Culture

My main tools are the soul and talent of the actor

On the eve of the upcoming Theater Festival "Victory BRIDGE" in Dubna that was organized by the Theater Laboratory "Kvadrat", we asked Director Yuliana KUKARNIKOVA to share a story about the theater and her profession, as well as about many years of friendship with JINR.

How many years has the Theater "Kvadrat" been functioning and how did it appear?

- Our theater has two dates full of meaning: the troupe is thirteen years old and its house, the Theater "Kvadrat" is eight! We started with several enthusiasts and five performances in luggage, wandering around the city. And today, our creative house has already made 46 performances and has united many Dubna residents!

What is the secret of the name, why "Kvadrat"?

- Kvadrat, translated from Russian, a square is a symbol of balance, integrity and support. In a world that is often chaotic, theater is a place of power where everything should be verified, harmonious and honest, as a solid foundation. Without it, creative freedom is impossible.

How do you find your actors?

- It's usually like a little miracle! People find us themselves - our cozy and ambitious "Kvadrat", as if they go to the right wave, where creativity is in the air. I am in this story only a happy medium, a uniting link between the thirsty soul and the great Melpomene. Our foundation is the studio system that we have been developing since 2012. During this time, more than 150 Dubna residents have already participated in our projects, including representatives of the JINR scientific community that makes our audience especially interesting. We are open to all ages, the main thing is the desire to learn and to create.

"Uncle Stepa"

There are also theater courses at the theater. Tell us, please, who they are for and who leads them?

- We can't go without school. Our studios for children and adults are a two-year journey into the world of theater from basics to craftsmanship. Our actors teach there, that know the scene from the inside. The main bonus at the end is entering the real stage. Each graduate plays in two graduation performances: for children and for adults. Recently, for example, graduates have played Chekhov and the audience did not believe that this was not a professional troupe.

Can anyone become an actor?! What is important for acting?

- An actor is a profession, knowledge, work. Somehow it so happened that the dignity of our craft is belittled in society. But any business needs to be learned. Nobody will tell himself that he'll go to the surgery circle, learn to cut and stitch. It would be funny, you see. And thank God, it's not! Why did art become so accessible? No, it is wonderful that there are studios, theater circles, amateur performances, a wonderful desire to try, to realize yourself. But Theater, Actor!.. Here we are talking about a profession, about the work of life, about method and skill. We have a laboratory. We experiment. We work to come to a great one. I will give an analogy: who is a philosopher? This is not a wise man but a man seeking wisdom, loving it. Here is the first stage of our actors - it is the love of the theater! Love art, accept it, devote yourself. And then again - labor, labor, labor! Knowledge of the profession and the result that the audience sees. Behind the lightness and virtuosity are always "sweat and blood".

In an interview, you said that you need to love art in yourself and not yourself in art. Why is it important?

- This quote belongs to Konstantin Stanislavsky. It is key and magical for creators. The profession begins with it and not with pride. An actor, a giving person, giving his soul, like any person of art, goes to the result through obstacles. Well, if you start with self-love, then you can only come to yourself. In our theater, there are no dressers, stage workers, sound workers, lights, props, cleaners, the actor does everything! Here came a team of actors playing in the play, put out the scenery, the actresses stroked the curtains, costumes, washed the floors, prepared a buffet, charged the props, played and then cleaned everything themselves. In a theater, where there are so many productions, everything I have listed is not so easy to do, especially, in a small room. But we cope because we love our job.

How is the material selected for staging? What do you like to stage?

- A decent question. We stage what is sore, what is relevant, what is important today. Paradoxically, for example, classics are always vital. Through it, there is an opportunity to express. It is easier to stage it. It is absolutely logical, there are no pitfalls, it is sensual and I repeat, topical.

"Khanuma"

What performance would you recommend visiting to learn about the theater "Kvadrat"?

- It's a difficult choice! All performances for me are like children. Each road is different. The premiere is a gentle baby, the performance at the 15th show is a confident teenager and at the 50th, it is already a mature personality. Therefore, I advise you this way: if you want fresh, trembling emotions, come to the premieres, for example, to "Forever alive". It's always exciting! If you prefer a polished form, choose performances from the main repertoire. We have both action-packed comedies and romantic stories - for every taste. The same Harms is a challenge for the mind, an intellectual game. The choice is yours.

Does the theater and troupe have a tour?

- Touring past was replaced by settled and happy present. Previously, the stage was where we were called but today, there is our own House - our chamber theater. At the moment, the main "tour" of the theater is to enter the big stage of the Youth Centre "Initiative". It was this chance that was an invaluable gift and an opportunity to increase.

