Drama Censorship in the Causasus (60-70s of XIX century)

Abstract

After the annexation of the Caucasus by Russia at the beginning of the 19th century, it is natural that a colonial policy was implemented in all areas in all the nations under the rule of the Russian Empire (in particular, the Caucasus County), one of the main pillars of which was the Caucasus Censorship Committee created in 1848. The Committee represented the punitive body of Tsarism, worked aside of Police and Gendarmerie and actively cooperated with them. From December 20, 1879, Dramaturgical Censorship was added to the activities of the Caucasus Censorship Committee by the Decree of the Viceroy of the Caucasus. The Committee reviewed literary works, allowed or forbade their staging in the Caucasus County, controlled its performance on stage, the complete compliance of the texts spoken by the actors with the text allowed by the Censors, the accents of the actors’ lines and their mimes during all performances and all the posters. Dramaturgical Censorship extended not only to theater plays and their texts or performances, but also to public events that could be organized in homes or in streets. After the permission from the Caucasian Censorship Committee, it was necessary for a police representative to attend all performances and events; for special seats to be allocated for them. The goal of the study is to determine the the then main principles and tendencies of the mechanisms of influence and manipulation on public opinion; and to draw appropriate conclusions.