Biography
Svetlana Gennadievna Amanova is an actress of Soviet and Russian cinema, remembered by viewers for Leonid Gaidai’s comedy “Sportloto 82”. Member of the leading cast of the Maly Theater.
Svetlana was born in Moscow in the spring of 1961. From an early age I dreamed of becoming an actress and persistently pursued this goal. At first, the “stage” for the girl was her home, where the little actress staged “performances” and “concerts” for her parents and guests.
Actress Svetlana Amanova
During her school years, Svetlana Amanova joined an amateur club and enjoyed playing her first roles here. In middle school, the girl studied at a theater school. At the same time, Amanova developed another talent of hers - vocal and musical. The parents took their daughter to the Gnesin school. Here, for 7 years, Amanova learned to play the violin.
For a long time, Svetlana Amanova was “torn” between two hobbies, not knowing which to give preference to. In Gnesinka, the girl made serious progress. And the parents dreamed that their daughter would connect her future life with classical music. But the girl hesitated, because the scene attracted more and more.
Svetlana Amanova in her youth
After graduating from school, Svetlana Amanova entered the Boris Shchukin Theater School. Having received her diploma in 1982, the young actress was accepted into the Maly Theater troupe.
Amanova Svetlana Gennadievna
Svetlana Amanova was born on April 29, 1961 in Moscow. From an early age she dreamed of becoming an actress and persistently pursued this goal. Her first stage was her hometown, where Svetlana organized “performances” and “concerts” for her parents and their guests.
During her school years, Svetlana Amanova joined an amateur club and enjoyed playing her first roles. In middle school, the girl studied at a theater school. At the same time, Amanova developed another talent of hers - vocal and musical. Her parents took her to the Gnesin school, where she learned to play the violin for 7 years.
After graduating from school, Svetlana Amanova entered the Boris Shchukin Theater School. Having received her diploma in 1982, the young actress was accepted into the Maly Theater troupe. Over the years of work at the theater, Svetlana Amanova has performed many roles in the domestic and foreign repertoire. Among the best works of the actress are Magdalena “Jealous of Herself” - T. de Molina, Masha “The Living Corpse” - L. Tolstoy, Anya “Vanyushin’s Children” - S. Naydenova.
The cinematic biography of Svetlana Amanova began quickly, the artist made her debut in the film “From Evening to Noon”, playing the girl Katya. This film was immediately followed by the second, “The Journey Will Be Pleasant,” where Amanova appeared in the title role. But it was the next project that made Svetlana famous throughout the Soviet Union. Leonid Gaidai’s offer to star in his comedy film “Sportloto-82” was akin to a winning lottery ticket.
The comedy instantly became a box office leader. Over six months, “Sportloto-82” was watched by more than 55 million viewers. Amanova began to be invited to various television shows, her portraits adorned the covers of all magazines, and interviews were published in the largest newspapers in the country.
In the mid-1990s, Yuri Lyubimov returned to the Taganka Theater. The famous director decided to direct Doctor Zhivago. He offered to play the role of Larisa to Svetlana Amanova. The choice was dictated not only by the artist’s high skill, but also by her musical abilities. Here Svetlana Gennadievna’s ability to play the violin came in handy.
The production was a huge success; due to circumstances, Amanova had to abandon her tour of Europe, since the artist received a wonderful offer from director Sergei Solovyov. The famous film director decided to stage his first performance on the theater stage. It was “Uncle Vanya” by Anton Pavlovich Chekhov.
The cinematic biography of Svetlana Amanova continued in 1985 after a break. Karen Shakhnazarov’s wonderful film “Winter Evening in Gagra” was released. Excellent directorial work and excellent actors, including Evgeny Evstigneev, Natalya Gundareva, Alexander Pankratov-Cherny and Sergei Nikonenko, doomed this film to great success. Amanova got a small but memorable role. She played the daughter of the hero Evstigneev.
After this film masterpiece, Svetlana Amanova again “disappeared” from the screens. She concentrated on working in the theater. Viewers were able to see her only in 1989, the artist played in the melodrama “Staircase” together with Oleg Menshikov. This picture is remembered for the fact that the actress appeared naked on screen for the first time.
The nineties turned out to be the most difficult period in the artist’s creative life. She did not appear on screen at all and almost never played in the theater. In 2000, Amanova played in the play “Woe from Wit.” After that, she briefly went to Montreal, where she appeared on stage in the theatrical production of “Wolves and Sheep.”
