Hundreds of people have gathered to watch a live performance online on a Saturday night in Moscow. That’s become normal under the city’s strict coronavirus lockdown rules, but this is no Swan Lake.
Four women have tied a man to a plastic-covered mattress in a sparsely decorated room. He wears nothing but a black face mask, a leather collar, underwear and suspender tights.
As industrial techno music intensifies in the background, the lingerie-clad women take turns pouring hot candle wax onto his chest as he writhes in a mix of pain and pleasure. One of the women then pulls and rubs the wax off his chest with black-latex-gloved hands.
This is one of Russia’s first Zoom orgies, organized by the capital’s Kinky Russia movement.
In pre-coronavirus times, the group organized themed kinky sex parties that encouraged sexual exploration in a judgment-free, consent-driven environment.
But with large gatherings prohibited across Russia due to the pandemic, Kinky Russia has embraced the now-ubiquitous video conferencing platform to give its community a way to stay connected and explore sexuality while respecting social distancing.
“[Before quarantine started] there was a party scheduled, so we decided to rethink it rather than cancel,” Kinky Russia co-founder Tanya Dmitriyeva told The Moscow Times.
“We organized a live virtual reality transmission of a party rehearsal that we managed to hold literally a day before the quarantine. Participants had a real performance to watch, plus there were different options to connect online, chat, flirt, etc.”
Since then, the group has been organizing Zoom orgies every one or two weeks, with hundreds of people showing up to each event.
Much like the in-person Kinky Party experience, guests can visit several “rooms” featuring different people and performers. Saturday’s event, which began with the hot wax “ritual,” also featured a performance from Maxim Kalahari — an artist specializing in Shibari Japanese rope torture — as well as a burlesque show by Kinky Russia co-creator Blanche de Moscou.
Other frames showed individuals, couples or groups performing different kink or BDSM acts, dancing to the live DJ set or just watching the performances and talking to fellow guests in Zoom chat.
Party guests are asked to wear a “sexy and extravagant” costume, typically lingerie or BDSM gear. Many also wear masks, either of the Venetian carnival variety or the medical type that has become pervasive these days. Most guests choose to participate without their video on.
If multiple guests or groups decide they want to explore their desires together, they can ask to use one of several private “rooms” within the Zoom call.
“I really like it here,” said Yekaterina, a first-time participant who wore a black lace mask over her eyes. “Sex and everything connected with it is an integral part of my personality. I’ve finally found like-minded people.”
Longtime Kinky Party-goer Kirill, who wears a carnival mask that covers the left half of his face, echoed her feelings.
“I like the online experience, especially today,” he said. “The main thing is there’s more beauty. Kinky is such a comfortable carnival space, here you can be anything and feel free.”
Whether in-person or online, Kinky Russia’s events are based on the group’s core principles of consent, openness, equality and respect for each other’s boundaries. A “Kinky Police” moderator both enforces the rules and banters with guests in the chat box to maintain a lively atmosphere.
To attend a Zoom orgy, guests must provide their names, ages and a brief description of why they want to attend so organizers can ensure the party will be made up of people who are on the same wavelength. Admission costs 1,000 rubles, or about $13.
Controls for Kinky Party’s less frequent themed Zoom parties — recent ones have focused on animals and “Eyes Wide Shut” — are tighter, with guests required to provide a social media link so organizers can conduct a digital “face control.”
Trust is another key element at the group's online sex parties. While taking screenshots or recordings is strictly forbidden, there’s no way for organizers to completely prevent this from happening.
And even with the technical difficulties like audio issues and lagging video quality that can be common in large Zoom events, Dmitriyeva says Kinky Party’s community is coming back for more.
“The community takes virtual parties surprisingly well,” she said. “People are active and playful online while still following our ethical rules, which is extremely important since [being] online gives even more privacy on one hand, and even more freedom on another.”
Courses and workshops
Kinky Russia has also moved its Kinky Practice courses and workshops about sexual and BDSM practices online, allowing Russians to learn how to safely explore their kinks without requiring them to leave their homes.
The use of video platforms like Zoom and Skype for sex parties has gained momentum since the coronavirus pandemic first forced millions into self-isolation. Private sex clubs in New York and London pioneered digital orgies, and Russia has followed their lead.
While Zoom technically bans “displays of nudity ... pornography and sexually explicit material” in its Acceptable Use Policy and has said it uses tools including machine learning to root out violations, Kinky Party’s online events have managed to take place without any crackdowns.
Kinky Party’s organizers say its Zoom orgies are unique in that they’re not just about the sex, but about supporting its community during an uncertain era and giving them something to look forward to on weekends in lockdown.
“The worst thing that quarantine has done to people is separation, dissociation,” Dmitriyeva said.
“It’s depressing, especially when you're not able to keep your normal life routine. We care about our customers, so we do everything we can to keep them busy and entertained during these harsh times.”
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