When children follow in the footsteps of their parents, those around them involuntarily compare them. And, as a rule, not in favor of the former. As for creative people, there is a saying: nature rests on the children of geniuses. Thank God there are exceptions. And not that rare. One more talented heir of brilliant parents can be counted with full confidence among such happy exceptions. Well, let's start our story with the biography of Alexander Lazarev Jr.
The actor's childhood and youth
Sasha Lazarev was born into an acting family - Alexander Lazarev and Svetlana Nemolyaeva. This happened on April 27, 1967 in the capital of our homeland. Alexander’s paternal ancestors are St. Petersburg intellectuals, and his maternal ancestors are Moscow.
It can hardly surprise anyone that a child from an acting background begins to be saturated with the theatrical and cinematic atmosphere literally from the cradle. And, in the end, completely immersed in it, he cannot imagine his existence outside the spotlights, the stage and the “Motor!” team. This happened in the case of Lazarev Jr. Since childhood, he was aware of what his parents were doing in life; representatives of bohemia gathered at their home - this does not pass without a trace. In addition, teenager Sasha madly loved his parents and tried to imitate them in everything.
After graduating from secondary school, Larazev Jr. passed a competition for admission to the Moscow Art Theater School. After the first year, the student was drafted into the Soviet army. Two years later, Sasha continued his studies at the Moscow Art Theater. His mentor was Alexander Kalyagin. During his studies, the young man sometimes worked part-time in front of a movie camera, filming under the pseudonym Trubetskoy. The young man tried not to turn to the help of his parents and their mutual acquaintances; he did not want to be classified as a “major.” In 1990, Alexander graduated from his university, and the interesting life of the young actor began.
Career
The parents of Lazarev Jr. were happy to learn that their son decided to continue his stellar career and helped him prepare for the exams. Despite the fame of her mother and father, Sasha had to enroll in drama school on her own. After all, the Moscow Art Theater opened its doors only to talented young people, without paying attention to who their parents were.
When Alexander took part in the competition, he not only managed to prove that he wanted and could play, but also took a course with the famous teacher Ivan Tarkhanov. Under the care of a strict teacher, the aspiring artist had no time for entertainment. He diligently practiced each lesson and learned new roles, striving to improve and develop every day.
But training to become an actor did not become a reason for deferring conscription into the army, where Lazarev was taken at the end of his first year. Therefore, having returned from military service in 1987, he continued his studies, but already on the course of twice State Prize Laureate and strong teacher Alexander Alexandrovich Kalyagin.
During the three years of his student life, the actor starred in two films. He played the role of a patient in court in the drama “The Characters Didn’t Mesh” (1989) and embodied the image of Vidoplyasov in the film-play “The Village of Stepanchikovo and Its Inhabitants” (1989). Then, in parallel with defending his thesis, he starred in the drama “Sunset”, playing the role of a raider. Immediately after graduating from the studio school, the young artist was invited to the Lenkoma Theater (1990).
Interesting! Not wanting to draw attention to his loud and well-known surname, Lazarev chose to take the pseudonym A. Trubetskoy. It was he who was indicated in the credits of every film and performance. And only after receiving a diploma, and with it more prominent leading roles, Alexander transformed into Lazarev Jr.
Despite the fact that the actor got interesting images in various film projects from 1980 to 1996, fame came to him only after the release of the tragicomedy “Dead Man’s Buddy” (1997). The film, shot with the joint cooperation of Russia, France and Ukraine, brought the artist worldwide fame.
The name of Alexander Lazarev Jr., his biography, which touched on topics such as personal life and children, filled the front pages of well-known publications. The actor began to not only be recognized on the streets, but also began to be invited to interesting projects by professional directors and producers. Currently, the young artist has 87 works in film projects, and most of the roles are major ones.
Fact! Alexander Lazarev Jr. has repeatedly proven to the public that his multifaceted talents and acting qualities were inherited from equally gifted parents. The artist began receiving his first awards for services to the theater and outstanding performance on stage in 1996, being one of the youngest employees of Lenkom.
