"Modern youth grew up in hothouse conditions, they didn't get into trouble"
If the theater is a home, as Stanislavsky bequeathed, then the actors are children. Since March 2026, People's Artist Sergei Bezrukov has more than 170 members: almost 80 people in the troupe of the Provincial Theater and 92 more actors from the Gorky Moscow Art Theater. While the latter is living with expectations of imminent changes, MGT is releasing the premiere of "The Marriage of Figaro" starring Bezrukov himself. In an exclusive interview with Izvestia, he told when the long-suffering Moscow Art Theater would work at full capacity, what precepts Oleg Tabakov had left him and why he was not going to play Count Almaviva himself.
"Don't put yourself above others"
— "The Marriage of Figaro" by Pierre de Beaumarchais is a text that you know well. 17 years ago, you and Oleg Tabakov played this play in "Tabakerka". How did the idea to put Figaro in the Provincial Theater come about?
— If you don't have Figaro in the theater, then you shouldn't take on this play. First you need to find an actor who can play him. I always think about my artists: to develop them, to try themselves in a new way. And it seems to me that this is exactly the role for Stepan Kulikov. This is a continuation of his absolutely fantastic comedic gift. He is light, funny, and at the same time an indignant "artist-mugger," as Oleg Pavlovich Tabakov said: he concocted a mug — and it's already funny. I offered Styopa to play what he might have dreamed of, but there was no such opportunity.
— Beaumarchais, as we know, Figaro is a servant of the masters. How will he appear in the new play?
— He has come a long way in life. It's not for nothing that Beaumarchais's monologue sounds at the very beginning, which, according to the plot, is in the finale — almost before the very scene in the garden. The idea to move this story about Figaro to the beginning was born in that play 17 years ago.
In our current production, we came up with a party — a kind of bachelor party before the wedding. Figaro tells such details about himself that many of his friends did not even know about. Says: "I grew up among bandits." That is, according to their concepts. And we understand who this person is. He is no longer a boy, but a wise man with life experience.
And now that joy appears — Suzanne. He wants to finally find a peaceful harbor, a family, a wife, and children. And suddenly, an event occurs that everyone knows about, but which rediscovers the hero. The play of the world repertoire is known to everyone, the audience already knows many scenes by heart. But in our story, the focus is on the characters. It's all bright and beautiful, thanks to the production's artist, Andrei Klimov. And there's a lot of my imagination here, too.
— Beaumarchais wrote about class inequality. Why is this story relevant today?
— Beaumarchais' play was banned, then allowed to be staged, and a few years later, after the triumphal march on world stages, the French Revolution took place — with the guillotine, with blood, with all the things that the playwright warned about in his play.
The story is that the privileged class should not be arrogant and perceive people as "third class". Luxury, permissiveness, depravity, narcissism, vanity — these are the vices that create the greatest gap between people. The play was relevant at all times. In the Soviet years, it was put up as a warning about the consequences of class inequality. And now, too, there is a class that has eaten up. Is not it so? There is an elite class that continues to chase brands, even those that have long since left our market. But they still get them in a roundabout way, only at completely different prices.
— Russian people love luxury.
"He loves you." But behind the passion for luxury are vanity and narcissism. All these are the same droplets that fall, fall, and then the weight reaches the floor. This was also Oleg Pavlovich's favorite expression. To prevent this weight from reaching the floor, you need to be careful. There are ordinary people living in the regions, working for the glory of the country. We are saying the obvious things, there is nothing revolutionary here.
The performance of the Moscow Satire Theater "Mad Day, or the Marriage of Figaro" based on the play of the same name by Beaumarchais with People's Artist of the RSFSR Andrei Mironov in the title role
Therefore, Beaumarchais' play was popular in the author's time, in the 19th and 20th centuries. Stanislavsky staged it, and in Soviet times it was played at the Satire Theater, where Andrei Mironov performed Figaro. All this proves that the play remains relevant. Don't put yourself above others. We are all human beings.
"I've never played such a bohemian, depraved, moody character"
— You used to play Figaro, and now you play Count Almaviva, who was once played by Oleg Pavlovich Tabakov. What is your hero like?
