The "Miracle" of the Russian Revolution: The Mystery Play in Early Soviet Culture.

This article examines the early Soviet theatre productions (circa 1918–1921) that incorporated Christian imagery and the medieval mystery play form despite the Soviet Union's official atheism. Focusing on Vladimir Mayakovsky's *Mystery Bouffe* and early Soviet mass spectacles, it explores how these works used the mystery play's ritualistic and communal aspects to foster revolutionary consciousness and socialist ideology through theatrical spectacle. The analysis highlights the paradoxical coexistence of spiritual and material elements, showing how Soviet theatre appropriated a European Christian tradition to create a new, avant-garde theatrical model that blended religious symbolism with Marxist themes. This intersection reveals the complex role of religion and spirituality in early Soviet modernism and the political use of theatre as a tool for collective identity and propaganda.