PODCAST · arts
In A Certain Land
by Nicholas Kotar
You know The Brothers Grimm, but do you know the weird and whimsical fairy tales of Russia? Nicholas Kotar brings you Russia’s most beloved fairy tales as you would have heard them from a grandparent sitting near the hearth on a cozy winter evening, the wind howling outside and the courage of these heroic stories lighting a flame in your heart. Enter the world of Baba Yaga, the mysterious hag who can be both friend and foe, and follow Ivan the Idiot as he faces off against a cunning dragon with six heads. These are not stuffy, academic translations, but vividly enacted retellings from Nicholas Kotar’s 3-volume fairy tale collection, accompanied by the original music of composer Natalie Wilson. Don’t be fooled: these are not just tales for children. As Russian philosopher Ivan Ilyin reminds us, the spiritual meaning of the fairy tale is “like refined and sweet-smelling honey. If you drip it on your tongue, you’ll taste all the ineffable essence of Russia’s nature–the smell
Episodes
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The Tale of Marya Morevna, the Wondrous Queen
Prince Ivan’s three sisters marry mysterious warriors who arrive as a falcon, an eagle, and a raven. After he marries them off, he begs restless living alone and sets out to visit them. But along the way, he falls in love with Marya Morevna, a wondrous warrior queen. He marries her and they live...
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The Tale of the Wooden Eagle
A prince's reckless flight on a marvelous wooden eagle carries him into a distant kingdom, where a lonely princess is imprisoned in a tower and guarded from the world. With the help of an extraordinary invention, daring escapes, and a master craftsman's genius, this enchanting Russian fairy tale...
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Ilya Muromets Quarrels with Prince Vladimir
When Prince Vladimir's pride drives away the greatest defender of Rus, disaster follows. As King Kalin's vast army descends upon Kiev, only the aging Ilya Muromets can stand between his homeland and ruin. Yet before he can save the prince who betrayed him, Ilya must decide whether true loyalty...
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The Tale of Sukhmann the Warrior
At a feast in Prince Vladimir's court, the quiet warrior Sukhman makes a simple promise: he will return before dawn with a living swan caught by his own hands. But a chance encounter with the mighty River Dnieper leads him instead to a desperate battle against an invading army—one he must fight...
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The Wedding of Dobrynia Nikitich
Fresh from his victory over the dragon Zmei Gorynich, Dobrynia Nikitich encounters a mysterious warrior whose strength far surpasses his own. Blow after blow fails to move the stranger—until the helmet comes off, revealing not a fearsome knight, but someone far more unexpected... What follows is...
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The Tale of Nikita the Tanner
When a terrible dragon begins demanding a daughter of Kiev every month, even Prince Vladimir cannot protect his own child forever. Carried away to the monster’s distant mountain lair, the princess discovers a surprising secret: the only person the dragon fears is not a famous warrior, but a…
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The Tale of Dobrynia and the Dragon
When the legendary Ilya Muromets becomes war-leader of Kiev, not every hero is pleased. The proud and quick-tempered Alyosha Popovich openly challenges the prince's decision—but an older, wiser warrior steps forward to defend the newcomer. That warrior is Dobrynia Nikitich, and his own story...
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The Tale of Volga the Warrior Mage
Born with the power to shake the earth and master the secrets of shape-shifting, the young bogatyr Volga Vseslav'evich leads a band of fearless warriors on an impossible mission. As an enemy king prepares to invade Rus, Volga must rely on wit as much as strength, proving that the greatest heroes...
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The Tale of Ilya Muromets and Nightingale the Outlaw
Ilya Muromets leaves his parents’ home at last, armed with a warrior’s strength and a solemn oath, but the road to Kiev quickly tests both his promise and his mettle. When a great city lies under siege and the deadly Nightingale the Outlaw rules the forest roads with a whistle that can topple...
