Yura was there: Cosmonautics Day was celebrated in the Kremlin with the stars

A ballet with a robot from the premiere of the Bolshoi Theater Denis Rodkin, Dmitry Malikov hovering above the stage, a performance by the first actress-cosmonaut Julia Peresild, songs by Polina Gagarina, Grigory Leps, Alexei Vorobyov and a complete immersion in the boundlessness of the Universe — this is how the stars of the Russian stage congratulated employees and veterans of the space industry on their professional holiday. The gala evening at the Kremlin Palace was the culmination of the first Russian Space Week.

From Tsiolkovsky's dream to Gagarin's feat

Exactly 65 years ago, Yuri Gagarin stepped into the unknown, circled the Earth and returned a hero. His catch phrase "Let's go!" ushered in the era of manned space exploration, and the journey itself strengthened the leadership of the Soviet Union in the space race and united the world. On Cosmonautics Day, at the country's main concert venue, the Kremlin Palace, the gala evening began exactly at the scheduled time and immediately with the Russian national anthem.

A few minutes later, Denis Manturov, First Deputy Prime Minister, addressed the audience, emphasizing the continuity of the country's space achievements, from the legendary launch in 1961 to today's ambitious projects.

The culmination of the official part was the award ceremony. State awards were awarded to those who continue the work of space pioneers today.

By decree of the President of the Russian Federation, Valentin Shukshunov was awarded the Order of Merit for the Fatherland, II degree, for his contribution to the creation of rocket and space technology. The staff of the Roscosmos State Corporation, represented by its CEO Dmitry Bakanov, is awarded the honorary badge of the Russian Federation "For Success in Work." Igor Golovatik was awarded the Medal "For Bravery" of the II degree for courage, bravery and dedication shown in the performance of civil duty, and Ivan Degtyarev was awarded the Order of Courage for courage and dedication shown in the performance of military duty.

On the Kremlin stage, laureates of the Yuri Gagarin Prize of the Russian government in the field of space activities, scientists, designers, and professors were awarded: Alexander Alexandrov, Sergei Baskov, Alexander Zhukov, Vera Mayorova, Ivan Moskatinyev, Dmitry Rachkin, Yuri Roy, Vasily Titov, and Yuri Ugolnikov.

- 65 years ago, Yuri Gagarin uttered his legendary "Let's go!", securing for our country the status of the first space power. This year, Space Week was held for the first time by presidential decree. On behalf of the industry, I thank the head of state for such support. Our goal is to show society the importance of space for everyday life. Satellite navigation, weather forecast, and television broadcasts are all based on space technology. Space is closer than it seems," Dmitry Bakanov, Director General of the Roscosmos State Corporation, said from the stage.

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Piano flights and ballet with a robot

Before the concert, the hall was enveloped in cosmic darkness, through which animated portraits of Konstantin Tsiolkovsky, the founder of theoretical cosmonautics, the legendary designer Sergei Korolev and his associates were projected onto the stage as if from a scattering of stars.

And then another living legend rose to the stage — 96-year-old Alexandra Nikolaevna Pakhmutova. Together with her husband Nikolai Dobronravov, they had been friends with Yuri Gagarin for many years. And while rare archival photographs were projected on the screen, Pakhmutova played her own composition "The Stars are getting Closer", performed by Polina Gagarina, on the piano.

Among the guests of the evening is the first female cosmonaut Valentina Tereshkova. Her flight lasted three days. During this time, it made 48 orbits around the Earth and flew about 1.97 million km. The audience greeted the space "Seagull", as it was nicknamed during the flight on the Vostok-6 spacecraft back in 1963.

All the numbers of the evening, of course, were devoted to space. Jony sang his hit "Comet", Yulia Savicheva sang the song "High", which made her famous, and then Julia Peresild, who led the whole evening with actor Sergey Burunov, performed "Echo of Love". For Yulia, this is also a professional holiday: five years ago, she went to the ISS to shoot several scenes for the film "The Challenge."

Dmitry Malikov performed the Piano Concerto No. 1 by Pyotr Tchaikovsky, Sergei Korolev's favorite composer, literally floating above the stage on special winches, followed by Yulianna Karaulova with the song "Beyond the Orbit".

A separate chapter of the evening was the story of those who volunteered to go to the free zone. When Grigory Leps sang the song "Thank you guys" in memory of the fallen soldiers, the audience rose from their seats again instantly.

Few people know that with the light hand of cosmonaut and the first man to walk into outer space, Alexei Leonov, everyone involved had a tradition — to watch the "White Sun of the Desert" before each flight. The iconic song from Vladimir Motyl's movie was performed by Alexander Marshal along with the audience.

No less amazing than Malikov's flight at the piano was the dance of Denis Rodkin, the premiere of the Bolshoi Theater, with a three-meter space instrument. There was also the main hit of recent years — the song "Mother Earth" performed by Tatiana Kurtukova and accompanied by a folk ensemble. Alexey Vorobyov performed another composition by Alexandra Pakhmutova "Tenderness".

And in the end, cosmonauts Sergey Mikaev, Sergey Kud-Sverchkov, Andrey Fedyaev sent greetings to the earthlings directly from the comic station and closed the evening with a drum roll and the legendary hit of the group "Earthlings". Six and a half decades ago, Gagarin's voice sounded over the planet, and today his "Let's go!" has become an unspoken motto for everyone who chose space as their profession.