In the works of Anton Pavlovich Chekhov one can find works on any topic. The Russian classic created in his stories a real encyclopedia of Russian life. In them you can get acquainted with the topics of politics, art, creativity, religion. And, of course, the writer could not help but pay attention to the topic of relationships between men and women. The performance Chekhov's Women will present to the attention of guests a staging of several Chekhov miniatures early period classic creativity. The director of the production, Yakov Lomkin, was able to masterfully convey the comedy and unique atmosphere of Chekhov’s works.
The pictures unfolding on stage will be of interest to both beautiful ladies and male spectators. After all, in the center of each stage history- a story about a difficult female share. Everyone knows that many women dream of happiness and eternal love, about a handsome prince and a cozy home. And in order to achieve these goals, the heroines of the play are ready to go to great lengths. This gives rise to many exciting situations - funny and a little sad. The ladies appear in all their inimitable charm, vulnerability, extravagance, which gives the performance a special lyricism.
Of course, where we're talking about about the ladies, men cannot help but appear. A number of colorful characters pass before the audience. Some of them are examples of male gallantry and good manners, while others demonstrate not the best best sides masculine nature. In this contradiction, in this eternal misunderstanding of women by men, tragicomic situations are born. Wonderful scenography and brilliant acting turn the production into an unforgettable spectacle. To enjoy the miniatures of the classic, you should definitely buy tickets to the play Chekhov's Women.
Maria Kulikovskaya reviews: 41 ratings: 41 ratings: 14
When I went to this performance, I didn’t expect much, because I understood that graduates of the Raikin school were involved in it. I also understood that Yakov Lomkim is a master, but not a magician. However, I was very surprised by what I saw! Apparently, Yakov is a wizard after all. This performance is such a treat! Honestly, this is many times cooler than “Pokrovsky Gates”, both in terms of acting, and in terms of the overall impression, and in terms of the integrity of the production. Yes, yes, in integrity! Despite the fact that this is a collection of Chekhov's stories. They are so harmoniously connected, intertwined, that they create a single story. The impression is truly colossal! Mainly, of course, from the work of the director. Very beautiful, impressive, but soulful, like a classic, but sounds modern. In general, everything is as Yakov knows how to do: mix everything, shake it slightly and give an unusually cool result of 5+! I was much more surprised by the performance of some actresses - they deserve special applause! And in general, everyone was very successful in their roles, everything was in its place. But most importantly, this performance became a delight for my heart, which yearned for Yakov’s performance. Main value, the main thing is happiness, main paint this performance! How good he is! What a decoration each of his images is! Especially Shtral! Great! A acting director or an actor... No matter what Yakov calls himself, “a rose smells like a rose, whether you call it a rose or not” (c). Eh, more often!... The combination of these two creative sides of his personality is wonderful and precious! I really want to see this performance again, at least once, with the same cast!
Svetlana Orlova
Thank you very much for the play “Chekhov’s Women”! On May 29, the last showing of this wonderful performance took place in this half-year. The artists performing in this performance are artists with thousands of faces! They are not only highly professional, they are inimitable and unique! They can be funny and absurd, funny and touching, lyrical and tragic. There are no stars in it - and everyone is a star. The same actors participate in different “pieces” of the performance, demonstrating the most different sides of their talent. The performance amazes with its well-coordinated, polished ensemble performance, which, however, does not “extinguish” the acting individuality of any of its participants. While playing, the actors infect each other with their temperament, relaxedness, and the happiness of their very existence on stage. All artists confidently control their body and voice, using the means of expressiveness of the square theater, the traditions of clowning and buffoonery.
