The sudden death of Dmitry Brusnikin: what prompted this

Biography

Dmitry Brusnikin was born in the German city of Potsdam. It was there that the father of the future artist, Vladimir Mikhailovich, was serving in the military at the time of the birth of his youngest son, who was named after his maternal grandfather - Dmitry.

The boy spent his childhood traveling between different cities; he had to change more than ten secondary schools due to his father’s frequent change of duty stations. Mom, Alexandra Dmitrievna, steadily followed her husband along with her two sons; the actor’s older brother was at one time named after his paternal grandfather, Mikhail.

After graduating from school, in 1975, Dmitry decided to follow in his brother’s footsteps and entered the Moscow Institute of Electronic Technology in Zelenograd to become an engineer.

However, a year later everything changed. There, in Zelenograd, Dmitry met the director of the People's Theater and tried himself in a new capacity - an actor. The young man was so captivated by this that he took an academic leave from the institute and got a job as a stage driver at the Film Actor’s Studio Theatre.

Already in 1978, Dmitry Brusnikin submitted documents to three theater universities in Moscow at once: the Shchepkinsky and Shchukinsky schools, as well as the Moscow Art Theater School. In all three, he passes the competition, but opts for the Moscow Art Theater, where Oleg Nikolaevich Efremov took the course.

BRUSNIKINISTS CAN DO ANYTHING

In September, the Praktika Theater will host the premiere of another play by Marina Brusnikina, “The Man from Podolsk, Seryozha, is Very Dumb.” Her husband, being the artistic director of this experimental group, was waiting for the release of the work with special excitement, and literally two days before his death he managed to see and approve the announcement video.

“Independent drama for the generation of 30-year-olds” - this is how Brusnikin defined the main direction of his work in Praktika. But in the end he barely had time to work - in May he came to the theater as director, at the end of the season, on August 8 he was appointed artistic director there, and just 24 hours later his life was cut short. And the fact that this happened on the threshold of a new stage, when a person has so many plans, desires and possibilities, seems especially dramatic.

“The theater is a place where people should realize their dreams, and they should be helped. The theater can only be modern and young, and not old and decrepit,” the master was convinced and mastered the most unusual spaces: the workshop of a former factory, the Lenin Library, the Pushkin Museum and even the night Manege. And the students called him Bruce, not only shortening his surname for simplicity, but also, obviously, associating Brusnikin with Bruce Willis, whose heroes save the world every now and then.

The master got along well with young people and was always one of them. It was the youth who once helped Brusnikin survive the death of his best friend, Roman Kozak. Then the leaders of the Le Cirque de Charles la Tannes association, Yuri Kvyatkovsky and Alexey Rozin, became the first students of the future “Dmitry Brusnikin Workshop”. Following them, musicians, composers, choreographers, playwrights, and artists flocked there.

As a result, the course, after graduation, joined the Moscow Drama Theater “Man” in its entirety. And a unique phenomenon appeared on the domestic theater stage - the Brusnikinites. It was synonymous with a mark of quality, a guarantee of a full house and favorable reviews from critics. It was believed that Brusniki residents could do anything!

Theater

In his second year of study, Dmitry was involved in the Moscow Art Theater performances, which were staged on the Small Stage. The actor’s first role was the role of Alexander Ilyich Ulyanov in the play “The Path”.

In 1982, Dmitry Brusnikin received an acting diploma and was accepted into the troupe of the Moscow Art Theater. A.P. Chekhov. The actor played more than thirty roles on the Moscow Art Theater stage.

In 1991, on the small stage of the Art Theater, Dmitry Brusnikin, already as a director, staged the play “Platonov” and played the main role in it. On the main stage he staged “A Fistful of Cry” and “The Thunderstorm”.

Since 1988 he worked at the Theater-Studio “Chelovek”.

In May 2020, he became artistic director of the Praktika theater.

THEATRICAL WORKS. Actor

Moscow Art Theater named after. M. Gorky :

