I’m intrigued by this Youtube video. It’s a video of a “flashmob,” taken February 26, 2012 in Moscow’s Sparrow Hills (right here, via Googlemaps); they’re dancing to a remix of “Puttin’ on the Ritz” (by Taco or Irving Berlin, depending on the length of your memory).
The reason why I’m intrigued, and the reason I put “flashmob” in quotes, is because the production values of this little video are pretty high. I thought a “flashmob” was an unorganized, grassroots group of people who independently arrive someplace and do whatever-dance to a remix of “Puttin’ on the Ritz,” for example. But wow, this looks pretty choreographed, and there are multiple cameras filming it (including one on a helicopter!).
One possible clue is that the last couple repetitions of the refrain, at the end of the video, are changed from “Puttin on the Ritz” to “Putin molodyets!” (Good job, Putin!) Another is that the wedding party seems to be intentionally included in the whole spectacle, much to the delight (and surprise?) of the bride.
So… What is the story behind this Russian “flashmob” event? Who paid for it, who are the performers, who’s the bride? (Here’s an earlier thread about this video, and it does contain some speculation, but it doesn’t really answer my question.)
It’s strikes me that it’s like Improv Everywhere events like “Food Court Musical”: the performers have practiced their parts, while the bystanders don’t have any warning about what’s going on. Clearly the dancers in this one needed to rehearse, but it’s also obvious that the audience has no idea what’s happening and is consistently surprised about how things unfold.
The question is whether the bride is a setup or not. It doesn’t look to me that she expected any of this, though it’s likely it was set up by others involved with the wedding as a surprise.
The definition of “flash mob,” can be pretty fluid. I think it would be expected that the dancers have practiced their parts, and that the whole event took considerable planning (witness the variety of camera angles and excellent video production). Inasmuch as the bystanders were unaware of what was happening, and it happened “instantly” and “out of nowhere” (as far as the bystanders were concerned), IMO it counts as a legit flash mob.
Here is a completely faked flash mob at Disneyland. The crowd loved it.
The high production values, the obvious skill of the dancers and the large number of people all point to some sort of organization being behind it. I could see it being a dance school, a corporation or a political group.
The Putin lyrics suggest the government put it on. The inclusion of soldiers reinforces that.
At least some (if not all) of the bystanders in this particular video were in on it. Here’s the casting call (in Russian). It’s by Бигленс (Biglens) agency for three groups of people: dancers, bystanders (with cameras, cell phones, etc), and passersby.
In the other thread linked in the OP, Greg Charles asked whether the bride is a Russian celebrity, because people “seemed to be chanting “Olga, Olga” at the end.” They’re chanting горько (bitter), which is a wedding tradition. When people shout “bitter” the newlyweds are supposed to kiss.
"One possible clue is that the last couple repetitions of the refrain, at the end of the video, are changed from “Puttin on the Ritz” to “Putin molodyets!”
Also they changed the words “Trying hard to look like Gary Cooper” to “Trying not to look like Gary Cooper.”