Creativity of A.P. Chekhov (and above all the early A.P. Chekhov) can most accurately (in my opinion) be interpreted artistic means precisely this theater: the theater of masks and carnival. A.P. Chekhov, as you know, created many stories about women whom he knew very well. Chekhov's women are also creative people who choose all the risks and dangers of a free existence (Nina Zarechnaya); and vulnerable, subtle souls who are defeated in the battle of life (Misyus, Sonya from “Uncle Vanya”, Marusya from “Belated Flowers”). But A.P. Chekhov wrote with great pleasure (and knowledge of the matter) about women who combine a variety of qualities: vivacity, sobriety, prudence, and at the same time fear, vulnerability, timidity, dependence are discernible in them... At the same time, they are no less interesting and no less desirous of happiness and love. Theater director Y. Lomkin, who created the play “Chekhov’s Women” with graduates of K. A. Raikin’s experimental acting course, was interested in this particular type.
The actors have an excellent command of all “colors”: they are capable of grotesque, irony, and piercing lyricism. Actress Anna Rytova is magnificent in the role of the “mysterious nature” (A. Chekhov’s story of the same name from 1883). The sharp, expressive, virtuosic portrayal of the role she created testifies to her bright, extraordinary talent. When building the image of her heroine, the actress uses eccentric, even farcical techniques. Her acting talent was created specifically for such a colorful, “spectacular”, “carnival” theater. But at the same time it is obvious that she is subject to deep dramatic roles: This actress doesn’t have a “ceiling”. Her partner, Bagrat Melkumyan, is memorable, instantly reacting to every remark of his interlocutor with a magnificent pantomime. The heroine of the story by A.P. Chekhov's "Which of the Three?" (1882) Nadya, performed by Veronica Gurdus, is both calculating and simple-minded, cunning and naive. It's interesting to watch how she leads her party, trying to keep her close to her and possible groom, and a lazy lover. In her one can discern both a carefree girl who can’t decide to part with her youth, and an emerging woman who is just beginning to comprehend the full drama of existence in this world. Really, it’s hard to call her cynical!
The story of A.P. is solved in a completely different key. Chekhov's "Summer Resident" (1884), which is "performed" by an "ensemble" of two people - Maria Kovalskaya and Zarina Mukhitdinova. Both actresses perform their roles beautifully (complex both plastically and psychologically) - with piercing lyricism and the finest nuances. A.P. pronounces the sad, largely hopeless text very accurately. Chekhova M. Kovalskaya. The actress’s gaze into the distance is memorable, as if trying to discern “through a magic crystal” her life, her future.
This is how the performance moves forward, maintaining a balance between lyricism and buffoonery. The actors demonstrate excellent mastery of the entire arsenal of acting tools inherent in the mask theater. They run, jump, tumble, do all sorts of tricks, acrobatic sketches...
There is no doubt that the creators of the play "Chekhov's Women" inherited a theatrical tradition dating back to the theater of masks dell'arte, the theater of farcical buffoonery and circus clownery, adopted and developed by Vsevolod Meyerhold, Evgeny Vakhtangov, Arkady and Konstantin Raikin. As befits the artists of this theater school, they can change masks indefinitely.
But the most interesting thing happens when the soul emerges from under the mask... Do you want to make sure? Go and watch the play "Chekhov's Women"!!!
Elena Nesterova reviews: 1 ratings: 1 rating: 1
I agree with all the positive and glowing reviews that were written above, but, as a journalist and critic, I would like to add a few words. Moving slightly away from the performance itself, I would like to share modern world theater on several positions - spiritual, consumer and pathetic-output. If you find other words in the Russian language to define categories - our soul, our reality and our dreams. Chekhov's Women certainly falls into the first category. This performance is a rare miracle!!! Surprise, admiration, laughter and time that slips through your fingers so quickly. A man, a fusion of two halves, multiplied by the talent of the actors and director Yakov Lomkin. Dear theater-goers, don’t miss this performance. Like pieces of a patchwork quilt, brightly and skillfully, the stories of A.P. Chekhov replace each other. With minimal decorations, the stage radiates incredible energy. The actors, immersed in their roles, give the viewer everything that their warm hearts hold.
