The "Scarlet Sails-2026" holiday He will be inspired by images from Russian fairy tales.

Characters familiar to everyone from childhood, iconic locations for St. Petersburg, bright costumes, popular musical compositions in an original arrangement, thousands of salutes and the majestic brig Rossiya under scarlet sails. This year, the water and pyrotechnic show of the Scarlet Sails festival will acquire a special artistic concept inspired by the images of Russian fairy tales. At the same time, viewers will not be literally immersed in mythology, but a modern reading of famous stories through the prism of current values and meanings.

The organizers of the show appeal to archetypes that are understandable to everyone: friendship, kindness, love, loyalty, and the choice of a life path. These guidelines become the semantic framework of the statement. The fabulous images that are embedded in our cultural code will appear in an unexpected visual and dramatic solution and open up new facets of familiar stories.

"Russian fairy tales are a language that we all understand since childhood. These images are literally "sewn" into us, and through them we can talk about the most important things simply, vividly and emotionally," said Mikhail Kolpakhchiev, chief production director of the Scarlet Sails water pyrotechnic show.

Each mise en scene of the show will be built as an independent mini-performance, in which familiar motifs acquire a new sound thanks to modern technologies, original sets and costumes.

The audience will travel through key states and stages of a fabulous journey. This is a broad, filled with inner strength and freedom "Russian soul", and the bright, joyful time of youth, and the expectation of love, and the clash of opposites — light and darkness, good and evil. The heroes are faced with a choice, lose their way and find the right path again.

All technological solutions undergo mandatory testing before becoming part of a large-scale operation in the Neva River. The specialists worked on one of the most difficult decorations for six months.

Working on a show is always a synthesis of accumulated experience and new ideas. The project team forms a kind of "piggy bank" of technological and production solutions, but the key ones are created specifically for the specific concept of the year. This approach makes it possible to surprise viewers every year and raise the bar for visual and emotional impact. Special attention is paid to details.

"We have no secondary elements. Every act, every movement, every element of the costume or scenery is honed and brought to perfection. It is this precision and attention to nuances that create a whole, exciting spectacle that holds the attention of millions of viewers," added Kolpakhchiev.

The main task of the organizers of the show remains unchanged: to talk to graduates about the future, choices and values that will help them move forward. This year, the language of fairy tales is becoming a universal vehicle for these meanings. "Scarlet Sails" will prove once again that even the most familiar stories can sound new if they have a sincere desire to inspire, surprise and turn a dream into reality.

The Scarlet Sails holiday was revived in 2005 after a long-term hiatus at the initiative of ROSSIYA Joint Stock Bank, the Government of St. Petersburg and Channel Five.

Big dreams — big sailing: ships, a train and a lighthouse will appear on Dvortsovaya

How is the preparation for the main alumni holiday going?

Videos about the "Scarlet Sails" holiday are shown from June 23 to 28 on the media facade of the Ostankino TV Tower. "Scarlet Sails" will go beyond the center of St. Petersburg, the traditional stage on the Palace Square and the Neva River, the television broadcast and the digital environment and will become part of the architectural and visual code of another metropolis — the capital of Russia.