The grand opening of the eleventh book festival "Red Square" took place

The grand opening of the eleventh Red Square Book Festival took place on the "Main Stage" at St. Basil's Cathedral. The ceremony was attended by Vladimir Medinsky, Assistant to the President of Russia, Chairman of the Organizing Committee of the Red Square Festival; Sergey Naryshkin, Chairman of the Organizing Committee for the Support of Literature, Book Publishing and Reading in the Russian Federation; and Sergey Stepashin, President of the Russian Book Union.

Vladimir Medinsky conveyed the welcoming speech of Russian President Vladimir Putin. "Once again, for a few days in June, the main square of the country will become the book heart of Russia. The festival is rightfully famous for its program and attracts the attention of readers from all over the country. I wish you all fruitful work, positive emotions and all the best," the message says.

On his own behalf, Vladimir Medinsky conveyed congratulations to the writer and philosopher Alexander Prokhanov, who was awarded the title Hero of Labor of Russia yesterday for his services to the development of Russian culture and literature.

Sergey Naryshkin noted that despite the fact that the Festival is taking place for the eleventh time, it has not lost its ability to surprise its guests in a kind way and remains a bright holiday for everyone who loves and appreciates the book. "About 400 publishers from various regions of our country present their novelties here: from Vladivostok to Kaliningrad. And I see in this the essential merit of our Festival in terms of supporting the domestic book publishing industry. Today, art, popular science, and children's literature have their own platforms, and for the first time a special platform for poetry has appeared. The History of the Fatherland pavilion presents a very extensive program, about 50 different events, primarily dedicated to the 80th anniversary of the Great Victory and the events in the zone of the special military operation, the liberation operation. I sincerely thank the friendly and professional staff of the organizers. I have no doubt that the Red Square 2025 will provide its guests with an atmosphere of intellectual leisure, new books, interesting meetings and the most vivid and pleasant impressions," said Sergey Naryshkin, opening the Festival.

Before the opening of the Festival, a cooperation agreement was signed between the Russian Book Union and the Union of Theatrical Figures of Russia. The latter is celebrating its 150th anniversary this year. Sergey Stepashin and Vladimir Mashkov noted the need for dialogue between the two cultural trends. "Russian, not only classical, but also modern, drama should find its place on the Russian stage. This is very important," Sergei Stepashin shared from the "Main Stage" of the Festival.

"It's great that neither the pandemic nor the special military operation, in fact, the war with the united West, prevented us from making a book parade here on Red Square. By the way, the anniversary of the 1945 liberation parade is coming soon, right here on Red Square, in June of this year. That is why Vladimir Vladimirovich made the decision and instructed that similar festivals be held in all regions of Russia. They have already been held in 22 regions. The Red Square has given the signal — and for the fourth year now, a book exhibition has also been held on the Palace Square in St. Petersburg. It recently went brilliantly in Bashkiria, where we visited with writers," said the president of the Russian Book Union. Sergei Stepashin recalled that this year marks the 130th anniversary of the birth of the great Russian poet Sergei Yesenin, and quoted lines from his poem "Soviet Russia":

After the welcoming speeches, People's Artist of Russia Sergey Garmash, the New Russia State Symphony Orchestra and musicians of the Lyudmila Zykina State Academic Russian Folk Ensemble Rossiya appeared on the "Main Stage" conducted by Freddy Kadena. The artists performed a dramatic symphony by the outstanding modern composer Alexander Tchaikovsky "The Word about Igor's Regiment" — dedicated to the 225th anniversary of the first publication of the monument of ancient Russian literature.