Lady Macbeth of the Mtsensk District

Like a Russian Madame Bovary, Katerina is profoundly bored in the company of her husband. The arrival of a new employee, Sergei, leads her into adultery and then crime, making her more akin to Lady Macbeth. But unlike Shakespeare’s character, Katerina acts not out of a thirst for power but to satisfy urges stifled by a…