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The Tale of Ivan the Bull’s Son
A miraculous birth gives a kingdom not one Ivan, but three! Yet among prince, cook’s son, and bull’s son, only one rises first among equals: Ivan the Bull’s son, whose strength can topple boulders, outmatch dragons, and recover kingdoms lost to monsters. When the brothers ride into the deep…
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How Ilya Muromets Won Sviatogor’s Sword
In a certain kingdom, in a certain land, young Ilya Muromets rides north into the holy mountains, where the old powers of Rus still linger among thunder, stone, and cloud. He seeks the sword of the legendary giant Sviatogor—a warrior too mighty and great for the earth itself to bear. What begins…
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The Childhood of Ilya Muromets
In a certain kingdom, in a certain land, a long-awaited child is born beneath a star bright enough to shake the heavens. His name is Ilya—and though prophecies swirl around his cradle, his path to greatness proves stranger than anyone could imagine. Years of stillness, wandering sages, and a cup…
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The Tale of the Fisherman and the Fish
On the banks of the deep blue sea, an old fisherman casts his net day after day without any change to his routine. But one morning, it brings him a marvel—a golden fish with a human voice and a promise too generous to refuse. What begins as an act of kindness soon draws the fisherman into a…
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The Tale of the Magical Horse
In a certain kingdom, in a certain land, a childless old couple’s prayer is answered in the most unexpected way—by a vow, a chance meeting, and a godfather far grander than anyone could have imagined. As their son Ivan grows with uncanny speed and strength, his fate becomes bound to a horse that…
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The Prince and His Evil Servant
In a certain kingdom, in a certain land, a kind-hearted prince is cast out of his father’s court and forced to wander the world with a servant far more sinister than he appears. Along forest paths and foreign roads, bargains are struck, identities are stolen, and quiet kindness is tested against...
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The Tale of Old Frost
In a certain kingdom, in a certain land, a kind-hearted girl named Masha lives at the mercy of a cruel stepmother—and a winter far colder than she expects. Sent deep into the forest on a promise too good to be true, Masha encounters Old Frost himself, a crackling spirit of ice who tests more than...
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The Red Flower
A merchant’s quest to bring home gifts for his daughters goes terribly wrong when he plucks a forbidden red flower from a dazzling, otherworldly garden. Confronted by a monstrous Beast who demands a life in exchange, the merchant’s youngest and bravest daughter offers herself in her father’s…
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The Three Kingdoms: Copper, Silver, and Gold
When Queen Anastasia is stolen by a shadowy spirit, her youngest son Ivan sets off to find her—after his two elder brothers vanish trying. Along a sea of starlight, he meets three dove-princesses who guide him down through copper, silver, and golden kingdoms to the lair of Raven, Son of Raven.…
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The Flying Ship
In a faraway kingdom, an old couple had three sons—two clever, handsome, and vain, and one simple fool with holes in his shirt and crumbs in his beard. When the Tsar announces that whoever can build a ship that sails through both clouds and seas will win the princess’s hand, the clever brothers…
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Finist the Bright Falcon
“Finist the Bright Falcon” is a spellbinding Russian fairy tale of love, magic, and courage. When a young girl’s heart is claimed by a mysterious falcon who can transform into a handsome prince, she receives a single magical feather that can summon wonders and treasures. But envy and treachery...
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The Tale of Sister Alionushka and Brother Ivanushka
What happens when you tell your little brother not to drink from a stream filled with goats? Well… he turns into a goat, of course! Poor Alionushka tries her best to keep Ivanushka safe, but thirst, magic, and mischief get the better of them both. Before long, a king falls in love, a witch stirs…
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The Silver Platter and the Honey-Ripe Apple
Once upon a time, in a land of sunlit meadows, birch forests, and whispering winds, there lived a girl so forgotten that even her own family called her nothing but “idiot-girl.” She wasn’t beautiful or clever or graceful. At least, not in the ways that matter to people who see only with their…
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The Tale of the Tsar Bear
In a certain kingdom, a careless bargain delivers newborn twins—Prince Ivan and Princess Marya—into the claws of the mighty and terrifying Tsar-Bear. Spirited away to a kingdom beyond the mountains, the children outwit their captor again and again, aided by a falcon, an eagle, and at last a...
