Whose life is a theater: they said goodbye to actor Vladimir Simonov in Moscow

Pop star and favorite of all women Vadim Glinsky from "The Border. The Taiga Novel", the rector from the TV series "House Arrest", Minetti and Othello from the performances of the same name at the Vakhtangov Theater: the work of People's Artist Vladimir Simonov was remembered on November 12 in Moscow. The actor died a few days earlier due to health problems at the age of 68, unexpectedly as a blow to both fans and colleagues. On the last day, the artist was escorted to his native Vakhtangov stage. About how Simonov managed to change the mood of the audience, as well as about his subtle sense of humor and mutual banter with Makovetsky — in the Izvestia report from the farewell ceremony.

"He could change the mood of the audience with one word, one look"

On the day of the farewell, it was as if the sky was mourning the People's Artist of Russia Vladimir Alexandrovich Simonov. The bad weather, however, did not become an obstacle for his many fans, who hurried through the rain along the Arbat to give their beloved actor their last round of applause and leave flowers. On the screens along the facade of the Vakhtangov Theater, where Simonov served for many years, he was greeted by portraits of him in images from performances. The central one is Minetti from the production of the same name, for which he was awarded the Crystal Turandot.

— This is the most powerful hero! — said Dmitry Trubochkin, professor, assistant artistic director of the Vakhtangov Theater. — He could change the mood of the audience with one word, one look. An amazing man! The combination of physical strength, kindness, trustfulness and openness gave him a reason to play anyone. This is the basic feeling that was brought up in the Vakhtangov school.

Condolences were received by Vladimir Simonov's family — his last wife, Yana Sobolevskaya, and his sons, Vladimir and Vasily. All of them serve in the troupe of the Vakhtangov Theater. Numerous colleagues came there to say goodbye, including artists Viktor Dobronravov, Alexey Guskov, Lyudmila Maksakova, Yulia Rutberg, Sergey Makovetsky.

"I really don't like what's happening on stage right now,— Makovetsky snapped. — Vladimir Alexandrovich Simonov is my comrade, my wonderful friend. On September 1, 2026, it will be 50 years since we met and lived for four years in the same room in the dormitory of the Shchukin Institute, where we studied in the course of Alla Kazanskaya. We went to the theater together, played in the same plays with him, and starred in movies. And now it feels like a piece of my soul has been torn off abruptly, unexpectedly.

Together they worked in the hit theater "Uncle Vanya", where Simonov had the role of retired professor Serebryakov, and Makovetsky plays Voynitsky. Another joint performance is the philosophical comedy "Amphitryon" by Moliere, where the first was a servant, the second was a commander. Improvisation was a special pleasure for the partners here.

— We teased each other every time, in a good way. Teasing doesn't mean putting an actor in an awkward situation, but offering a very serious version of the game and watching how he responds. We were like two tennis players, one giving, the other taking. Volodya Simonov is a virtuoso actor who knows how to play both comedy and drama,— concluded Sergey Makovetsky.

Theater culture is in the blood

Vladimir Simonov played on various stages, but was devoted to the Vakhtangov Theater. He joined the famous troupe in 1980.

— I think it was a conscious choice, — said Kirill Krok, the director of the theater. — There was a moment when he left for the Chekhov Moscow Art Theater. I worked there for several seasons, but realized that it probably wasn't his after all. I returned back to Vakhtangovsky. This is his destiny. He grew up here and established himself as an artist here.

He served not for a salary and recognition, but because he could not imagine life without the theater. The culture of the theater, the guests of the ceremony said, was in his blood.

— Volodya played the main role in my play "Othello", and during the work we became very close friends. And you know, he played Othello, who didn't strangle Desdemona, but loved her. He held her in his arms," director Evgeny Marcelli recalled an unusual detail in an interview with Izvestia. — Volodya is an amazing artist with a surprisingly subtle sense of humor. It even seemed to me that humor was his form of life.

The humor was combined with something else-deep and even sad. A tragic comedian, says Elena Sotnikova, Honored Artist of Russia, about Simonov's role.

"Something prevented him from living, he was overwhelmed by thoughts about life and death, about our stay on this earth,— says Elena Sotnikova. — This is a big loss for the Vakhtangov Theater. In Moscow, there is no such individuality, the scale of an actor anymore. Volodya Simonov, along with our older comrades of the generation of Yuri Yakovlev, Mikhail Ulyanov, Yulia Borisova, I could call a great artist.

Despite his employment in the theater, Simonov also found time for films — he acted a lot. There are one and a half hundred roles in the track record. The viewer, for example, will easily remember his university rector and the lover of the heroine Marina Alexandrova in "House Arrest" and his famous singer and favorite of all women Vadim Glinsky in "The Border. A taiga novel." Such an early departure came as a surprise and a blow to many.

— As Bulgakov said in "The Master and Margarita": "Man is mortal, but that would be half the trouble. The bad thing is that sometimes he suddenly dies, that's the trick!" And Volodya left suddenly, it's a shock for all of us," said People's Artist Yuri Shlykov. — He complained that he got tired quickly, but no one ever pays attention to it. We all get tired, we work a lot. But it turns out that he had such a heart disaster.

We said goodbye to Vladimir Simonov to the accompaniment of music from the plays in which he played. This is the last time the artist has been on this stage. He left her for the last time to a standing ovation from the audience. The curtain came down.