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Vsevolod MeyerholdDirector, actor, People's Artist of the RSFSR
Date of Birth: 09.02.1874
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Content:
- Early Life and Influences
- Education and Theatre Beginnings
- Formation of His Artistic Program
- Revolutionary Era and Post-Revolution Career
- - Joined the Communist Party in 1918.
- Film and Opera
- - Starred as Senator in the film "The White Eagle" (1928).
- Legacy and Recognition
Early Life and Influences
- Born into a merchant family in Penza, Russia, as Karl Theodor Kasimir.
- Received his artistic influences from his parents' love for theater and music.
- Participated in amateur theater during his education, playing significant roles under the pseudonym Ukhtomsky.
- After graduating, converted to Orthodoxy and adopted the name Vsevolod M.
Education and Theatre Beginnings
- Studied at Moscow University but maintained connections with Penza.- Married Olga M. Munt in 1896.
- Joined the Moscow Art Theatre, playing various roles until 1902.
- Headed the "New Drama Society" and toured with his theatre in Penza (1904).
Formation of His Artistic Program
- Directed 170 productions between 1902 and 1905, exploring symbolism and stylized theater aesthetics.
- Became the main director of the V.F. Komissarzhevskaya St. Petersburg Theatre in 1906.
- Joined the St. Petersburg Imperial Theatres in 1908, where he directed "Masquerade" in 1914.
- Engaged in pedagogical work through his studio, fostering the development of new theatrical techniques.
Revolutionary Era and Post-Revolution Career
- Welcomed the 1917 Revolution and proposed the idea of "Theatrical October."
- Joined the Communist Party in 1918.
- Established the Higher Directors' Workshops in 1921 and the State Institute of Theatre Arts (GITIS) in 1922.
- "GITIS Theatre" was officially renamed "Vsevolod Meyerhold Theatre" (TIM) in 1923 and became a state theater three years later.
Film and Opera
- Debuted as a film director in 1915 with "The Portrait of Dorian Gray."
- Starred as Senator in the film "The White Eagle" (1928).
- Explored musical theater by directing productions at the Mariinsky and Leningrad Theaters.
Legacy and Recognition
- Arrested in 1939 and executed in 1940.- Posthumously rehabilitated in 1956.
- Penza established the Museum of Stage Art in 1984 and erected the first monument to M. in 1999.