And in 1999 he was awarded the title “People’s Artist of the Russian Federation,” which is a huge achievement for a theater worker starting his career.
The beginning of an acting career
Sasha first played in the theater as a twelve-year-old schoolboy, participating in a play based on Nikolai Leskov’s work “Lady Macbeth of Mtsensk.” The role he got was not so great, but the boy played on the same stage with his parents - and was very proud of this fact. A year later, Lazarev Jr. made his debut on television. It was a television production based on the unfinished work of Charles Dickens, The Mystery of Edwin Drood. In this television play, the boy appeared in an episode - he played his peer, only English and from the past.
Still from the film “The Mystery of Edwin Drood”, 1980
In 1982, Sasha received an offer from director Alexander Blank to star in a small role in the serial television film “Profession Investigator”. After this notable film, the young artist had a 7-year intermission in the cinema. Only in 1989 was he again invited to an episode in the family drama “The Characters Didn’t Match.” In this film, the main role was played by Lazarev Sr.
Still from the film “Profession-Investigator”, 1982
In 1991, San Sanych appeared in two films at once: in the crime film “How are you, crucian carp?” in the role of a bandit and as a rocker in the children's film "Pup from the Constellation of Canes Venatici."
Still from the film “Puppy from the Constellation Canes Venatici”, 1991
Biography
Alexander Alexandrovich Lazarev was born in Moscow into the family of actors Alexander Lazarev (senior) and Svetlana Nemolyaeva . In 1979, at the age of 12, he played the role of Fyodor Lyamin in the play “Lady Macbeth of Mtsensk” at the Vl. Mayakovsky.
In 1984, Lazarev entered the Moscow Art Theater School on the course of Ivan Tarkhanov, but then joined the army and served as part of a military team at the Central Theater of the Soviet Army.
In 1987 he returned to the Moscow Art Theater School (course of Alexander Kalyagin), graduated in 1990 and was accepted into the troupe of the Lenkom Theater.
Lazarev began acting in films while still a schoolboy - in the television film “Profession - Investigator” and in V. Krupnov’s “First Love”.
In 1982, he played a cameo role in the television play “The Mystery of Edwin Drood.” For the first time he starred in the leading role in the film by Alexander Belinsky “Provincial Benefit Performance”. At the beginning of his acting career he acted under the name Trubetskoy.
The actor became famous for his main role (Anatoly) in Vyacheslav Krishtofovich’s film “The Dead Man’s Friend” (1997). He starred in videos directed by Tigran Keosayan (song by Shufutinsky, “Song about a Friend” by Igor Krutoy ).
Currently, Alexander Lazarev (junior) is one of the leading actors of Lenkom. He took part in the musical “Metro” of the Moscow Operetta Theater as a guest star in the role of director Philip.
Theater
The theatrical career of the young Lazarev continued after graduating from the Moscow Art Theater studio. Alexander did not want to go to the Mayakovsky Theater because he did not want it to be said that his parents working there were helping him. The young artist got a job at Lenkom. His first roles brought him some popularity. Alexander shone in the productions of The Marriage of Figaro as Count Almaviva and The Royal Games as the English King Henry VIII. For his participation in the Royal Games, the actor earned the Crystal Turandot and Stanislavsky awards.
Photo from the play “Royal Games”
The young talent did not shy away from minor roles. This was especially evident when working on the image of a sailor in the rock opera “Juno and Avos” and a peasant in “Funeral Prayer” for Sholom Aleichem.
At the beginning of the 2000s, the actor received two Seagull awards at once: for his work in the plays “The Executioner’s Lament” and “Eclipse.” In 1999, the younger Lazarev was awarded the title of Honored Artist, and in 2007 - People's Artist of the Russian Federation.
