Putney puts stars in Moscow nights

British singers are heading east to entertain the elite of Moscow society after a Putney company secured a lucrative contract.

London-born cabaret artiste Susan Philip will open at the new Stanislavsky Club tomorrow.

The nightclub, which will provide Las Vegas-style reviews and extravaganzas, has been built with investment from Russian and Dutch private businesses, part of a pounds 15m furbishment project to restore the Stanislavsky Theatre to its former glory.

Under a contract expected to last two months, Ms Philip will be paid pounds 200 per show, six nights a week, in a deal negotiated by entertainment company Sternberg Clarke. The total contract for the artists is expected to be in the region of pounds 75,000. The firm also intends to book other bands to perform at the nightclub and is hoping to organise a tour of Russia for the Bootleg Beatles.

The club will cater exclusively for Western business people in the former USSR, and rich Russian clientele.

Adam Sternberg, a partner in Sternberg Clarke, admitted the club was exclusive, but insisted the signing of British artists signalled a new trend which would feed down to the rest of Russian society.

'There is a hell of a lot of money in Russia, and because people have few ways to spend, it such a nightclub will be a huge success.

'It will cater for well-off Russians, and Western business people who need somewhere other than hotels to conduct their deals and take clients for entertainment.

'It also shows that there is a sea change and more opportunities for British acts to perform in Russia.'

The Stanislavsky Theatre is named after Konstantin Stanislavsky, the originator of Method acting, a technique which has influenced many actors including Robert De Niro and Marlon Brando.