Fyodor Grigorievich Volkov () ( in
Kostroma – in
Moscow) was a Russian actor and founder of the first permanent Russian theater.
Life
The stepson of merchant Polushkin from
Kostroma, Fyodor Volkov received a versatile education. He established the very first public theater in
Yaroslavl in 1750, which would later bring fame to the then-unknown actors
Ivan Dmitrievsky
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 ...
,
Yakov Shumsky Yakov (alternative spellings: Jakov or Iakov, cyrl, Яков) is a Russian or Hebrew variant of the given names Jacob and James. People also give the nickname Yasha ( cyrl, Яша) or Yashka ( cyrl, Яшка) used for Yakov.
Notable people
People ...
and others. Two years later, Fyodor Volkov and his theater were invited by
Empress Elizabeth to perform at her court, but it would soon be dismissed due to its "plebeian" nature. Some of the actors were sent to the
Szlachta Corps
The ''szlachta'' (Polish: endonym, Lithuanian: šlėkta) were the noble estate of the realm in the Kingdom of Poland, the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, and the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth who, as a class, had the dominating position in th ...
(Шляхетный корпус) to get education.
In 1756, the empress issued a decree on the establishment of the first permanent public theatre in
St.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 ...
under the guidance of
Alexander Sumarokov. Fyodor Volkov assisted Sumarokov in managing the theater and five years later became its director after the latter's resignation. Volkov created the Russian professional public theater of national significance, tied it together with progressive dramatic art, and paved the way for a number of Russian actors. He married one of the first actresses in Russia,
Maria Ananina
Maria Ananina (''d. after'' 1756), was a Russian stage actress. She was one of the two first recorded professional actresses in Russia.Laurence Senelick, Historical Dictionary of Russian Theatre'
Maria Ananina was the daughter of an officer Ananin ...
.
As an actor, Fyodor Volkov mostly played tragic roles, such as the ones in Sumarokov's plays ''Khorev'' (Хорев), ''The Refuge of Virtue'' (Прибежище добродетели), ''Gamlet'' (Гамлет; Sumarokov's version of
Shakespeare's ''
Hamlet''), ''Semira'' (Семира), ''Sinav and Truvor'' (Синав и Трувор), ''Yaropolk and Demiza'' (Ярополк и Демиза). Having mastered the art of stage acting, Volkov often deviated from esthetic canons of classicism and chose not to follow the universally accepted rules of solemn recitation. In his plays, Sumarokov would often create characters with Volkov's wild temperament in mind. The latter, however, was a very talented comedian, as well.
Legacy
The Yaroslavl Theatre has been bearing Volkov's name since 1911.
{{DEFAULTSORT:Volkov, Fyodor
1729 births
1763 deaths
People from Kostroma
Male actors from the Russian Empire
Theatre managers and producers from the Russian Empire