We Will roc You!

Abstract

This paper analyses developments of the new cultural policy of the Russian government and the role of the Russian Orthodox Church (roc) in the implementation of this cultural policy. This question is embedded into a broader research problem of the status of the roc in today’s Russian society, and its relation to the phenomena of secularization and post-secularization. This paper argues that although the roc has no clear-cut cultural policy and is under the influence of the government, it recently made significant steps towards embracing a hegemonic vision of Orthodox cultural policy with the help of a series of legal litigations about secular cultural products. Wagner’s Tannhäuser opera production in Novosibirsk and the scandal initiated by the roc is under scrutiny as a case study in this paper.