''The Embezzlers'' (russian: Растратчики, translit=Rastratchiki) is a 1926 satirical novel by

Valentin Katayev Valentin Petrovich Kataev (russian: Валенти́н Петро́вич Ката́ев; also spelled Katayev or Kataiev; – 12 April 1986) was a Russian and Soviet novelist and playwright who managed to create penetrating works discussing ...

first published in the October-December (Nos. 10, 11, 12) issues of ''

Krasnaya Nov ''Krasnaya Nov'' (russian: Красная новь, lit='Red Virgin Soil') was a Soviet monthly literary magazine. History ''Krasnaya Nov'', the first Soviet "thick" literary magazine, was established in June 1921. In its first 7 years, under e ...

'' magazine. The play of the same name, based upon the novel and written in 1927, premiered in 1928 at the

Moscow Art Theatre The Moscow Art Theatre (or MAT; russian: Московский Художественный академический театр (МХАТ), ''Moskovskiy Hudojestvenny Akademicheskiy Teatr'' (МHАТ)) was a theatre company in Moscow. It was f ...

.L. Skorino
Commentaries to Растратчики
The Collected Works by V.P. Katayev. Khudozhestvennaya Literatura. Volume 3. 1969

Background

Inspired by the

Communist Party A communist party is a political party that seeks to realize the socio-economic goals of communism. The term ''communist party'' was popularized by the title of ''The Manifesto of the Communist Party'' (1848) by Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels. A ...

-instigated campaign against corruption and economical crimes, the story was based upon the real life stories Katayev had read in the periodicals he contributed to, like ''

Krokodil ''Krokodil'' ( rus, Крокодил, p=krəkɐˈdʲil, a= Ru-крокодил.ogg, ) was a satirical magazine published in the Soviet Union. It was founded in 1922 as the satirical supplement to the '' Workers' Gazette'' (called simply «Прил ...

'', ''Rabochaya Gazeta'', ''Smekhach'' and ''Krasny Perets'' (Red Pepper). Katayev started working upon the novel in December 1925, although a 1925 short story titled "Grim Accident" (Мрачный случай), published in the No.26 issue of ''Smekhach'' magazine, is considered to be its direct precursor, containing the embryo of a storyline. In August 1926 the novel was finished.

Synopsis

The accountant Filipp Stepanovich, cashier Vanechka and courier Nikita fall victim to the latest embezzlement 'epidemic' that had swept 90 per cent of the Moscow commercial institutions. They steal 12 thousand rubles which they'd been supposed to deliver from the bank to their firm, and embark upon a massive spree which takes them first to Leningrad, then to the Russian South and finally, penniless, back to Moscow, straight to jail.

Theatre production

"The Embezzlers endorsed me as part of a literary mainstream, marking the beginning of the whole new life for me. I received a phone call from the

Stanislavski Konstantin Sergeyevich Stanislavski ( Alekseyev; russian: Константин Сергеевич Станиславский, p=kənstɐnʲˈtʲin sʲɪrˈgʲejɪvʲɪtɕ stənʲɪˈslafskʲɪj; 7 August 1938) was a seminal Soviet Russian th ...

quarters and was asked to write a play based upon the Embezzlers...", Katayev remembered in 1948. In 1927 the

started working upon the production, directed by Nikolai Gorchakov. In 1928 the play premiered to considerable critical acclaim. Among the actors engaged in it were the theatre's rising young stars: Mikhail Tarkhanov as the accountant Prokhorov,

Vasily Toporkov Vasili, Vasily, Vasilii or Vasiliy (Russian: Василий) is a Russian masculine given name of Greek origin and corresponds to ''Basil''. It may refer to: *Vasili I of Moscow Grand Prince from 1389–1425 *Vasili II of Moscow Grand Prince fro ...

as the cashier Vanechka and

Nikolai Batalov Nikolai Petrovich Batalov (russian: Николай Петрович Баталов; 6 December 1899 in Moscow – 10 November 1937 in Moscow) was a Soviet and Russian stage and film actor. He performed in a number of notable films between 1924 and ...

as Nikita the courier.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Embezzlers, The 1926 Russian novels 1928 plays Soviet novels