Ekaterina Semenova (Russian: Екатерина Семёновна Семёнова; 18 November 1786–13 March 1849) was an actress in the

Russian Empire The Russian Empire was an empire and the final period of the Russian monarchy from 1721 to 1917, ruling across large parts of Eurasia. It succeeded the Tsardom of Russia following the Treaty of Nystad, which ended the Great Northern War. ...

Life

Semenova became a student in the

Saint Petersburg Saint Petersburg ( rus, links=no, Санкт-Петербург, a=Ru-Sankt Peterburg Leningrad Petrograd Piter.ogg, r=Sankt-Peterburg, p=ˈsankt pʲɪtʲɪrˈburk), formerly known as Petrograd (1914–1924) and later Leningrad (1924–1991), i ...

Theatre School in 1790 where she was instructed by

Ivan Dmitrevsky Ivan Afanasyevich Dmitrevsky (russian: link=no, Ива́н Афана́сьевич Дмитре́вский) (February 28, 1734 in Yaroslavl – October 27, 1821 in Saint Petersburg) is generally regarded as the most influential actor of Russ ...

and debuted at the stage in 1797. She eventually became the leading interpreter of plays of

William Shakespeare William Shakespeare ( 26 April 1564 – 23 April 1616) was an English playwright, poet and actor. He is widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist. He is often called England's nation ...

Jean Racine Jean-Baptiste Racine ( , ) (; 22 December 163921 April 1699) was a French dramatist, one of the three great playwrights of 17th-century France, along with Molière and Corneille as well as an important literary figure in the Western traditi ...

, Friedrich Schiller and Vladislav Ozerov. She was coached by director Prince

Alexander Shakhovskoy Prince Alexander Alexandrovich Shakhovskoy (russian: link=no, Александр Александрович Шаховской; 5 May 1777, in Smolensk Governorate, Russian Empire – 3 February 1846, in Moscow, Russian Empire) was a Russian pla ...

and the poet

Nikolay Gnedich Nikolay Ivanovich Gnedich ( rus, Никола́й Ива́нович Гне́дич, p=nʲɪkɐˈlaj ɪˈvanəvʲɪtɕ ˈɡnʲedʲɪtɕ, a=Nikolay Ivanovich Gnyedich.ru.vorb.oga; – ) was a Ukrainian-born Russian poet and translator best kn ...

. Semenova was admired for her beauty, deep voice and passionate way of acting. She was mentioned in the poems of

Alexander Pushkin Alexander Sergeyevich Pushkin (; rus, links=no, Александр Сергеевич ПушкинIn pre-Revolutionary script, his name was written ., r=Aleksandr Sergeyevich Pushkin, p=ɐlʲɪkˈsandr sʲɪrˈɡʲe(j)ɪvʲɪtɕ ˈpuʂkʲɪn, ...

, but also talked about because of her rivalry with

Marguerite Georges Marguerite Georges (1787–1867) was a French stage actress. She was one of the most famous French actresses of her time. She is also known for her affair with Napoleon, but also claimed to have had an affair with the Duke of Wellington, a claim ...

, who was very popular in the

at the time. She retired in 1820, but returned in 1822 and made a great success with ''

Phèdre ''Phèdre'' (; originally ''Phèdre et Hippolyte'') is a French dramatic tragedy in five acts written in alexandrine verse by Jean Racine, first performed in 1677 at the theatre of the Hôtel de Bourgogne in Paris. Composition and premiere Wit ...

'' in 1823. In 1828, Semenova married Prince

Ivan Alexeyevich Gagarin Ivan Alexeyevich Gagarin (russian: Иван Алексеевич Гагарин; 16 September 1771, Moscow12 October 1832, Moscow) was a Russian Imperial Senator and Active Privy Councillor, from the princely Gagarin family. Biography He wa ...

and afterwards only performed in private theatres.

References

Sources

* Jennifer S. Uglow, ''The Macmillan Dictionary of Women's Biography''.

External links

Ekaterina Semyonova
at the St. Petersburg Encyclopedia {{DEFAULTSORT:Semenova, Ekaterina 1786 births 1849 deaths 18th-century actresses from the Russian Empire 19th-century actresses from the Russian Empire Russian stage actresses Gagarin family Burials at Tikhvin Cemetery