The Tsar’s Bride is, on its surface, abuddently beautiful.  The scenery, the actors, and, above all, the music result in an opera that exposes the audience to the beauty of Russian culture.  In addition, the recurring theme of love is dominant throughout the opera and is amplified by the romantic nature of the music.

However, once breaking through the facade of beauty, a darker reality reveals itself.  The opera takes place during the reign of Ivan the Terrible, a figure known for his oppression as well as manic tendencies.  Despite the aura of love present, a deeper examination reveals an overpowering sense of rage and jealousy that consumes the main characters and ultimately destroyesthem.  Additionally, Ivan, despite his historical significance, is hardly present in the opera. Rather, it is up to the audience to be aware of the reality of his rule.  A further discussion about the significance (or lack thereof) of Ivan in the opera could be interesting. 

As seen in the film we watched last class, Ivan the Terrible, Soviet-era films made about this time period tend to hide the reality of Ivan’s legacy.  They are used as an opportunity to showcase a unified Russia and its culture.  Additionally, in both films, there is an absence of religion, despite the fact that we are aware Russia was very much Christian at this point in time. Although I’m sure we will discuss this more in length later in the semester, I am fascinated in how the Soviet government impacted films such as these as well as Russian culture generally.   What was life actually like in this time period? Are these films valid glimpses into this time period? Is it full on propaganda, or somewhere in between?