An actor loyal to Mayakovka
Alexander Lazarev Sr. with his wife Svetlana Nemolyaeva and son Alexander. Photo: nashizvyozdy.ru
Alexander Lazarev Sr. with his wife Svetlana Nemolyaeva and son Alexander. Photo: nashizvyozdy.ru
Alexander Lazarev Sr. with his wife Svetlana Nemolyaeva. Photo: kleo.ru
In 1959, what he called a “fateful incident” occurred in Lazarev’s life: a classmate asked him to play along with her during an audition at the Vladimir Mayakovsky Theater. The actor did not seek to get a job here. Among the students of the Moscow Art Theater, the Mayakovsky Theater in those years was known as “anti-art”: they played here without a curtain, they came out not from behind the scenes, but from the hall.
At the audition, director Nikolai Okhlopkov became interested not in classmate Alexander Lazarev, but in himself. The actor was asked to read something “consistent with his texture” (Lazarev was a tall young man) from “Boris Godunov.” However, the actor did not know a single line from Pushkin’s tragedy and recited Mayakovsky’s poems. After this, Okhlopkov gave a new task: to imagine that the selection committee were fascists, and Lazarev was a partisan tortured by them.
I thought, what is happening to me? I’m not going to this theater! Then I thought: for God’s sake! Even if I don’t go to this theater, I can say anything!
Alexander Lazarev
Then, during the audition, Lazarev tore his shirt and shouted: “Here! Shoot! And a few hours later he signed an employment contract with the theater.
On the same day, Svetlana Nemolyaeva was selected. She also came to play along with her friend and ended up in the troupe. A romance broke out between Lazarev and the young actress.
The first time at the theater, Lazarev, during the play “Hamlet,” covered his face with a visor out of embarrassment, and brought pikes onto the stage. But soon the situation changed: in the same production the actor was given three roles at once - Fortinbras, Horatio and Marcellus. He barely had time to change clothes and make-up. He also played two characters in “The Bedbug” based on the play by Vladimir Mayakovsky - the Locksmith and the Fireman. The star role for the actor was the role of Viktor Boytsov in the melodramatic play “The Irkutsk Story” based on the play by Alexei Arbuzov. After the premiere, Lazarev was recognized on the streets, critics wrote about him with admiration. Contemporaries recalled that the line for tickets to the performance formed at night, long before the box office opened.
I was born in this performance. If I had not ended up in the “Irkutsk Story”, I am far from sure that my life would have turned out the way it has turned out today.
Alexander Lazarev - senior
In 1960, Alexander Lazarev and Svetlana Nemolyaeva got married. The wedding was modest, and the celebration did not take long: that same evening, “The Irkutsk Story” was performed at the Mayakovsky Theater, where both the newlyweds and their guests performed. A few years later, a son, Alexander, appeared in the family.
The actor has embodied several dozen characters on this stage and performed thousands of performances. In 1977, for the role of journalist Carlos Blanco in the play “Venceremos!” Lazarev was awarded the USSR State Prize. And in 1995, he became the laureate of the prestigious theater award “Crystal Turandot” for his role in the play “Kin IV”.
Alexander Lazarev, the eldest, was called to other theaters, but he remained to serve at Mayakovka.
Bright roles in films
Actor Lazarev Jr. became famous after the four-part detective drama “Profession – Investigator” was shown on television. But then the actor was still too young. Alexander grew up during a period that was not the most favorable for creativity: the collapse of the country, problems with filming, downtime in the theater. In addition, many directors said that Alexander had too specific an appearance, facial features that were more suitable for noble heroes, and not for the criminal elements in demand at that time. The actor was painfully worried about the lack of work, but waited in the wings.
Still from the film “Profession: Slougher”
Since there wasn’t much to choose from, Lazarev Jr. happily grabbed every opportunity to get on the screen and earn money. This is how he got into the series “Little Things in Life”. In 1993, Alexander Belinsky directed the actor in the title role in the film “Provincial Benefit Performance,” and the film was a complete success.
