“[Kirill] Serebrennikov was charged in August 2017 with embezzling state funds at Moscow’s famous Gogol Center theater, in a case seen in the Russian artistic community as politically charged.” His house arrest, already extended once last October, was due to expire on Jan. 19. He has spoken out about Russian actions in Ukraine and Crimea, and he was the stage director of the controversial ballet about Rudolf Nureyev that premiered at the Bolshoi late last year.