In 2022, she found herself among those who, according to Le Temps editorial board, "significantly contributed to the success of French-speaking Switzerland," thus appearing among opinion makers and economic, political, scientific and cultural leaders: the Forum of 100.
After 18 years leading NashaGazeta.ch, Nadia Sikorsky decided to return to her roots and focus on what truly fascinates her: culture in all its diversity. This decision took the form of this trilingual cultural blog (Russian, English, French) born in the heart of Europe – in Switzerland, her adopted country, the country distinguished by its multiculturalism and multilingualism.
Nadia Sikorsky does not present herself as a "Russian voice," but as the voice of a European of Russian origin (more than 35 years in Europe, 25 years spent in Switzerland) with the benefit of more than 30 years of professional experience in the cultural world at the international level. She positions herself as a cultural mediator between Russian and European traditions; the title of the blog, "The Russian Accent," captures this essence – the accent being not a linguistic barrier, not a political position but a distinctive cultural imprint in the European context.
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