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The Tale of the Frog Princess
In a far-off kingdom, in a time long faded into song and silence, a king bids his sons to cast their arrows to the wind—and where the arrows fall, there they shall find their fates. The eldest finds a noble’s daughter, the second a merchant’s maid, but the youngest, Prince Ivan… finds a frog. So...
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The Tale of the White Duck
A prince and a princess are married — but their happiness is short-lived. Called away on a distant journey, the prince leaves his bride alone in her tower, with a single warning: do not leave, do not listen to wicked voices, and above all, stay safe. But grief softens resolve, and when a kindly...
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The Tale of the Juvenescent Apples and the Water of Life
When an aging king seeks the mythical apples of youth and the water of life, his boldest sons fail and vanish into enchantment. Only Prince Ivan—humble, cunning, and brave—undertakes the perilous journey beyond the thrice-nine lands. With the aid of three ancient Baba Yagas and a trio of…
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At the Pike’s Command
“At the Pike’s Command” is a classic Russian fairy tale brimming with magic, mischief, and unexpected transformation. Emelya, a lazy and carefree fool, prefers the warmth of the stove to the world beyond—until he catches a talking pike who offers him the power to make his every wish come true.…
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Vasilissa the Beautiful
When her mother dies, young Vasilissa is left with only a strange gift—a tiny doll that comes to life when fed. As her cruel stepmother turns home into a prison, the doll becomes her secret protector. But nothing can prepare Vasilissa for a terrifying journey into the dark forest, where the...
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Vasilissa the Wise and the King of Underland
When a wander-lusting king accidentally breaks the laws of hospitality when quenching his thirst, he is forced to give his only son as a hostage to a dangerous king of the underwater lands. But this prince is no pampered ninny. He understands the value of hospitality and kindness. And so he gets...
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The Chestnut Roan
Welcome to this new storytelling podcast, where Natalie Wilson and I collaborate to create a story-music experience of the Russian fairy tale that you won't hear anywhere else. This is the first episode in a new version of what used to be called In a Certain Kingdom, a podcast that was part of…
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ABOUT THIS SHOW
You know The Brothers Grimm, but do you know the weird and whimsical fairy tales of Russia? Nicholas Kotar brings you Russia’s most beloved fairy tales as you would have heard them from a grandparent sitting near the hearth on a cozy winter evening, the wind howling outside and the courage of these heroic stories lighting a flame in your heart. Enter the world of Baba Yaga, the mysterious hag who can be both friend and foe, and follow Ivan the Idiot as he faces off against a cunning dragon with six heads. These are not stuffy, academic translations, but vividly enacted retellings from Nicholas Kotar’s 3-volume fairy tale collection, accompanied by the original music of composer Natalie Wilson.
Don’t be fooled: these are not just tales for children. As Russian philosopher Ivan Ilyin reminds us, the spiritual meaning of the fairy tale is “like refined and sweet-smelling honey. If you drip it on your tongue, you’ll taste all the ineffable essence of Russia’s nature–the smell
HOSTED BY
Nicholas Kotar
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Frequently Asked Questions
How many episodes does In A Certain Land have?
In A Certain Land currently has 31 episodes available on PodParley. New episodes are automatically indexed when they're published to the podcast feed.
What is In A Certain Land about?
You know The Brothers Grimm, but do you know the weird and whimsical fairy tales of Russia? Nicholas Kotar brings you Russia’s most beloved fairy tales as you would have heard them from a grandparent sitting near the hearth on a cozy winter evening, the wind howling outside and the courage of these...
How often does In A Certain Land release new episodes?
In A Certain Land has 31 episodes. Check the episode list to see recent publication dates and frequency.
Where can I listen to In A Certain Land?
You can listen to In A Certain Land on PodParley by clicking any episode. We provide an embedded audio player for direct listening, and you can also subscribe via your preferred podcast app using the RSS feed.
Who hosts In A Certain Land?
In A Certain Land is created and hosted by Nicholas Kotar.
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