Georgy Tovstonogov facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Georgy Tovstonogov
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| Born |
Georgy Aleksandrovich Tovstonogov
28 September 1915 |
| Died | 23 May 1989 (aged 73) |
| Occupation | Theatre director |
| Years active | 1933–1989 |
Georgy Aleksandrovich Tovstonogov (Russian: Георгий Александрович Товстоногов, 28 September 1915 – 23 May 1989) was a famous Russian-Georgian theatre director.
He led the Gorky Bolshoi Drama Theater. This theatre was later renamed after him in 1992 because of his great work.
Life and Career
Georgy Tovstonogov was born on September 28, 1915. He was born in Tbilisi, which is now in Georgia. His father was Russian, and his mother was a Georgian singer.
In 1938, he finished his studies at the State Institute of Theatrical Art in Moscow. After that, he started his career as a director.
He worked in several theatres:
- From 1938 to 1946, he directed plays in the Tbilisi Griboedov Theater.
- From 1946 to 1949, he worked at the Central Children's Theater in Moscow.
- From 1950 to 1956, he was at the Leningrad Leninsky Komsomol Theater.
In 1956, he became the head of the Bolshoi Academic Gorky Theater. He stayed there until he passed away in 1989. He also taught theatre students as a professor.
Tovstonogov received many important awards for his work. These included the Stalin Prize three times. He also received two Orders of Lenin.
In 1972, he wrote a book called The Profession of the Stage-Director. In this book, he shared his ideas about how to direct plays. He also talked about famous theatre teachers like Konstantin Stanislavsky.
Georgy Tovstonogov passed away on May 23, 1989. He had a heart attack while returning home after a rehearsal.
Famous Plays He Directed
Tovstonogov was known for bringing back plays by Fyodor Dostoevsky to Soviet theatre. He directed:
- The Insulted and Humiliated (1956)
- The Idiot (1957)
He also directed many other famous performances, including:
- The Three Sisters (1965) by Anton Chekhov
- Uncle Vanya (1982) by Anton Chekhov
- Five Evenings (1958) by Alexander Volodin
- Wit Works Woe (1962) by Alexander Griboedov
- Barbarians (1959) by Maxim Gorky
- Henry IV, Part 1 (1969) by William Shakespeare
- Revisor (1972) by Nikolay Gogol
- History of a Horse (1975) based on Leo Tolstoy's Kholstomer
He was also good at creating large, impressive shows. During his time, many people thought he was one of the best theatre directors in Europe.
Many talented actors worked with him. Some of them include Alisa Freindlich, Kirill Lavrov, and Innokenty Smoktunovsky. His ideas about teaching theatre directors are still very important. They influence theatre education in Russia and other countries.
In Film
There is a documentary film about Georgy Tovstonogov. It is called Demiurge (2008). The film was directed by Tigran Mutafyan. It features many people who knew and worked with Tovstonogov.
Legacy
A minor planet was named after Tovstonogov. This shows how important he was in the world of theatre.