On the wave of success, Lazarev Jr. began tirelessly expanding his filmography with various projects, several films per year. Over the next 20 years, Alexander embodied a lot of diverse characters on the screen: He played a maniac obsessed with love for one woman in Alexander Khvan’s thriller “Dying is Easy.” In the musical film by Alexander Abdulov “The Bremen Town Musicians and Co” he portrayed a dog. He brilliantly played broker Davydov in the melodrama “The Scam.” Ideally conveyed the subtleties of the ambiguous nature of Gani Ivolgin in Vladimir Bortko’s series “The Idiot” based on the novel by Fyodor Dostoevsky. In 2004, he starred in Viktor Buturlin’s military drama “I Have the Honor!” in the role of an officer in the Russian army (the mini-series, by the way, received TEFI and the Golden Eagle).
Still from the film “Idiot”, 2006
More than once after this, San Sanych appeared on screen in the image of military men - in “Zemsky Doctor”, in the film “Admiral”, in the series “Mistress of the Taiga”.
Still from the film “Zemskoy Doctor”, 2010
In 2006, director Yuliy Gusman started filming the comedy “Park of the Soviet Period.” He starred Lazarev Jr. in the interesting role of journalist Oleg Zimin. The actor loves to portray historical characters on screen. In the film “Outpost of Zilina” he reliably portrayed People’s Commissar Beria, in “Secrets of Palace Revolutions” - the favorite of Tsarina Anna Ioannovna Biron, in “The Life and Adventures of Mishka Yaponchik” - the Governor-General of Odessa Grishin-Almazov, in “Ekaterina” - the favorite of Empress Elizabeth Petrovna Count Razumovsky, in the “Union of Salvation” - Alexander Benkendorf, chief of the tsarist gendarmerie.
Still from the film “The Life and Adventures of Mishka Yaponchik”, 2011
Creation
Theater works
- 1990 - “The Star and Death of Joaquin Murrieta” - Chilean; Ranger; Organ grinder (input)
- 1990 - “Juno and Avos” - Sailor (input)
- 1990 - “Romulus the Great” by F. Dürrenmatt - Emilian (input)
- 1991 - “Hamlet” - Claudius (input)
- 1993 - “Crazy Day, or the Marriage of Figaro” - Count Almaviva (a television version of the play was filmed in 2005)
- 1994 - “Funeral Prayer” by G. Gorin - resident of the village of Anatovka; Menachem Mendl (input)
- 1995 - “Royal Games” - Henry VIII, King of England (a television version of the play was filmed in 2005)
- 1997 - “Barbarian and Heretic” - Marquis de Grieux (input)
- 2003 - “The Executioner’s Lament” - Writer, aka Orpheus (the play has been removed from the repertoire since January 2008)
- 2005 - “The Jester Balakirev” by G. Gorin - William Mons, brother of Anna Mons; Prince Menshikov (introduction; a television version of the play was filmed in 2002)
- 2006 - One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest (Eclipse) - McMurphy
- 2008 — “The Lady’s Visit” by F. Dürrenmatt — Alfred Ill (the performance has been withdrawn from the repertoire since September 2012)
- 2009 - “The Jester Balakirev” - Peter the Great (introduction; a television version of the play was filmed in 2011)
Works on television
- 1980 - The Mystery of Edwin Drood - boy (episode)
- 1989 - The village of Stepanchikovo and its inhabitants (television play in 2 parts) - Vidoplyasov (credited as Alexander Trubetskoy).
Filmography
- 1982 - Profession - investigator - Mitya Vekshin (episodes 3-5)
- 1989 - They didn’t get along - the client is in consultation (episode, credited as Alexander Trubetskoy).
