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Never in my wildest dreams did I imagine I would later be producing a childrens comedy show.
It seemed like a dream job.
In hindsight, its a remarkable story and heartbreaking to think where we are today.
I meet my production team outside the Danilov Monastery where the workshop will take place.
I watch them, imagining how much they must be sweating beneath their heavy robes.
The group proceeds in silence to the Monastery Hotel, the site of our workshop.
The temperature in the room must already be well over a hundred degrees.
Well roast like chickens, someone shouts in Russian from the back of the room.
Together, they interviewed Russian teachers and academics specializing in early childhood development.
Dr. Genina moves through the crowd, enthusiastically greeting the forty-three participants.
From across the room, she nods to me and smiles slightly.
Shes the ideal facilitator for todays discussion.
She looks nervous, as though steeling herself for the upcoming battles.
I see Misha already seated at the conference table.
Other members of my team politely engage with the academics, inquiring where they are from.
The free coffee also helps.
Shes one ofSesame Streets rising stars and a brilliant American researcher with a Ph.D. in childrens education from Harvard.
She explains the workshop will be conducted in Russian with translators interpreting for English speakers.
He screws the cap off the water bottle and takes a swig, nodding approvingly.
I laugh out loud.
Its incredible that the Orthodox Church runs a bottling plant.
Its a good business.
Most Russians consider bottled water a luxury and this blessed water is more precious than most.
Our preschoolers are much smarter than American children, he says.
We will need a more advanced curriculum for our show.
The educators on each side of him nod in agreement.
I sit quietly, aware how such a statement will sound to every American in the room.
But most of the Russian experts appear to agree with the math professor.
His poetic words evoke beaming smiles.
On the contrary, they must be proud of their country!
The educators speak at length, uninterrupted, and I sense they feel respected and valued.
Dr. Genina halts the first session at eleven oclock for a break.
Theres sadness in his voice.
Its not humane, and we shouldnt teach such ideas to children.
A preschool teacher with brown hair disagrees, Ulitsa Sezam mustinclude lessons about the free market.
Otherwise, our children will not know how to survive.
Across the table, one history expert exclaims, Business should not be a bad word in Russian.
The antipathy toward capitalism that some educators express is understandable.
Russian life expectancy has plummeted, along with teachers lifetime savings, including many in this room.
Its not surprising they are frightened.
We must not succumb to the Wests destructive obsession with capital.
The groups concern about how wealth will change their society is valid.
Natalia, a psychologist, raises her hand.
Her voice is sweet and sincere.
But our children already know all about money.
Three-year-olds in my preschool class can tell me the ruble-to-dollar exchange rate even though it changes practically every day.
She pleads, We cant just ignore it.
If we dont help them understand what a free market is, our children will be left behind.
These educators face a significant dilemma; few of them even know what a free market actually is.
Only desperate, poor people sell stuff on the street to survive and its dangerous, one educator argues.
Another admonishes, Its not right to show children trying to earn money it encourages individual greed.
I hadnt anticipated my example would provoke such reactions.
Shes well known among the other educators.
She stands up to speak.
The Russian education system is certainly in a state of crisis, she says.
We at the ministry do not have enough money to pay teachers salaries, let alone create new textbooks.
Many shift uncomfortably in their seats.
I feel grateful to Dr. Lenskaya and Dr. Genina for framingUlitsa Sezamin a positive light.
I now realize whySesame Streets research-production model and the curriculum workshop are essential to the production process.
Chary assures me that shes seen it before and encourages me to be patient.
Used by permission of the publisher Rowman & Littlefield.
Natasha Lance Rogoff is the former executive producer and codirector of Sesame Street in Russia.
