"Attempting to indoctrinate the public into a new society, the Soviets staged "show trials" - legal trials that incorporated theatrical elements such as coached defendants, memorized confessions, and grueling interrogatory "rehearsals." This genre of legal drama, originating in socialist theater and cinema of the 1920s, moved from mass public spectacles to the courtroom as the Soviets sought to effect ever greater social transformations.".

"In this provocative interdisciplinary study, Cassiday shows how the trials deliberately used avant-garde drama and cinema to educate the citizenry about the new social order. She explores the ways Soviet courtrooms incorporated theatrical and cinematic elements - including such techniques as costuming, scripting, editing, and the framing of scenes - and turned public trials into vehicles for propaganda.

Drawing on a variety of popular media from the 1920s, she reveals the origins of the show trials' melodramatic legal discourse built around confession, repentance, and pleas for reintegration into Soviet society." "The Enemy on Trial will engage a wide audience interested in drama, film, propaganda studies, and Soviet culture."--BOOK JACKET.