- 1991 - How are you, crucian carp? - gang member in denim suit
- 1991 - Puppy from the constellation Canes Venatici - rocker Philip
- 1992–1997 - Little things in life - Oleg Denisovich (“Alik”), television producer
- 1993 - Provincial benefit performance - Grigory Neznamov
- 1994 - Hunting - Nikifor
- 1996 - Amata Nobis (short) - Narrator / Tutor
- 1997 - Starry Night in Kamergersky - Presenter
- 1997 - Friend of the Dead Man (Ukraine, France) - Anatoly
- 1998 - The body will be buried, and the senior midshipman will sing - Igor
- 1999 - Dying is easy - Ilya
- 2000 - Bremen Town Musicians and K - Dog
- 2000 - Game of Love - Sergei Barsenev (Oreshkin), popular actor
- 2000 - Secrets of palace coups. Film 2. The Empress's Testament - Biron Ernst-Johann
- 2001 - Scam - businessman Andrei Davydov
- 2001 - Mamuka - Gogi
- 2001 - Happy new happiness! 2. Kiss in the cold - entrepreneur Yuri Yuryevich Vladimirtsev (episodes 2-8)
- 2001 - Detectives (film 8 “Trumpets of Jericho”) - Evgeny Balyasin, producer
- 2002 - April - Priest
- 2002 - The Failure of Poirot - Major Blent
- 2003 - Desired (TV series) - Ilya in his youth (2-3 episodes)
- 2003 - Idiot - Ganya Ivolgin, secretary of General Epanchin
- 2003 - The Witch's Recipe - Bogdan
- 2003 - Silver and mob (documentary)
- 2004 - I have the honor - Captain Chislov
- 2005 - Two at the Christmas tree, not counting the dog - Angel
- 2005 - Illusion of a Dream (C'est la vie) - Ivan
- 2005 - Heavenly Life - Igor Bochin
- 2006 - Aziris Nuna - Dad
- 2006 - Poor Baby - Swallow
- 2006 - A Haunted House (the film was shot in Cyprus, but was not released in Russia)
- 2006 - Women's tears (Ukraine) - Maxim, journalist
- 2006 - Tomorrow's worries - Yakov Levin
- 2006 - Film Festival, or Eisenstein's Port - Chalinsky, KGB Colonel
- 2006 - Park of the Soviet period - Oleg Zimin, popular TV journalist
- 2006 - Seventh Heaven (Russia-Ukraine) - Egor Shubin, head of the legal service of the T. Koltsov holding
- 2007 - Thank you for the love! — Stanislav Mikhailovich Zorin, entrepreneur
- 2008 - Heavy Sand - Le Court, German conductor who became a fascist officer (episodes 14-16)
- 2008 - Admiral - General Lebedev
- 2008 - Girl - Dmitry Nevsky, journalist
- 2008 - Zilina Outpost - People's Commissar Beria
- 2008 - Five steps on the clouds - media tycoon Sergei Gennadievich Bashirov
- 2008 - Secrets of palace coups. Film 7. Vivat, Anna Ioannovna! — Biron Ernst-Johann
- 2008 - M8 highway (not released) - Alex
- 2009 - Artifact - Viktor Nikolaevich Kurganov
- 2009 - Zemsky Doctor - Lieutenant Colonel Valuev
- 2009 - Terror with Love - Dean of the Theater Institute Lev Tsarenkov, Nona’s husband
- 2009 - Mistress of the Taiga - Viktor Zolotarev, head of the SB "Sheriff" (film 1 "Golden Trap")
- 2010 - Zaitsev, burn! — Kordonsky, channel producer
- 2010 - Gift of Fate - Oleg Klyuchevsky, popular actor, husband of Marina Rakitina
- 2010 - Flowers from Lisa - Professor of Philology Sergei Mikhailovich Livitin
- 2010 - When the lilac blooms - Arkady, gallery owner, Max’s friend
- 2010 — Russian Roulette (female version)
- 2011 - Secrets of palace coups. Film 8. Two Knights or the Hunt for a Princess - Biron Ernst-Johann
- 2011 - “Cedar” pierces the sky - German scientist, designer Wernher von Braun
- 2011 - The life and adventures of Mishka Yaponchik - Governor-General of Odessa Alexey Nikolaevich Grishin-Almazov (episodes 3-9)
- 2011 - Complex of usefulness - Mikhail
- 2012 - White Man - Nikolai Lopatkin (Kurt von Steiger)
- 2012 - Sniper 2. Tungus - war correspondent Semyon Shatsky
- 2012 - Zemsky doctor. Continuation - Lieutenant Colonel Valuev
- 2012 - The Beauharnais Effect - Valery Kudryavtsev, publisher
- 2013 - Medicine against fear - Lieutenant Colonel of the Medical Service Andrey Kovalev
- 2013 - Zemsky doctor. Love in spite of - Lieutenant Colonel Valuev
