“One of the most extraordinary events involving Russian contemporary music and theater. A powerful statement about love and loss.” - NEWSru (Russia)
SOS (The Song of Songs) is the film adaption of a staged cantata for 14 singers, two readers, percussion, and a telegraph key. A collaboration between Russian visual and performance artist Vera Martynov and composer Alexey Sysoev, this hybrid performance work featuring soloists of the acclaimed Intrada Vocal Ensemble directed by Ekaterina Antonenko has been re-conceived as a media installation presented on video. New performance footage and audio tracks recorded in Moscow in September 2020 are interwoven with Martynov’s design of lush visual elements themed around memories of childhood, travel, and the confines of quarantine. SOS takes its name from the worldwide standard Morse code signal of distress, and draws from the poetic Old Testament text, Solomon’s Song of Songs.
Digital version of SOS is produced by Mart Foundation with support from documentary platform Nonfiction.film.
Major support for BAC’s production of SOS is provided by Trust for Mutual Understanding.
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Vera Martynov
Vera Martynov is a Russian visual artist and director. Since 2016, she has served as curator of the New Space of the Theater of Nations in addition to working as an independent artist, collaborating with various theatres, museums, and galleries. From 2012 to 2015, she was the lead stage designer at the Gogol Center and assisted its chief director, Kirill Serebrennikov, in the renovation of the theatre.

Intrada Vocal Ensemble
Intrada Vocal Ensemble (Performer), directed by Ekaterina Antonenko (Music Director), is a contemporary choir, based in Moscow, that has won acclaim for its professionalism and recognizable performing style.

Alexey Sysoev
Alexey Sysoev (Composer) is a composer and musician. He graduated from the Moscow College of Improvisational Music and has performed as a jazz pianist and participated in various jazz, electronic, and experimental music projects.
Photos: Irina Polyarnaya