Russian Accent | Blog of Nadia Sikorsky
To mark the publication in French of Guzel Yakhina’s novel A Volga Tale by Éditions Noir sur Blanc in Lausanne, we spoke once again to the acclaimed Russian writer and asked her thirteen questions. Maud Mabillard’s translation will reach Swiss bookshops tomorrow, 19 August 2021.
A scandal has erupted in Russia over the television adaptation of Guzel Yakhina’s novel Zuleikha, whose final episode was broadcast yesterday on Rossiya 1. The accusations levelled at the production team strike us as symptomatic of Russian society.
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?
Last August, the Lausanne-based publishing house Noir sur Blanc brought out the French translation of Zuleikha Opens Her Eyes, winner of Russia’s Big Book Award.
In my view, Guzel Yakhina’s debut novel has been one of the most remarkable events in Russian literary life in recent years. And not merely because of the official recognition it has received. What matters most is that I do not know a single person who has remained indifferent to it.
About the author
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 with the benefit of more than 30 years of professional experience in the cultural world. 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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