"Drawn Tales"

On 28 - 31 August, the theater "Kvadrat" will host the Festival "Victory BRIDGE". The participants will be theaters from other cities. What is the Festival's plan? What performances will the guests bring?

- The Festival "BRIDGE" is the cultural brainchild of Dubna that symbolically originated in 2018 with the advent of a new city bridge. Every year, we choose a new topic and this season, we pay tribute to the memory, building the "Victory BRIDGE".

The mission of "Kvadrat" is to turn Dubna into a powerful theatrical venue, to introduce the sophisticated and just beginning audience to the best groups in the country. The geography of the Festival expands: this year, we look forward to welcoming both already beloved theaters from Stavropol, Arkhangelsk, Rybinsk, Dmitrov, Minsk and debutants from Istra, Balashikha, Kimry and other cities.

What are your plans for the new theater season?

- The new season for us is a great creative journey through different worlds. We start with an intriguing premiere - the guest director Vladislav Stupak will present the exquisite French detective "8 loving women". Afterwards, we will go to bright Spain with the comedy "Edrid Madrid", plunge into Italian farce with "Innkeeper" and live a whole life full of miracles in the touching story "Oscar and the pink lady".

Of course, we cannot without the most important thing - without a story about our city. We are preparing a special, very personal production of "Point of attraction - Dubna". And the plans include major work on the play by V.I.Kalitvyansky "Object-M". So ahead - discoveries, laughter, tears and a whole universe of new roles! Neither we, nor our audience will be bored!

The theater is included in the life of JINR and cooperates a lot with it. Tell us, please, how the joint activity develops.

- The cooperation of the theater "Kvadrat" with the Joint Institute for Nuclear Research is not just a collaboration, it is a deep, organic story. It is natural, since the significant part of our troupe consists of JINR employees, people of science, in whose hearts art also lives. This creative symbiosis gives rise to amazing projects. With great pride, we worked on a production dedicated to the memory of Professor Petr Isaev, then, as I already mentioned, a production based on the play by Viktor Kalitvyansky. JINR is more than an institute for Dubna. It is the foundation, strength and soul of the city. This is a unique community that has been raising not only brilliant scientists for decades, but also supporting artists, poets, actors, enriching the cultural life of the entire region. We are honored to be a part of this great story.

What inspired you to become a director?

It all started with a game, like many - in kindergarten, at school... But the year 1990 in Yerevan became fateful when the responsibility for the recital of our Club of the Funny and Inventive team fell on me. It was then that for the first time I not only participated, but "looked from the side". And I was captured by this new role - not to play, but to build, to prompt, to inspire the team, to feel the big picture. Over the years, the awareness of the main paradox of our profession has come. The director is perhaps the most unfree creator. The artist and composer depend on the material and I depend on living people. My main tools and co-authors are the soul and talent of the actor, this wonderful person who can embody any idea. And here ambitions alone are not enough. We need mutual love and absolute trust. You can be a genius, build an ideal performance, but if the actor does not come or his soul does not respond, your "masterpiece" will stay with you. Therefore, the most important thing for me is to be surrounded not just by professionals, but by honest and faithful people. Without it, theater is impossible.

What theatrical works are you interested in as an audience?

- I am a grateful spectator in everything: from cartoons to arthouse. But I come to the theater with special trepidation, since I know the price of every detail. I try to turn off the internal critic and just trust - to catch the main thought and emotion that the director put in. Of the professional preferences, I madly love Satyricon and the powerful direction of Butusov and Sturua. But the main guideline for me will forever be my master Alexander Grigoryan, a legendary man who gave 53 years to one theater. His rehearsals were compared to jewelry lace weaving and the performances were absolute truth, deep and unforgettable.

Directing and acting exist in two forms: cinema and theater. Sometimes, the same talents are involved in both areas. Maybe for someone, today, the cinema replaces the theater, but globally, such a replacement and displacement did not happen, the theater is needed and people still visit. Tell us, please, about this difference between cinema and theater. Why to go to the theater? What does the audience get in the theater that will not get in the cinema?

- Theatre is art in the palm of your hand. You see everything that happens to the actor here and now. This is a game without understudies and editing, without insurance - hence its main formula: "life on stage".

Cinema is jokingly called "the illegitimate son of art": the text will live there for you, correct the mistakes... I in no way devalue his charm but how great it was when theatrical actors were filmed in the cinema! When you could enjoy the game itself, its depth.

Recently, I have heard a joke - a short but perfectly answering your question: "Soviet actors play better every year". Subtly, agree! And yet, I sincerely wish my colleagues - both in the cinema and in the theater creative, albeit difficult, searches and mandatory achievements. Let there be more wonderful film masterpieces and worthy premieres. While we create - art is alive!

Maria KARPOVA,
photo by Alexander KULDOSHIN