Reading Chekhov at school, few can imagine how modern and sensual his words can sound in modern scene.
I can advise you, dear readers, to become spectators. And I'm sure you won't regret it.
And one more thing, perhaps the most important. After leaving the theater, a piece of the actors’ love and love for their audience will remain in your heart. And you will want to come back to say - Bravo! So stock up on flowers and kind attitude to the great world of theater in the form of the play “Chekhov’s Women”.
Book by Donald Rayfield "The Life of Anton Chekhov"- one of his most discussed biographies. I read very different reviews of it - the film critic Medusa included it among the books that are not harmful for schoolchildren to read in order to understand Russian classics, and a reviewer of one popular publication burst out with an angry article on the topic “hands off Chekhov, vulgar people.” I have long wanted to read it, because Anton Pavlovich is my favorite writer, and I was never particularly interested in his biographies, I only read the correspondence - and then only that which was included in the collected works of the middle of the last century. And finally, with the third approach, I almost finished this voluminous work - I’m sharing some impressions.
1. The reviewer of Medusa, of course, is a humorist - I can’t imagine an ordinary schoolchild who, for the sake of understanding the classics, will master this book, which is never laconic. In my reader it takes up almost 3000 pages - for example, the 7th Harry Potter has about 1800 pages. In general, for those who want something “fried”, it is enough to read excerpts from the book; it is not at all necessary to read the entire book for this. However, I also don’t agree about “dirty hands” - I can’t imagine a Chekhov connoisseur who will be disappointed in him after reading this biography. He has very honest works that give a very clear idea of the author's views on life.
Chekhov with his sister and brothers
2. There is not so much obscene language in the book as I expected judging by some reviews. Or do I have high expectations syndrome? But all the details of the life of Chekhov and his huge family and circle of friends are beyond the roof. Sometimes it’s even too much - it’s quite hard to wade through the letters or notes of the same father Anton, listing what needs to be bought in the store, how the cook behaves badly, the roof is leaking, and the yard dogs have become obnoxious. Actually, because of these endless details, I abandoned the book the first time, and then I simply began to skip some letters, although some things really help to understand life at the turn of the century before last much more deeply. For example, money issues - let’s say the cook received 8 rubles a month, and Anton Pavlovich sold the rights to full meeting of his works to the publisher Marx for 75,000 rubles and then, as it turned out, he sold them on the price.
Lidiya Avilova
3. Let's move on to the interesting stuff - we're on the gossip site) Women. This theme runs like a red thread through the entire biography, although I will be fair - the biographer paid enough attention to Chekhov’s relationships with publishers, the theater, his social work and relationships with other writers - Leo Tolstoy, Gorky, Bunin, etc. But let's get back to the ladies. An attentive reader of Chekhov's works has already understood everything about his attitude towards women - you definitely cannot call him a feminist. Women in his works are often stupid, depraved, not very decent, hypocritical and hysterical. No, there is also positive characters, but these are the ones that are remembered more. And he did not develop such a view of them out of nowhere - judging by this biography, Anton’s women were practically besieged most of it his life. I, of course, knew about the story of his affair with the beautiful (as was believed at that time) Lika Mizinova and vaguely remembered the unclear story of Chekhov’s marriage to Olga Knipper, but I did not expect such a ladies’ stir around the writer.
Lika Mizinova (in the preview of the post she is with Chekhov’s sister)
According to this biography, Chekhov had absolutely no desire to marry, including Knipper - and one can understand why - there were always several beautiful and interesting women, ready to maintain a romantic relationship with him without any marriage vows. Although, of course, many of them, the same Lika, repeatedly tried to persuade Anton Pavlovich to go to church, but without achieving their goal, they did not stop their romantic relationship with him. I was even somewhat shocked by such freedom of morals, because it seemed to me that more than a hundred years ago, women’s honor and so on had much more weight in society than now. And, probably, in certain circles it was so, but Chekhov moved in circles that can be called bohemian - and there everything was much freer, marriage did not at all prevent actresses, directors, writers and editors from having affairs left and right.
