Theaterisation in Russian choral art of the second half of the XXth century touched upon the work concept as well as the individual composer's style and performance staff. The search for musical solutions is aimed not only at giving birth to the new, but also at appealing to the artistic experience of previous eras. In this sense, particularly interesting are works that synthesize the diversity of cultural and historical paradigms. Such samples include the "Madrigal" cycle for mixed choir a cappella by Anatoly Ushkarev (1928–2008). Several aspects of composition were studied: its literary source, dramaturgy, genre and style features. It is emphasized that the plot of the poetic source is built by moving from the gloomy images of unrequited love and death to the bright themes of happiness, the victory of life over death. The broad semantic field of the poetic basis becomes an impulse to polyphonize all means of musical expression. It is noted that the architectonics of the work appears in the form of three "cycles in a cycle" with a preface and an afterword. Each part acts as a "character" in a choral "theatre of polyphonic miniatures". In conclusion, it is emphasized that the genre-style elements of choral composition appear as an update within the canon.