"My count is a moody child. He has an absolutely vile, disgusting character. He allows himself everything, but nothing for others. It's terrible, but it's fun to play. When there is a strong internal resistance to a character, new colors are born — nasty, unpleasant, but vivid. I would like to emphasize his mannerisms and sophistication. I've never played such a bohemian, depraved, moody character before. Almaviva turns out to be very bright — a narcissistic peacock, vile in its manifestations and, of course, cruel.
— Do you have any jealousy for the role that you once played yourself?
— I certainly suggest some important points to Stepa. For example, the dramatic moment of finding parents. In all the productions I've seen, it was easy, vaudevillian, laid-back. But what does it mean for a person to find parents? He's an anonymous orphan. He remembers that he was once stolen by robbers, but he does not remember his parents. And he's been looking for them for 15 years. And then the father turns out to be Dr. Bartolo, who has tried to stab you five hundred times. And the old housekeeper Marceline, who has been harassing you all the time, turns out to be your mother.
A scene from the play by Pierre de Beaumarchais "Mad Day, or the Marriage of Figaro" staged by Oleg Tabakov Studio Theater
These are the dramatic notes of the Russian psychological theater. At the same time, everything should remain funny. It's an incredibly difficult task here: you need to be funny, and the scene requires an instant reaction. Stepan moves as fast as mercury, and at the same time remains a serious artist. His mobility at the age of 40 is admirable.
— Have you taken any developments of Oleg Tabakov for your character?
— No, I'm not copying Oleg Pavlovich. I have my own vivid character. Of course, I try to make the character charming, despite all his nastiness. I even coined the term "nasty charm." That's what I wanted to emphasize. Although Oleg Pavlovich did not have this: he was always charming. His charm was so strong that the audience believed the count.
Oleg Tabakov and Sergey Bezrukov
Tabakov and I had a combination of teacher and student on stage. And all the more bitter for my hero was the situation when the teacher betrays you, starting an intrigue with your future wife. Stepa and I work almost on equal terms. I'm older, but he's impulsive, and so am I. It turns out to be a rivalry of two temperaments — sparkling and lively. Although he has a more advantageous position: he plays Figaro, the main character, and I am a negative character who sets him off.
— Several actresses from the Moscow Art Theater participated in "Frogs", your last premiere. Are there any more such launches planned?
— There are already a lot of them. We constantly have such interactions between the artists of the Provincial Theater and the Moscow Art Theater. For me, good artists are the very material that I want and need to work with. An artist should be a perfect instrument with which to stage performances in any genre. But the main thing is the development of the Russian psychological theater. We have been working in this direction at the Moscow Provincial Theater for 12 years now.
This is no different from the tasks of the Moscow Art Theater. When people tell me, "There's too big a stage, a huge auditorium," I disagree. I am a working man, a playing coach. I have created a powerful acting troupe where everyone works at a high level of emotional mobility.
"It's even worse when "stars" are invited to productions, but there are no good artists of their own"
— In the summer, you will launch the Stanislavsky Factory, where a lot of attention is paid to the educational program. Will you involve your artists in it?
— Yes, we have a lot of interesting work ahead of us. Three artists will make sketches, students and young artists from the regions will come, and there will be a separate educational program for the artists of the Moscow Art Theater. Understand, the main thing for me is a powerful acting ensemble. In an ensemble, you cannot rely solely on the performer of the main role. Even in the smallest role, there should be a professional who lives it accurately.
It's even worse when stars are invited to productions, but there are no good artists of their own, or they are out of work. I started with guest actors myself when I created the Moscow Provincial Theater, which arose through the merger of two theaters. I have such experience too, and it helps to develop. I invited artists, but then they themselves became part of our troupe. You need to raise your own stars. Although they come to us on their own — they just want to work in our team. Because a repertory theater is, first of all, one that has an acting ensemble.
— You say that you are raising your own stars. Are you letting the artists act?
