Khloponin: Northern Caucasus needs programme of cultural development

A cultural programme will promote changes in the image of Northern Caucasus and in the attitude to the region, said Alexander Khloponin, Plenipotentiary of Russian President in the North-Caucasian Federal District (NCFD), at the meeting in Vladikavkaz with members of the creative unions and religious organizations.

The "Caucasian Knot" correspondent reports that the dialogue that took place in the Russian Drama Theatre was one of the points of the working visit of Russian Vice-Premier to North Ossetia.

"Northern Caucasus should become a place of inbound tourism, and everything is in place for that," Mr Khloponin has noted. "The tremendous diversity of cultures and unique traditions of the nations are of huge interest for the people who are coming and will come to the region as tourists."

In his opinion, in the issues of culture development regional authorities should pay special attention to young promising people who possess interesting creative ideas.

"We should set up platforms in Northern Caucasus, which could become prestigious in the future and where well-known performers would dream to arrive - the region should have attraction centres of musical forces and venues for international festivals," the Plenipotentiary in the NCFD has noted.

In Mr Khloponin's opinion, the authorities should be in permanent search, together with creative unions and public organizations, of new forms and methods of promoting culture. Here, development of the state order may prove efficient.

"Maybe, it's reasonable to consider the idea of 'theatres-transformers', which are now gaining popularity among modern producers," he has offered. "Such theatre can transform into an ice arena, or some unusual podium with perfect sound, or just a theatrical stage, or even a swimming pool."

"Earlier, close ties existed between creative unions of all republics, days of national literature and arts were regular - poets, writers, composers, playwrights and painters from one republic came to present their works to other republics; the visited their neighbours and exchanged ideas. It was a good experience - we should take all the best from the past, borrow the models and adequately use them for reviving former close ties between the nations," Mr Dzantiev has added.