Kolobok goes to the army....

In Udmurtia, preschoolers were shown a play about Kolobok, who not just left his grandmother, but rushed with all his might to make it to the army.

Post Editor: Mark Beygelzimer, PhD, systems analyst, head of the Trust but Verify project.

Pupils of the Kolosok kindergarten in Udmurtia (Russia) were shown a puppet show about Kolobok. The performance took place on February 6, 2025 in the preschool institution in the village of Ershovka. The play was called “Kolobok goes to the army”. In the story Kolobok tells all the animals that he is in a hurry, because he wants to serve in the army.

Here's an excerpt from the play: 

BUNNY:
Hello, sweet Kolobok!
What's your hurry, my friend?
Come and play with me,
Dance and sing a song!

KOLOBOK:
No, my dear bunny
There's no time to play with you.
I've got to hurry,
I want to serve in the army!

One might think that this is an atypical case of a ridiculous attempt by the local leadership to curry favor. But no! This is by no means the only example of propaganda of “true values” among children in modern Russia. In 2024, kindergartens in Russia held more than 200 thousand military-patriotic actions within the framework of the Federal State Program of Preschool Education (more references: ref1, ref2, ref3].

For example, in December 2024 in the Kemerovo region, a themed New Year's matinee entitled “New Year at the front, in the trenches and on the home front” was held for kindergarten children. The children were greeted by Father Frost in a soldier's overcoat.

And this photo was taken at a parade of baby carriages in Moscow (Photo: Evgeny Feldman)

And this is a poster for a children's play called "There Was a War in My Childhood" with a boy who feels unbridled joy about it and a tank that looks like a tombstone:

Editor's Comment 

What do you think: when will Russia put on a play for kids called “There was a Peace in My Childhood”?

Cover image: a fragment of a photo taken during the puppet show “Kolobok goes to the army”. Source: Echo

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