‘Never ask a Russian woman how she is’

A Wednesday morning in early September, 9 am. A video call with five members of the ‘Riot Days’ ensemble is scheduled. The group led by Pussy Riot activist Maria ‘Masha’ Alyokhina tells their story in the show of the same name – from the famous protest at Moscow’s Cathedral of Christ the Saviour, through imprisonment and repression, to their escape from Russia. But at first, no one appears.

Then the first person joins the call. The camera remains off. The name displayed: Alina.

Good morning! Where did you wake up this morning, Alina?

Alina Petrova: In the town of Wehlen in Germany, near the Czech border. I’ve been an artist in residence here for a while.

What are you doing at ‘Riot Days’?

Alina: I’m a composer and multi-instrumentalist. I open the show alone on stage with my violin. I’ve been with Pussy Riot since 2022, when I left Russia.

And tomorrow?

Alina: Tomorrow I have to carry on to Berlin. My residency ends here. I’m actually always on the move. I don’t have a home anymore. Until last year, I was married and lived in Barcelona for almost three years. Then my husband left me. For the past nine months, I’ve been moving from one place to the next. To be honest: it feels absolutely rubbish. And I can’t go back to Russia. In 2025, I was sentenced to eight years’ imprisonment.

Why?

Alina: Among other things, because I joined Pussy Riot. That was a conscious decision, and I don’t regret it. In Russia, I’m now considered a terrorist and an extremist. The Russian Embassy won’t issue me with any more documents. I can’t even get a certificate of civil status or a criminal record extract. Physically, I exist, but on paper I practically no longer do.

How do you cope with that?

Alina: Those aren’t even my only problems. I have multiple sclerosis. All of this together is a bit much for a girl weighing 37 kilos. But what can I do? So much of it is beyond my control.

What helps you to carry on?

Alina: Sport. I do calisthenics and go bouldering.

Three more participants join the call at the same time: Maria ‘Masha’ Alyokhina, Taso Pletner and Eric Breitenbach.

Hello, how are you?

Maria ‘Masha’ Alyokhina: Never ask a Russian woman how she is! Otherwise, this interview won’t be about politics, but about all the existential problems in our lives.

That’s just part of it.

Masha: As you say.

Would you like to introduce yourselves briefly?

Taso Pletner: I’m Taso, an actor and theatre director, and I’ve been on the road with Masha for five years. My situation is similar to Alina’s – apart from the fact that I don’t have multiple sclerosis. I never actually wanted to leave Russia. At the moment, I’m having problems with my visa. My solicitor says it’s looking grim.

Eric Breitenbach: I’m Eric and I play the drums in ‘Riot Days’. I’m from Canada, so I’m not Russian.

And who are you, Masha?

Masha: Well. I’m Masha. An activist and probably a political artist. I joined Pussy Riot at the end of 2011. My first protest was ‘Putin wet himself’ on Red Square. The second protest – our punk prayer in the Cathedral of Christ the Saviour – led to my arrest. I spent almost two years in a penal colony. My arrest made international headlines [Director Milo Rau later explored it in ‘The Moscow Trials’, Ed.]. At the time, I was studying journalism and creative writing. I wasn’t able to complete my degree.

What happened after your release?

Masha: I continued to take part in protests, was convicted again, spent a year and a half under house arrest and was detained six times for fifteen days on each occasion. Then I had to flee Russia without any identity documents and wearing an electronic ankle tag. Later, Iceland granted me citizenship. That gave me back my freedom to travel.

Didn’t any other country offer you exile?

Masha: No. No other country. In 2014, when Nadya and I were released from the labour camp, we did lots of performances and raised money for Mediazona, a platform that, amongst other things, reports on violence in police stations. At the time, some American diplomats said they could offer us protection and arrange a Green Card. But that was during Obama’s presidency. It was a completely different era.

Imagine if you’d accepted the offer back then.

Masha: Oh my God. Then we’d probably be in US immigration detention right now.

What is ‘Riot Days’ today?

Masha: A show about my experiences, but we tell the story from the perspective of the Russian people and their struggle against the regime. For example, there’s a chapter about Alexei Navalny: he was poisoned, recovered in Germany and nevertheless decided to return to Russia. There, he was arrested at the airport, tortured for years in penal colonies and finally murdered in February 2024.

Is there a life for Maria Alyokhina outside of Pussy Riot?

Masha: (sighs) Technically, yes. But in practice, it’s just a series of fragments. I don’t know how it happened, but somehow I’ve devoted everything to this cause. But to answer your question: we were just in Australia and saw kangaroos there. I love animals, I love kangaroos. In moments like that, I’m just living in the moment for a brief while.

A life of constant struggle.

