Ekaterinburg is a city where you can endlessly admire constructivism, industrial beauty, modern ballet and shuttle between fashionable bars and cafes. In the fourth guide, Beat Weekend reveals the best places for walks, dates, art therapy and gastronomic experiences.
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Wood: see the city from all sides
The Dynamo sports complex is a charming monument of constructivism. The building looks like a blue and white ship that is about to land on the shore. From here you have a wonderful panorama of the city center: for example, the Iset Hotel, the Yeltsin Center and the futuristic crystal tower designed by Norman Foster for the Russian Copper Company.
VIZ district – Yekaterinburg industrial vibe at maximum speed. There are many textured historical buildings and a pleasant pond. For the most persistent lovers of shabby romance, we advise you to go to the “Green Island”. About 40 minutes from Vizovsky Pond, but you get a quiet and truly green place for an unplanned romantic walk.
Mood: look into the “Yeltsin Center”
The Yeltsin Center is a monumental museum about the era of the 1990s, but this is not the only reason to stay here for half a day. In the gigantic space you can watch a great movie, study Ural artists, drink coffee, close the carbohydrate window and even move into your own residence with the best view of Yekaterinburg.
Here are a few more specific highlights: in the “Art Gallery” Russian art is often mixed with works of Western superstars (for example, Leonardo da Vinci), in the “Piotrovsky” bookstore there is an excellent selection of unusual non-fiction, in the “Public Market” they sell vinyl records, comics, vintage clothing, ceramics and ecoglitter.
Mud: photograph Tima Radi’s street art
The artist Tim Radya is an unofficial symbol of Yekaterinburg and a friend of the Beat team (in 2020 we placed his work Future on the posters of the Moscow festival). Alas, in recent years, Radi’s facilities in Yekaterinburg have been dismantled one after another. You have an amazing opportunity to see in person the inscription “Who are we, where are we from, where are we going?” on the roof of the Ural Instrument-Making Plant before it is demolished.
If you’re in Yekaterinburg in winter, you’ll see the New Year’s lampshades that Radya hangs on the lanterns near the Opera House. The ex-editor of the local The Village, Alexey Shakhov, will tell you even more about street art. On his social networks you can sign up for a tour of guerrilla street art, learn all the urban legends and get into the most secluded corners.
Mud: organize your own bar festival
“Gem” is the main party place created by Beat Weekend coordinators Slava Dushin and Sasha Elsakov. The founders modestly call “Gem” a bar, although in reality all the noisy parties, concerts, swaps, and gastronomic evenings take place here. Drink – distillates and branded tinctures.
Continue your personal bar-hopping festival further: “Collective” – specialists in alcoholic and non-alcoholic cocktails, “Nelson Soven” – beer, ciders and meads, Shalom Shanghai – a cycle of gin, champagne and bourbon. Syndrome – guitar music and a cool selection of craft beer, Sekta – a two-story bar with an impressive collection of organic, biodynamic and natural wine.
Mud: go on a gastro trip
Ekaterinburg is a city with a highly developed gastronomy. You can try anything: from crusty kebab and standard shawarma to fashionable bowls, hand rolls and original variations of cutlet with mashed potatoes. Below are some favorites that are consistently tasty and atmospheric.
“Nigora” is a colorful Uzbek chain (on weekends you will have to stand in line for pilaf and lagman). “Soyka” – Pan-Asian cuisine in a stunningly beautiful mansion (take the tasting set to try all the hits at once). “Gorozhane” is a gastropub with very inventive cuisine (it’s better to book a table for breakfast in advance). “Mangalych” is a cult shawarma shop in the Uralmash area (don’t hesitate and take the king size).
Mood: watch modern ballet
The Opera and Ballet Theater is one of the most ambitious theater venues in Russia. Here they show canonical classics in the spirit of the operas of Mozart, Tchaikovsky and Wagner, as well as progressive ballet productions with unusual scenography, costumes, scenery and approach to choreography.
Artistic director Slava Samodurov previously danced in the troupes of the Mariinsky Theater, the National Ballet of the Netherlands and the Royal Ballet of Great Britain, and also collaborated with the Bolshoi. The façade and interior of the theater are luxurious in the Viennese Baroque style. Dress to the nines and go watch the play “The King’s Order,” for which Samodurov received the “Golden Mask.”
Mood: find crazy art in the cinema
Zarya is an old cinema in a Stalinist high-rise building that is trying to turn into an underground cultural center. For a long time, they simply showed diverse films (including those from the Beat Weekend program), but recently the young leadership decided to marry canned Soviet aesthetics with modern art.
An improvised exhibition space has been created in the foyer, in which the works of Ekaterinburg’s greatest artists are exhibited – here there are graphics, paintings, and modern sculpture. The local media dubbed the work “trash,” but in fact it all looks quite touching. Come watch a movie and take spectacular photos against the backdrop of art objects.
Beat Weekend coordinators Slava Dushin and Sasha Elsakov helped us create this guide. Send them a heart.
