RIOT GIRLS

Pussy Riot’s defiant act of protest in February 2012 became international news when they were arrested, tried, and convicted of “hooliganism” in the band’s native Russia. Katia, Masha, and Nadia might not have realized that their balaclava-clad performance in a Moscow church would turn their actions into a movement. But not only did the explosion of their story make the word “pussy” an international printing priority for a number of conservative hard news outlets, it helped challenge Russian president Vladimir Putin’s corrupt dictatorship through a feminist punk ethos that has sparked a number of offshoot projects. One such project is the documentary Pussy Riot: A Punk Prayer, directed by Maxim Pozdorovkin and Mike Lerner. It screens outdoors tonight with New York–based Russian rock performances before the movie.

Wed., July 2, 7 p.m., 2014