Masha: Not necessarily. People think, for example, that a Russian prison is hell. It’s certainly not pleasant. But before the war, I wasn’t really tortured there. Compared to what’s happening today, that was a walk in the park. What concerns me is what’s happening to the people who are leaving Russia. People are dying in exile. They’re dying out of despair or in migration centres – both Russians and Ukrainians. And at the same time, we’re constantly inundated with information. If something lasts longer than ten seconds, people switch off. They can only take in one conflict at a time.

Is it the aim of ‘Riot Days’ to extend this attention span?

Masha: I don’t think there’s a universal language that can convey the whole picture. Art might be one way. With our show, we’re trying to give people a sense of this reality. And we’re doing it offline. We want people to feel something for an hour.

What role does music play in this?

Alina: For me, it comes first. Vibrations have an effect on you, whether you want them to or not. The music has to be direct. That’s why rap, punk or rock are well-suited to political messages.

Taso: For me, it’s less about the music and more about storytelling. ‘Riot Days’ is based on Masha’s book – in other words, on documentary text. It’s about keeping the memory of what happened alive.

You spent months rehearsing the stunt in Moscow Cathedral. Why?

Masha: Because it wouldn’t have worked otherwise. There are security guards and metal detectors; about fifteen people are guarding the church at all times. And there’s a fence you have to climb over. You have to assess the situation beforehand: who’s standing where? How do you get in? How do you get out again? Otherwise, it goes wrong. We only performed for about 40 seconds back then.

Is Pussy Riot actually successful?

Eric: The concerts are well attended. I’m amazed at how many people really want to listen and understand. After the show, lots of people come to talk to us. Some have tears in their eyes.

Masha: Nobody knows what will ultimately bring down this dictatorship. But I believe that every single person and every group that carries on in some way makes a difference. People in the former Soviet Union grew up with the idea that their voice is worthless. We were brought up to sit quietly in a corner and obey orders. Anyone who speaks out gets into trouble. And yet I see people everywhere who carry on regardless.

But the majority of your audience lives in the West.

Masha: Yes. But we’re trying to build mutual understanding on a human level. The bridge between the West and countries like Russia has broken down. In the West, these regions are portrayed as dangerous, gloomy places. But that’s not the case. People live there. And for me, it’s important to use our story to help Ukraine. Through the show, we’re raising money for a children’s hospital in Kyiv and supporting an organisation that provides food to people in villages on the front line.

Eric: Our art won’t topple the dictatorship on its own. But dictators invest a great deal of energy in censoring and banning art. Apparently, they, too, believe that art can make a difference.

At the start of the war, it was often said in the West that Russia couldn’t sustain it economically for long.

Masha: Oh really? (bitter laugh) We’re in the fifth year of the war! Navalny and his team had compiled a list of around 6,000 names – Russians who, in their view, should have been subject to sanctions. Nothing happened. And believe me: Russia has the resources to continue this war. They have virtually unlimited supplies of gas and oil. But there is one positive point: the people in Russia have had enough. It’s just that they have no weapons for a revolution and hardly any means of organising themselves. Nevertheless, they are finding ways to show that they want peace. Some Russians have even joined the Ukrainian army.

And what if negotiations take place with Putin to end the war?

Masha: If someone like Trump comes along, negotiates with Putin and carves up Ukraine – do you really think Putin will just stop after that? Nobody gives a shit about Article 5 of the NATO Treaty. To us Russians, it all sounds rather funny.

Back to the action in the cathedral. You’ve been rehearsing it for months. Can you rehearse a revolution?

Masha: (laughs) You’re asking me if you can rehearse a revolution? That’s a funny question. You should ask Yevgeny Prigozhin. Do you remember his march on Moscow in June 2023? He marched from Ukraine towards Moscow with his Wagner mercenaries. Finally, when he was just 200 kilometres from Moscow, the Belarusian President Lukashenko rang him on behalf of the Kremlin and, in his pleasant voice, asked him to please call it off. So they turned back. Two months later, Prigozhin’s plane crashed.

But of course, people do prepare. Nadya and I were released from the penal colony at the end of 2013. Shortly afterwards, we flew to Kyiv. The fires were still burning on the Maidan; people were still in the square. We spoke to them. Yes, they had prepared themselves – but only in response to what was happening. Every revolution is a reaction. People go out to demonstrate peacefully, the state reacts, and they react to that in turn. And at some point, the moment comes when people say: ‘Enough is enough.’ Any experience of political action can be useful at such a moment.

Why, then, do people in Russia put up with so much? Is it fear?

Masha: It’s a fear that has been passed down through generations. People in Russia are afraid of losing their lives. People in the West are afraid of losing their standard of living.

Alina: First you’re afraid of losing your standard of living. Then your life.

Masha: There’s an old Russian joke: a father and his son are taken to a penal colony. The son looks around and asks, ‘Dad, where are we?’ And the father says, ‘I don’t know. I’m not interested in politics.’

‘Riot Days’ at the Dynamo in Zurich on 24 September 2026