A soulful play about a little-known Soviet subculture
Set in the drab sinkhole of Soviet Moscow, Boogie on the Bones (written by Daria Besedina) explores a little-known Russian subculture from the 1950s: the Stilyagi, or “style-hunters.” These were young, middle-class hipsters, weary of the motherland’s stultifying greyness. They longed to let loose, wear colour, play jazz, and embrace the Western fashions glimpsed during The Great Patriotic War (WWII).
Nonconformity, however, required courage and ingenuity. The Soviet government had outlawed nearly all art forms associated with the decadent West — including American jazz. Simply acquiring the music was a challenge: it had to be smuggled across the border, and then there was the issue of cost. How could expensive records be copied and distributed affordably? Bootleggers like the Golden Dog Gang had the answer. By pressing illegal records onto circles of used X-ray film, they created what became known as “ribs.” Boogie on the Bones takes its name from this ingenious process, ushering audiences into a world of joy, pain, and music.
What strikes immediately about this production is its humanity. The play has an independent pulse and warmth, bolstered by characters who, though seemingly two-dimensional, are surprisingly full of life. There’s Doctor Bob, a gentle charmer who prescribes “cardiac co-ordination therapy”; Mels, a gormless Komsomol officer who abandons duty for love; and Polly, the fiery Stilyaga who first entices him. Alongside them are Fred and Betsy, the lovebirds who light up the dance floor, and Katya, the uptight Soviet. Each personality is handled with care and understanding, revealing not only how they relate to the regime, but also how they relate to one another as human beings.
This is especially true of Mels, a simple soul whose political allegiances are largely incidental. Even when he conducts a raid on the Stilyagi, his lack of zeal is apparent — an attractive woman with an injured ankle is enough to divert him from the cause. “MELS” (Marx, Engels, Lenin, Stalin) thus becomes simply Mel, and all Soviet ties are forgotten, replaced by private impulse. Much of the play’s action is driven by these personal, human decisions. Katya’s official attack on Mel is prompted not by ideology, but by romantic rejection.
Boogie on the Bones succeeds as satire because it harnesses the creative potential of its subject. It reminds audiences that the young will be young anywhere — even under totalitarian rule. They will throw themselves into love, stumble over assumptions, and balk when reality hits. Ideology can subjugate a populace, but it cannot alter the patterns of human nature. There is always a coming of age.
What makes Boogie especially devastating is that the lessons of maturity end up as a closed currency. Characters grow up, only to be beaten down again, because the classic rewards of adulthood — stability and fulfilment — cannot exist without freedom. This is an impressive play, deserving of a much larger audience. Well done to everyone at WITHINTHEATRE. If only it weren’t so close to home.
This show runs at The Cockpit Theatre until 7th December. Tickets here.