In 2004, Svetlana Amanova returned to Russia and again got a job at the Maly Theater, where she played for several years. During these years, the actress played several roles in TV series. The most rated of them were “Margosha” and “Seraphim the Beautiful,” which were released at the end of the first decade of 2000. In 2016, fans of Svetlana Amanova’s talent saw her in Karen Shakhnazarov’s film “Anna Karenina.” The actress got the role of Lydia Ivanovna.
Svetlana Amanova was married to journalist Pavel Gusev. After the birth of her daughter Catherine, the union of the actress and journalist began to collapse. Amanova and Gusev divorced. Amanova’s daughter, Katya, graduated from the production department of GITIS and is making her own career in cinema.
28.04.2018
Movies
1982 was the happiest year in Svetlana’s professional career. And the reason for this was not only the receipt of a diploma and admission to the famous Maly Theater, but also a brilliant film debut.
Svetlana Amanova in the film “The Travel Will Be Pleasant”
The cinematic biography of Svetlana Amanova began quickly. The actress starred in the film “From Evening to Noon,” playing the girl Katya. Amanova pulled out a lucky ticket - from the first days of working in cinema she got into the star cast, which included Vsevolod Sanaev, Leonid Filatov, Natalya Fateeva.
This film was immediately followed by the second, “The Journey Will Be Pleasant,” where Amanova appeared in the title role. The heroine Lyuda, having provided a profitable service to Gennady (Boris Galkin), a partner in the enterprise where she works, sets off with a young man on a car voyage to the Black Sea coast.
But it was not this, but the next project that made Svetlana famous throughout the Soviet Union. Leonid Gaidai’s offer to star in the comedy film “Sportloto-82” was akin to a winning lottery ticket.
Svetlana Amanova in the film "Sportloto-82"
The comedy instantly became a box office leader. Over six months, “Sportloto-82” was watched in cinemas across the country by more than 55 million viewers. The aspiring actress did not expect such resounding success. Amanova began to be invited to various television shows, photos of the actress adorned the covers of fashion magazines, interviews were published in the first newspapers of the country. It seemed that the artist had a stellar road ahead.
Indeed, at first Svetlana rapidly climbed the career ladder. True, this applied to theater, not cinema. At the Maly Theater, Svetlana began to be trusted with the main roles. In the productions of “Vanyushin’s Children”, “Choice”, “Tsar Fyodor Ioannovich” and “The Living Corpse”, theatergoers enjoyed watching the performance of their favorite actress.
Svetlana Amanova in the film “On the Eve”
The cinematic biography of Svetlana Amanova continued in 1985 after a break. And again a star role in Karen Shakhnazarov’s film “Winter Evening in Gagra”. Svetlana appeared in the film in the role of Alena, the daughter of Beglov (Evgeny Evstigneev). The girl, who loved her father madly in her childhood, asks Beglov not to come to the celebration on the eve of the wedding. The film's cast - Alexander Pankratov-Cherny, Natalya Gundareva, Sergei Nikonenko, Pyotr Shcherbakov, Alexander Shirvindt, Georgy Burkov - forced us to keep the performance bar high.
In the same year, the drama “On the Eve”, a film adaptation of the work of Ivan Turgenev, was released with the participation of Svetlana Amanova in the title role. The heroine Elena Strakhova, blinded by the ideals of humanism, marries a Bulgarian student Insarov (Antony Genov), with whom she goes to Bulgaria. On the way, the young democrat dies suddenly.
Svetlana Amanova in the film “Staircase”
After this, Svetlana Amanova “disappeared” from the screens again. The actress concentrated on working in the theater. Viewers were able to see the girl in 1989. Svetlana played in the melodrama “The Staircase” together with Oleg Menshikov, Elena Yakovleva, Leonid Kuravlev. This picture is remembered for the fact that the actress appeared naked on screen for the first time.
In the mid-1990s, Yuri Lyubimov returned to Taganka and immediately decided to stage Doctor Zhivago. The director suggested Svetlana Amanova to play the role of Larisa. The choice was dictated by the artist’s high skill and musical abilities. Here Svetlana Gennadievna’s ability to play the violin came in handy. The production was a huge success.
But Amanova did not go on tour in Europe, as she received an offer from director Sergei Solovyov. The film director decided to stage the first performance on the theater stage. It was “Uncle Vanya” by Anton Pavlovich Chekhov.