Chekhov with Lydia Avilova and Tatyana Shchepkina-Kupernik
Let’s say that the same Lika Mizinova, having not achieved lasting reciprocity from Chekhov, began an affair with his married friend Potapenko and gave birth to a daughter from him. And this did not become the reason that she was no longer accepted by the Chekhovs, and she even later married some playwright or director. Reading this biography, I very quickly became confused about the ladies who playfully corresponded with Chekhov and different times had affairs with him, especially since many of them appear constantly in this book, maintaining some kind of relationship with Anton - besides Mizinova, these are Lydia Avilova, Liidiya Yavorskaya, Olga Kudasova, Elena Shavrova, Natalya Lintvareva and even Vera Komissarzhevskaya. I don’t even remember the names of many, but among them there were very, very young girls who were fascinated by Chekhov for many years. And in Yalta there was even a whole flock of Chekhov’s fans, who were called “Antonovkas”.
Elena Shavrova
In general, all of Chekhov’s novels look so non-committal; it seems as if he quickly got tired of women and began to move away from them. From my, female, point of view, there is even a certain sadism visible in this - many ladies, the same Shavrova or Lika Mizinova, loved Chekhov for years, ran to him at the first call, but he did not promise them anything, on occasion he calmly replaced them with other girls, but from time to time, with ironic playful letters, continuing to support the hope of reciprocity in his admirers.
Here and in the first photo in the post, Chekhov with Olga Knipper
The story of Chekhov's marriage to Knipper is also flawed. Among all Chekhov's women, she is clearly not the most beautiful, but he liked her as an actress, he praised her acting. Olga was for a long time the mistress of the married director Nemirovich-Danchenko, and although Chekhov was really attracted to her, he did not want to marry, he was even afraid - besides, he was already seriously ill and understood that they would have to live apart for a long time - Knipper was the leading actress young Moscow Art Theater, and Chekhov could no longer afford to live long in dank Moscow due to his poor health. In addition, both his mother and his beloved sister Masha opposed the idea of his marriage, and in the biography one can clearly read how Knipper simply pressed Chekhov so that he would marry her, and not like everyone else. There was no particular benefit for Chekhov from this marriage - as a married couple, they still lived apart for a long time, which Chekhov was not happy about, although he did not demand that his wife quit the stage. Unfortunately, they did not have children, although Chekhov really wanted to.
4. Chekhov’s numerous brothers and his sister Masha are important characters in the biography; in fact, Chekhov contained huge amount their relatives and not only relatives. But it cannot be said that he was such a disinterested sponsor - sister Masha devoted her entire life to the comfort of her adored brother - for a long time she did not lose hope of getting married, but it never worked out. In her youth, when the chances were highest, Anton Pavlovich strongly objected to her marriage - it was very convenient for him that she was in charge of all family affairs. True, Chekhov helped a lot not only to his relatives, he constantly bothered for someone, paid for the education of other people’s children, built schools, collected libraries, and so on.
5. In conclusion, otherwise a lot happens - I also remember the life of the then bohemian intelligentsia. Despite all sorts of financial difficulties, they constantly rushed to Switzerland, Italy or Paris, although they were constantly in debt and mortgaged and remortgaged their estates, and children who were barely born were quickly turned off to wet nurses. I was unpleasantly struck by the story with Lika Mizinova’s daughter - in her correspondence Lika called her her new meaning in life or something like that, but when the girl became mortally ill, her mother calmly continued to wander to Moscow on her bohemian affairs - parties there, evenings, everything. For me it looks kind of wild, but maybe for the creative ladies of that time it was normal.
In general, I cannot say that this book is directly the best biography I have ever read, far from it, but in places it is quite interesting.
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