Russian President Vladimir Putin personally congratulated the artistic director of the Mariinsky Theater Valery Gergiev on his birthday. He noted his merits and that art is out of politics.
The video of Putin’s meeting with Gergiev is published by the Kremlin press service on May 2. The President noted that he remembers the hero of the day from the time he worked in the government of St. Petersburg – it was around this time that Gergiev began to direct the theater. “Your contribution is huge. The theater has become a world stage, without any doubt,” the president shared his opinion.
With the phrase “art outside of politics,” the president explained his unwillingness to talk about the current situation in the world, but at the same time noted Gergiev’s patriotism “in relation to his small homeland and Russia as a whole.”
“The most important award for you is the recognition of the public and connoisseurs of musical art. We are all proud to be present at the flowering of your creativity,” the President concluded.
