Lev Aleksandrovich Mei (russian: Лев Алекса́ндрович Мей (name sometimes transliterated as Lev Mey); ) was a Russian
dramatist
A playwright or dramatist is a person who writes plays.
Etymology
The word "play" is from Middle English pleye, from Old English plæġ, pleġa, plæġa ("play, exercise; sport, game; drama, applause"). The word "wright" is an archaic English ...
and
poet
A poet is a person who studies and creates poetry. Poets may describe themselves as such or be described as such by others. A poet may simply be the creator ( thinker, songwriter, writer, or author) who creates (composes) poems (oral or writte ...
.
Biography
Mei was born on 13/25 February 1822, in
Moscow
Moscow ( , US chiefly ; rus, links=no, Москва, r=Moskva, p=mɐskˈva, a=Москва.ogg) is the capital and largest city of Russia. The city stands on the Moskva River in Central Russia, with a population estimated at 13.0 million ...
. His father was a German officer who was wounded in the Battle of
Borodino
The Battle of Borodino (). took place near the village of Borodino on during Napoleon's invasion of Russia. The ' won the battle against the Imperial Russian Army but failed to gain a decisive victory and suffered tremendous losses. Napoleon ...
and died young. His mother was Russian. Mei completed his studies in Moscow in 1841 and served in the office of the Governor for 10 years. He became part of the "young editorial staff" of
Mikhail Pogodin
Mikhail Petrovich Pogodin (russian: Михаи́л Петро́вич Пого́дин; , Moscow, Moscow) was a Russian Imperial historian and journalist who, jointly with Nikolay Ustryalov, dominated the national historiography between the death ...
's ''
Moskvityanin
''Moskvityanin'' (Москвитянин, "The Muscovite") was a monthly literary review published by Mikhail Pogodin in Moscow between 1841 and 1856., , , , It was the mouthpiece of the Official Nationality theory espoused by Count Sergey Uvarov ...
''. For a time, he taught secondary school, but was forced to retire because of conflicts with his colleagues. He moved to
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 ...
, where he was active in literary endeavors. It was during this period that he contributed to the leading Russian magazines, including ''
Biblioteka Dlya Chteniya
''Biblioteka Dlya Chteniya'' (russian: Библиоте́ка для чте́ния, en, The Reader's Library) was a Russian monthly magazine founded in Saint Petersburg, Russian Empire, in 1834 by Alexander Smirdin.
History
The magazine "of lit ...
'', ''
Otechestvennye Zapiski
''Otechestvennye Zapiski'' ( rus, Отечественные записки, p=ɐˈtʲetɕɪstvʲɪnːɨjɪ zɐˈpʲiskʲɪ, variously translated as "Annals of the Fatherland", "Patriotic Notes", "Notes of the Fatherland", etc.) was a Russian lite ...
'', ''
Syn Otechestva'', ''
Russkoye Slovo
''Russkoye Slovo'' (Русское слово, Russian Word) was a Russian weekly magazine published in Saint Petersburg in 1859-1866 by its owner, Count Grigory Kushelev-Bezborodko.
History
The magazine's first editors were Yakov Polonsky, Apol ...
'', ''
Russkiy Mir'', and ''
Svetoch''.
[Мей, Лев Александрович](_blank)
Biography at ''Russian Writers'' (Biobibliographical dictionary) // "Русские писатели". Биобиблиографический словарь. Том 2. М-Я. Под редакцией П. А. Николаева. "Просвещение", 1990
Mei wrote the historical
drama
Drama is the specific mode of fiction represented in performance: a play, opera, mime, ballet, etc., performed in a theatre, or on radio or television.Elam (1980, 98). Considered as a genre of poetry in general, the dramatic mode has been ...
s, ''
The Tsar's Bride
''The Tsar's Bride'' (russian: Царская невеста, translit=Tsarskaja nevesta) is an historical verse drama in four acts by Lev Mei from 1849.Golub (1998, 951). Fifty years later Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov used the play as the basis for h ...
'' (1849), ''
Servilia'' (1854) and ''
The Maid of Pskov
''The Maid of Pskov'' (russian: Псковитянка, Pskovityanka, links=no, Pskov female resident ), also known as ''Ivan the Terrible'', is an 1872 opera originally in three acts (six scenes) by Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov. The libretto is by the ...
'' (1859), all three of which the composer
Rimsky-Korsakov
Nikolai Andreyevich Rimsky-Korsakov . At the time, his name was spelled Николай Андреевичъ Римскій-Корсаковъ. la, Nicolaus Andreae filius Rimskij-Korsakov. The composer romanized his name as ''Nicolas Rimsk ...
later used as the basis for
opera
Opera is a form of theatre in which music is a fundamental component and dramatic roles are taken by singers. Such a "work" (the literal translation of the Italian word "opera") is typically a collaboration between a composer and a librett ...
s.
[Golub (1998, 951).]
Mei lived a dissipated and
bohemian life
Bohemianism is the practice of an unconventional lifestyle, often in the company of like-minded people and with few permanent ties. It involves musical, artistic, literary, or spiritual pursuits. In this context, bohemians may be wanderers, a ...
, with a great fondness for
drink
A drink or beverage is a liquid intended for human consumption. In addition to their basic function of satisfying thirst, drinks play important roles in human culture. Common types of drinks include plain drinking water, milk, juice, smoothies a ...
, which led to his untimely death on 16/28 May 1862.
References
Sources
* Golub, Spencer. 1998. "Russia and the Republics of the Former Soviet Union." In ''The Cambridge Guide to Theatre.'' Ed. Martin Banham. Cambridge: Cambridge UP. 948-956. .
External links
Lev Aleksandrovich Mey. Poems
{{DEFAULTSORT:Mei, Lev
Poets from the Russian Empire
Male writers from the Russian Empire
Russian male poets
Translators from the Russian Empire
1822 births
1862 deaths
Dramatists and playwrights from the Russian Empire
19th-century translators from the Russian Empire
Russian male dramatists and playwrights
19th-century poets from the Russian Empire
19th-century dramatists and playwrights from the Russian Empire
19th-century male writers from the Russian Empire