"Always." There are second lineups, and I'm interested in having the artists act. We summarize the schedules, sometimes we introduce a second composition. And somewhere, for example, at the release of a play, I demand that the artist postpone all his business outside the theater. But if you meet people halfway, then they respond in kind. It's a family atmosphere. Dad said the kids were here.
— The theater is almost an axiom.
— This is exactly how Tabakov built his work. Of course, I look at my master and take an example from his family approach. We're all family, we all know each other. There is a feeling of absolutely close people. The theater is a family. And you see when someone is sad. But you won't get bored in our theater. I'm constantly coming up with new options to make it interesting for the artist to try himself in different ways. There are experiments for this purpose. For example, this season we had a wonderful experience — the rap performance "The Inspector General" by Yuri Kvyatkovsky.
— You just compared actors to children, and you have a lot of these "children" now — two large troupes. How can you not deprive anyone of attention? Can they come up and say, "Sergey Vitalievich, I have such a situation"?
- of course. You worry, you listen, you start thinking up a new job for a person. That's exactly how I came up with Figaro for Styopa Kulikov, and I entered into this performance myself. Initially, I didn't think that I would play the count. But then I decided to support Styopa, and he and I will go on stage together. When I told him about it, he just screamed.: "This can't be happening!" I say, "Yes, Styopa, we will fight with you." This will be our stage rivalry. And we'll also invite our wonderful colleagues.
— It is often discussed in the theater community that young actors today are less educated and enthusiastic. You communicate a lot with students — in your course at VGIK and at the Stanislavsky Factories. How do you find the guys?
— There are thinking, literate, reading guys — and there are a lot of them. But at the same time, there is a problem of "liking". They didn't get into trouble. This generation grew up in greenhouse conditions, hence a certain lack of independence and confusion. The world around us turns out to be difficult, tough, and you need to survive in it. Therefore, it is important to educate young people, to tell them about life, that the world is not easy. Hence, in fact, emotions are born.
A person who has not experienced pain should be able to imagine it. This requires imagination. I even taught a special course on how to develop it. Let's say you haven't had an experience of unhappy love, so you need to be able to imagine it and believe in the circumstances offered. I've fantasized a lot myself. There was something missing in my life, but I believed in it.
"We will give two troupes the opportunity to work together"
— Sergey Vitalievich, you have already said that many of the characters in Figaro have second lineups. Do you have an understudy?
- no. While I want to help my artists myself. Sometimes, the master played the first three performances, then gave the role to the understudy and moved on. It's not really fair. I always want to participate.
— In addition to the theatrical premiere, in what upcoming films will we see you?
— There are a lot of projects. A lot of work will be released in both summer and autumn, and there is a lot of filming ahead. I'm not interrupting the acting profession. Despite my busy schedule, I certainly pay great attention to the theater, because now there is also a huge responsibility — the Gorky Moscow Art Theater.
We're just getting started. There are technical difficulties that still prevent it from fully starting. But there is the Moscow Provincial Theater — we have a beautiful stage and full halls here in Kuzminki. And please note: not in the center of Moscow, but in a residential area. We will give two troupes the opportunity to work together.
— Just recently, on May 9th, you already held such a joint concert.
— Yes, the artists of the Moscow Art Theater and the Provincial Theater on the steps of the Moscow Art Theater read poems and sang songs of the war years dedicated to the Great Victory. I also performed, sang with my band. I think it's very symbolic.
While the Moscow Art Theater cannot start full—fledged work, the stage is not ready, and only in a couple of years we will be able to start in full force. But already now we are stepping onto the steps of the Moscow Art Theater, giving concerts, reading prose and poetry about heroes and the Great Victory. This is very important for us today. This makes it possible to feel that we are one family and this is our country. There are traditions that we honor. And May 9th, of course, is a holiday that really unites everyone. This is the day of remembrance of the soldiers who gave their lives for the Fatherland. We remember all those who died, who are no longer with us.
Almost all of my paternal grandfathers died in 1941. Bright memory to all who fought for the Fatherland. And it's very important that we were together on May 9th. This is especially necessary now.
Переведено сервисом «Яндекс Переводчик»