Svetlana Amanova in the film "Richard the Lionheart"
Amanova later shared that she never regretted this choice. In this production, Soloviev assembled a truly stellar cast. Vitaly Solomin and Yuri Solomin, Tatyana Drubich and other wonderful artists played in “Uncle Vanya” for several years, attracting full houses in the theater.
The 1990s, not for nothing called “dashing,” turned out to be the most difficult period in the artist’s creative life. She did not appear on screen at all and almost never played in the theater. During this decade, Svetlana Amanova starred in only 6 films, which is very little for an actress of this caliber. In 1992, Svetlana’s name appeared in the credits of the film “The Time of Your Life,” which also starred Oleg Fomin, Sergei Nikonenko, Nikita Vysotsky, and Igor Ugolnikov.
In the same year, the actress played a medieval character – Queen Berengaria of England in the film adaptation of “Richard the Lionheart” directed by Evgeny Gerasimov about the campaign of the King of England to Jerusalem. In the comedy “Russian Business” Amanova tried on a typical image, playing an activist of the “green” movement. Savely Kramarov, Semyon Farada, Natalya Krachkovskaya shone in the leading roles of Mikhail Kokshenov’s comedy.
Svetlana Amanova in the film “The Peasant Young Lady”
In 1995, the artist appeared in the melodrama “The Peasant Young Lady,” where she played the role of Amalia, and a year later she played two main roles in the children’s musical “Liza and Eliza.” In 1997, the actress appeared in the short film “In Paris,” playing a lover, and two years later she joined the cast of the youth series “Simple Truths.”
In the new century, the actress began to return to the theater stage and screens. At the theater, Amanova played in the play “Woe from Wit.” After this, the actress went to Montreal for a short time, where she appeared on stage in the theatrical production “Wolves and Sheep.”
In 2004, Svetlana Amanova returned to Russia and again settled at the Maly Theater, where she played for several years. After moving home, the actress’s first work on television was the role of Madame de Volanges in the top-rated series of the early 2000s “Poor Nastya” about the fate of the pupil of Baron Korf (Daniil Strakhov), with whom Lieutenant Repnin (Petr Krasilov) falls in love.
Svetlana Amanova in the musical “Liza and Eliza”
In the early 2000s, the actress played several roles in TV series. The most rated of the films was the sitcom “Margosha”, where Svetlana Amanova played the mother of the hero Igor Rebrov (Eduard Trukhmenev). Two years later, the artist’s filmography was replenished with work in the melodrama “Seraphim the Beautiful”, the main character of which (Ekaterina Porubel) experiences a lot: the betrayal of her husband Viktor Zorin (Kirill Grebenshchikov), her son’s illness, life’s difficulties. Svetlana Amanova appeared in the film in the image of the city journalist Polina Sergeevna.
In 2012, the actress delighted her fans with her work in the crime detective “Lone Wolf,” where she appeared as the inconsolable widow of operative Vladimir Boev (Sergei Plotnikov).
In 2014, Svetlana played a supporting role in the melodrama about the first year of school for the boy Vasya, “The Diary of a Mother of a First-Grader.”
Svetlana Amanov in the film “Lone Wolf”
In 2020, Stanislav Govorukhin invited the artist to participate in the drama “The End of a Beautiful Era” about the life of journalist Andrei Lentulov (Ivan Kolesnikov), who moved from Leningrad to Talin for the sake of his beloved Marina (Svetlana Khodchenkova). Svetlana Amanova received a cameo role in the film.
Star Trek actress Svetlana Amanova
However, the main success of 1982 was the participation of Svetlana Amanova in Leonid Gaidai’s film “Sportloto-82”.
Immediately after its release, the film became the leader in Soviet film distribution. In just a few months, the film was watched by several million people. The total number of viewers who visited Soviet cinemas for this film reached fifty-five million viewers. “You exist in the world” - Svetlana Amanova Such a resounding success was a real surprise for the young actress. Svetlana Amanova felt like a real star for the first time. She began to be invited to various television shows, and her interviews began to appear in all the major newspapers of the Soviet Union. In addition, it was from this moment that the talented Muscovite began to receive leading roles at the Maly Theater, which also subsequently brought considerable success to the actress. In the period from 1982 to 1985, the actress did not act in films, playing exclusively theatrical roles. During these years, our today's heroine played in the plays “Choice”, “Tsar Fyodor Ioannovich”, “Children of Vanyushin”, “Living Corpse” and some other productions of the Maly Theater. These works brought her new success, and therefore the actress looked into the future with undisguised optimism.