- 2014 - The long way home - Lyalya’s father
- 2014 - Catherine - Count Razumovsky
Voice acting
- 2004 - Capital Souvenir (animated) - Main character Sasha
Personal life
A handsome, slender man has always had many fans. Girls have pursued him before, confessed their love, and now they won’t let him pass. But Alexander is faithful to one woman and in all interviews declares that he is monogamous and intends to live his whole life with his current wife, Alina Ayvazyan. This is surprising for a person of a creative profession and a great rarity, but Alexander has the example of his parents.
Sasha has known his wife since childhood. The guys lived next door and studied at the same school. Alina graduated from Foreign Languages and subsequently got a job at a publishing house as a translator of children's literature. The spouses spend all their free time together, with each other, with their children. In May 2018, Alexander and Alina decided to get married. The ceremony took place in Georgia.
Children of Alexander Lazarev Jr.
Alexander and Alina have been married since 1988. The Lazarevs have two children - daughter Polina (born in 1990) and son Sergei (born in 2000).
Polina also devoted herself to art. In 2010, she graduated from the directing department, and now serves in the Mayakovsky “family” theater, and Seryozha is going to become a producer.
Children of lovers
The couple's first child is a beautiful girl named Polina. She was born on May 18, 1990. She grew up as a smart and purposeful child. And not in vain, because I graduated from school earlier than all my classmates - as an external student. At that time she was no more than 15 years old. She followed in her father’s footsteps and graduated from RATI-GITIS in 2010 at the directing department in the workshop of Oleg Kudryashov.
And the very next year she began working at the Mayakovsky Theater, where she and her grandmother were in the same dressing room. The debut of the actress and daughter Alexander occurred in 1997, when she starred in the film “Starry Night in Kamergersky”. She was just a child then. And literally ten years later she starred in a comedy with her father. It was Yuli Gusman’s film “Park of the Soviet Period.”
Today, her film career includes many films. Roles in the theater should not be ruled out. In addition, the girl sings great. Her favorite musical genre is jazz. Polina even gave a couple of concerts at Igor Butman’s club. Little is known about her personal life; she is credited with having affairs with various actors. Only this has never been confirmed.
A whole ten years later, the second child in the family was born - son Sergei. The boy's father claims that his son has always had a very interesting character. It was as if he took away from each family member the character traits that he liked.
Alexander and Serezha love spending time together. They used to ride ATVs and often went fishing. But the boy didn’t particularly like fishing. If both parents were involved in upbringing, then the mother preferred to do the lessons with the child. My father was never against it. Now the guy is eighteen years old, and he has grown into a wonderful man.
Alexander Lazarev Jr. currently
Alexander Lazarev’s already busy career continues to develop. The artist is a real workaholic, and it so happens that he is extremely in demand among the country’s directors. Every year, the actor’s filmography is replenished by one, or even several points. And so it turns out that all this later turns out to be significant.
Svetlana Druzhinina’s filming is in full swing with her famous (and, probably) endless “Midshipmen”, a film about the Decembrists is coming (something like the new “Star of Captivating Happiness”), the Eastern film “Tobol” has been released. So Lazarev Jr. can show off new facets of his undoubted talent to the viewer.
