Gathering of the troupe of the Sovremennik Theater

The main thing you need to know for today is that there is no artistic director in the theater, and the newly minted (recently awarded the title) People’s Artist Vladislav Vetrov has been elected the head of the artistic council of the theater, which will “rule” everyone.

As usual for years, Sovremennik was the last of the Moscow theaters to open its 67th season. The gathering of the troupe took place on the birthday of the founder of Sovremennik Oleg Efremov. This year’s novelty is the OH 95 exhibition in honor of Oleg Efremov, who would have turned 95 on October 1. Cylindrical structures, installed in several rows in the foyer, present photographs of their favorite artists to theater visitors. The main one on them, of course, is Oleg Efremov.

Among the first to arrive at the theater were representatives of the “old” guard: Lia Akhedzhakova, Vladislav Vetrov, Svetlana Ivanova, Alexander Rapoport, Alena Babenko, Ivan Stebunov, Alexander Khovansky, Elena Millioti, Sergey Girin, Lyudmila Krylova. The young people, who were brought to the theater by the ex-artistic director Ryzhakov, dispersed into the back rows.

The new director of the theater, Yuri Kravets, began gathering the troupe with a quote from Oleg Nikolayevich Efremov: “For me, the theater is a community of people living as if in one breath, professing the same ideas … several dozen minds looking for answers to life’s questions that concern everyone individually “.

Briefly, succinctly and quickly, the director announced plans for new productions by directors with whom negotiations were held in the summer and who confirmed their arrival at Chistye Prudy. Marat Gatsalov will stage “August. Osage County”, Elena Olenina is working on “Filumena Marturano”, Pavel Safonov will rehearse “The Heartbreak House”, and Daniil Chashchin is also preparing his performance.

A stormy reaction was caused by the name of Garik Sukachev, who was present in the hall, who will begin to stage “Kill Bobrykin” based on the novel by Alexandra Nikolaenko.

But the title “From the Life of Fossils” caused not only a revival, but also the laughter of some folk and honored. According to the director, all artists of the older generation will be involved in the production. And the young director Alexei Zolotovitsky was entrusted with “digging out” the dinosaurs of Sovremennik.

There are also plans for a performance for the whole family – Andersen’s fairy tale “The Flint” staged by director Artem Kuzin. Vladimir Pankov will also work at Chistye Prudy with a play based on the works of Maxim Gorky. Still in projects: Alexander Nazarov with his “Miracle of St. Anthony” and Kirill Vytyptov – no specifics yet.

The Sovremennik troupe included Victoria Tolstoganova and Olga Rodina, who received “opening” bouquets. They also greeted Vladislav Vetrov with flowers, who recently received the title of national.

The cycle “Contemporary of Sovremennik” will continue its “life” in the theater. Performances-documents in which the hero is the same age as the theater, one way or another connected with the artistic environment, generation, and the “seed” is attention to the person, personality. Now the theater has an agreement on this matter with Yuri Stoyanov.

Additional projects of Sovremennik: the Theater Support Fund was created, Alena Babenko became its director, a director’s laboratory, a podcast release, a film club and a YouTube show were conceived. In 2023, the theater will celebrate the 90th anniversary of Igor Kvasha (with an exhibition) and the 110th anniversary of Viktor Rozov, for which they will prepare a collection of plays by the playwright that were once staged at Sovremennik.

“There is a lot of work, the main priority is for the troupe to be involved as much as possible,” director Kravets escorted the theater staff into the new season with these words.

We believe that it will be interesting, intense and “advanced”, as the youth say today.

Vladimir Sabadash.

Photo by Ilya Zolkin