The play "Stories from a Suitcase" based on works by Sergei Dovlatov

In October in Israel: Leonid Taranov, an actor from the famous St. Petersburg art cellar The Stray Dog, with the one-man show Stories from a Suitcase, based on works by Sergei Dovlatov.

The Stray Dog is one of St. Petersburg’s best-known theatrical and literary spaces—a place with a unique history and atmosphere, where theater exists literally at arm’s length from the audience. Literary performances based on works by Dovlatov, Zoshchenko, Filatov, and other authors have been staged there for many years.

One of The Stray Dog’s performances, Stories from a Suitcase, performed by Leonid Taranov, will be presented in Israel for the first time this autumn.

This is the Dovlatov we know and love: funny, precise, slightly absurd, and instantly recognizable. His characters include officials, editors, black-market dealers, laborers, soldiers, and criminals—people from the recent past in whom, even decades later, it is easy to recognize familiar personalities and situations.

And all of them appear onstage thanks to a single actor.

Leonid Taranov is a master of the one-man show and transformation. Over the course of an hour and a half, he manages to portray an entire gallery of Dovlatov’s characters, moving instantly from one persona to another. But the main character remains Dovlatov himself: an observer and participant in this somewhat absurd world, telling its stories with his trademark humor.

Stories from a Suitcase has been performed for many years at St. Petersburg’s The Stray Dog. In October, Leonid Taranov will bring the show to Israel for the first time.

Onstage: Leonid Taranov
Play adaptation and direction: Honored Artist of Russia Jenny Katysheva
Musical accompaniment: Natalia Mitrofanova

Please note: the performance takes place outdoors on the grounds of an ancient monastery by the sea. Evenings by the sea can be chilly, so we recommend bringing a light shawl or something warm in case of cool weather.

Please also note that there is no bar or café on the monastery grounds.

The monastery entrance is from the Jaffa promenade, not through the Old City ✨