In 1985, the girl returned to cinema again, starring in the films “On the Eve” and “Winter Evening in Gagra.” The last of these films, starring Evgeny Evstigneev, became especially popular. This was followed by a four-year break from filming. Not finding suitable work, the actress again focused all her attention on theatrical projects, appearing in the plays “Profitable Place”, “Handsome Man”, “Night of the Iguana” and some others.
Great interview with Svetlana Amanova Only in 1989 did the actress appear on the set again, playing in the film “The Staircase” together with Oleg Menshikov. This picture is also notable for the fact that Svetlana Amanova appeared naked in it for the first time.
The fragmentary and in many ways strange career of our today's heroine was actually interrupted in the early nineties. In 1992, the actress received the title of Honored Actress of Russia, but very soon she began to lose the favor of directors. What caused this is unknown. However, already in the early nineties, the actress began to appear in theatrical projects much less frequently.
Actress Svetlana Amanova now rarely appears in films
As for cinematic films, they have become a special rarity for Svetlana Amanova. For ten years, our today's heroine has starred in only six films. Among these are the historical films “Richard the Lionheart” and “Knight Kenneth”, as well as the lyrical film “The Young Lady of the Peasant”. Separately on this list it is worth mentioning the film “Lisa and Eliza”, in which the actress, almost forgotten by everyone, again played the main role.
Personal life
The beautiful actress, who gained deafening fame after Gaidai’s comedy, had no shortage of fans. Amanova received letters from all over the Soviet Union. But the journalist Pavel Gusev became the husband of the light-eyed brunette. The whirlwind romance very quickly ended in marriage. But, as it turned out, he was unhappy. After the birth of her daughter Catherine, the union of the actress and journalist began to collapse. Amanova and Gusev divorced.
The personal life of Svetlana Amanova was once again in the spotlight after people started talking in the theater about an alleged romance between her and Vitaly Solomin. The scandalousness of this story was added by the fact that the artist was married.
Svetlana Amanova with her daughter
After Solomin’s death, various glossy publications invited the actress to tell the truth about her relationship with the artist. But Svetlana never gave her consent.
Amanova’s daughter, Katya, graduated from the production department of GITIS and is making her own career in cinema.
Svetlana Amanova now
Now Svetlana Amanova does not often appear on the big screen. In 2016, the actress played in the Maly Theater’s teleplay “Eight Loving Women,” based on the work of Robert Thomas. Irina Muravyova, Daria Mingazetdinova, Olga Zhevakina also took part in the production by Vladimir Beilis.
Svetlana Amanova in the television play “Eight Loving Women”
In 2020, filming of Karen Shakhnazarov’s war drama “Anna Karenina” was completed, in which the actress received the role of the heroine Lydia Ivanovna. The plot of the film takes the viewer to the years of the war between Russia and Japan. Already an adult son of Anna Karenina, Sergei (Kirill Grebenshchikov) works at the front as a surgeon. One day, fate brings a young man together with Alexei Vronsky (Maxim Matveev). An elderly military man turns out to be the only person who can tell about the events that happened many years ago. Elizaveta Boyarskaya appeared in the role of Anna Karenina.
Early years, childhood and family of Svetlana Amanova
Svetlana Amanova was born on April 29, 1961 in Moscow. Here she began to engage in theatrical art for the first time in a local amateur group. Here, on the stage of one of the schools in the South-Western District, she performed her first theatrical roles.
Actress Svetlana Amanova in her youth
It is very noteworthy that for a long time our today’s heroine could not make a final choice between the professions of an actress and a musical performer. As a teenager, Sveta began attending the Gnesin school, where she subsequently studied in the violin class for seven years. She made serious progress, and therefore her parents always insisted that the girl connect her life with classical music. However, Svetlana Amanova doubted, as if feeling that she had to choose a different path in life.
Ultimately, our today's heroine chose the theater and, after graduating from secondary school, went to the Moscow Theater School named after B. Shchukin. In this place, the talented young actress honed her skills, dreaming of her first real roles.
Sveta received a diploma of graduation from the Shchukin Theater School in 1982. It was this year that became truly fateful for her. Almost immediately after completing her studies, the girl got a job at the Maly Theater. In addition, it was in 1982 that our today’s heroine played her first film role. This was the role of the girl Katya in the television film “From Evening to Noon.” The debut turned out to be quite good, and therefore a couple of months later the aspiring actress appeared in a new film, “The Journey Will Be Pleasant,” playing her first leading role in it.
