Vladivostok Mayor Konstantin Shestakov advised the organizers to cancel the performances of Russian singers Kristina Orbakaite (the concert was supposed to take place on March 19) and Diana Arbenina (February 27) in the city. reported TASS agency in the press service of the mayor.
“The mayor of Vladivostok initiated and sent a letter to the organizers of concerts by artists Kristina Orbakaite and Diana Arbenina, recommending the cancellation of these concerts in Vladivostok,” the municipality said in a statement.
The reason for the proposals was the call of the all-Russian popular movement “Cultural Front of Russia” “with a demand to cancel the demonstrations in the city of Vladivostok with military glory.” As the city administration explained, the final decision lies with the organizers of the event “taking into account all circumstances and public opinion.”
Also on February 5, Vladivostok Municipal Control Center (MCC) stated Regarding the refusal of city officials to cancel Orbakaite’s concerts in Vladivostok, he stated that the mayor can only approve events with free admission that do not include these performances.
“Singer Kristina Orbakaite is not officially a foreign representative; her creative repertoire complies with the law,” the ICU emphasized. Likewise, authorities answered He called for Arbenina’s concert to be cancelled.
Cancellations in other cities
Sergei Zaitsev, organizer of Orbakaite’s demonstrations on Wednesday, February 7, said: TASSthat the singer’s performances in Blagoveshchensk and Khabarovsk were postponed indefinitely. The shows were scheduled to take place on March 15, 16 and 18.
Zaitsev assured that concert tickets will remain valid and said, “Due to the cancellation of some cities in Kristina Orbakaite’s tour, logistical problems arose in other cities.”
February 5, Hovhannes Tukhmanyan, organizer of Orbakaite concerts in Irkutsk and Krasnoyarsk stated about the postponement of the singer’s performances planned for March 7 and 12 to later dates. It is already known that the artist is expected to give a concert in Irkutsk within a year. According to Tukhmanyan, the concerts were canceled on the scheduled dates due to the difficulty of holding them.
On January 26, he also announced that Orbakaite’s Chita concert, scheduled for March 14, had also been canceled because “there is no train service or air service for us to get there comfortably on these dates.” On January 19, at the call of social activists, the demonstration in Ulan-Ude was canceled – there Orbakaite’s “Encore!” was held on March 13 at the Physical Culture and Sports Complex. He was supposed to perform with the concert program.
Complaints about the artist
The Ministry of Sports and Youth Policy of Buryatia, commenting on the cancellation of the concentration in Ulan-Ude, said: registeredthat the artist is not a foreign agent and his activities on Russian territory are not officially banned. The statement said, “However, taking into account the opinions of Buryatia citizens and public organizations, the artist’s concert will not take place in the physical culture and sports complex.”
January 17, head of the organization “Combat Brotherhood” in Buryatia Zhambal-Zhamso Zhanaev reportedHe said that social activists demanded the cancellation of his concert in Ulan-Ude, accusing Orbakaite of financing the Armed Forces of Ukraine. According to Zhanaev, the people of Buryatia support the initiative to not allow artists who oppose the country to enter the republic.
“Orbakaite financed the Armed Forces of Ukraine <…> Our republic is one of the most patriotic, and we will not allow unpatriotic people to speak. Gazmanov – yes, Shaman – yes. But we do not need people here who do not support the country,” Zhanaev said.
On January 23, Orbakaite director Alexander Kachan commented on the interruption of the artist’s concert in Ulan-Ude, saying that he did not understand the reason for the cancellation. “The artist took part in New Year’s programs on federal channels. It is not clear on what basis, why, or because of what this is happening right now,” Kachan said.
Why are concerts being cancelled?
According to some reports, Orbakaite currently lives in the United States with his wife and daughter, but periodically visits Russia, where he gives concerts. She also allegedly holds American citizenship.
After the start of the war, the artist published a post on social networks condemning military actions, but later deleted it.
After February 24, 2022, Arbenina released the song “Don’t be silent”, which is considered anti-war in Russia. In April 2023, the head of the Federal Security and Anti-Corruption Project, Vitaly Borodin, asked the Prosecutor General’s Office to launch an investigation against the singer under the article on discrediting the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation. Last year, the singer’s performances in Ulan-Ude, Cheboksary, Ulyanovsk, Kazan, Tolyatti, Pyatigorsk, Krasnodar, Kuzbass, Yoshkar-Ola, Saratov, Tomsk were canceled.