• Court Clerk - “Tartuffe” by J.-B. Moliere (production by A.V. Efros, director I.P. Vlasov)
• Gendon - “The Prince and the Pauper” by S.V. Mikhalkov after M. Twain (production director L.S. Tanyuk)
• Citizen of Vienna - “Amadeus” by P. Schaeffer (production by M.G. Rozovsky, director I.N. Yasulovich)
• Brave Guardsman - “Three Fat Men” by Yu.K. Olesha, M.A. Goryunov (production by V.N. Bogomolov, director M.A. Goryunov)
• Alexander Ulyanov - “The Path” by A. Remez (director V.G. Sarkisov, production director A.A. Vasiliev)
• Alexey Vasilievich Turbin - “Days of the Turbins” M.A. Bulgakov (director N.L. Skorik)
• Evgeny Bazarov - “Evgeny Bazarov” based on the novel by I.S. Turgenev (director V. Yakanin)
• Debrin - “Trailer” by N. Pavlov (produced by K.M. Ginkas)
• Woland, Yeshua - “Ball by Candlelight” (The Master and Margarita) G.S. Epifantsev based on the novel by M.A. Bulgakov (director V.M. Prudkin)
• Valentin - “Valentin and Valentina” M.M. Roshchin (production director O.N. Efremov, director V.N. Kuzenkov)
• Maxim Gorky - “Friends” G.S. Epifantsev (director G. Yalovich)
• The soul of the deceased inhabitants of the Avramov farms “Attempt at Flight” by I. Radichkov (production and direction by M. Kiselev (NRB), director L.F. Monastyrsky)
• Hornets - “The battles had local significance” V. Kondratyev (production and direction by V.N. Shilovsky)
• Alexander Ilyich Gay - “Silver Wedding” by A. Misharin (production and direction by O.N. Efremov, director R.A. Sirota)

Moscow Art Theater named after. A.P. Chekhov:

• Member of the Central Committee of the RCP (b) and the Council of People's Commissars - “So we will win!” M.F. Tents (production and direction by O.N. Efremova, director R.A. Sirota)
• Nikolai Alekseevich Ivanov - “Ivanov” (production and direction by O.N. Efremov, director S.G. Desnitsky)
• Mikhail Lvovich Astrov - “Uncle Vanya” A.P. Chekhov (production and direction by O.N. Efremova, director N.L. Skorik)
• Platonov - “Platonov” by A.P. Chekhov (director D.V. Brusnikin)
• Alexander Andreevich Chatsky - “Woe from Wit” by A.S. Griboyedov (production and direction by O.N. Efremova, director I.P. Vlasov)
• Sergey - “The New American” by A. Maryamov based on the works of S. Dovlatov (director P.A. Stein)
• Andrey Sergeevich Prozorov - “Three Sisters” by A.P. Chekhov (director O.N. Efremov, director N.L. Skorik)
• Director of the provincial theater - “The Most Important Thing” N. Evreinov (produced by R.E. Kozak)
• Lame brother Milos - “Zeros” by P. Cohort (director J. Buran)
• Major Likonda - “Sacred Fire” by S. Maugham (director S.A. Vragova)
• Presenter - “Return” by A. Platonov (director Yu.I. Eremin)
• He is “A River with a Fast Flow” based on the stories of V. Makanin (director M.S. Brusnikina)
• Lemme - “The Noble Nest” by I.S. Turgenev (production by M.S. Brusnika)
• Message and Messenger - “Writer” by M. Shishkin (director M.S. Brusnikina)
• Gustav - “Drunk” by I. Vyrypaev (director V. Ryzhakov)
• “Illusions” (director V. Ryzhakov)

THEATRICAL WORKS. Director

• "Platonov" A.P. Chekhov
• “A Fistful of Cry” by V. Gurkin
• "Thunderstorm" A.N. Ostrovsky
• “He’s in Argentina” L.S. Petrushevskaya

Personal life

During his student years, Dmitry Brusnikin met Marina Sycheva. In 1979 they got married, and in 1983 the acting couple had a son, Philip. In recent years, he and his father collaborated; Philip was the executive producer of a number of works directed by Dmitry Vladimirovich. Brusnikin Jr. also played several small roles in films. In 2011, Dmitry Brusnikin became a grandfather.

Brusnikin with his wife Marina

Interesting : Actor Alexander Isakov from “Happy Together” died suddenly: cause of death

Cinema

In 1984, Dmitry Brusnikin made his film debut. He got the role of the Red Army soldier Nikitin in the film “Detachment”.

After that there were small and episodic roles, and in 1994 a very noticeable one - in the series “St. Petersburg Secrets” Dmitry Brusnikin played Prince Dmitry Platonovich Shadursky, this role brought the actor considerable popularity.

In the 2000s, he was often invited to appear in both feature films and TV series. The actor participated in the films: “D.D.D. Detective Dubrovsky's File", "Turetsky's March", "Citizen Chief", "Law and Order: Department of Operational Investigations". It was the series “Law and Order” that became iconic in the artist’s film career. Over the course of many years, he himself directed this serial film and played the main role in it.

One of his last film roles was in the film “The Ice Hole” in 2017, where he played opposite Mikhail Efremov.

CONTINUATION OF EFREMOV

Brusnikin was called the heir to the ideas of the early Sovremennik - a psychological school, a theater with a human face, flesh and blood of Oleg Efremov, his favorite student and assistant during the perestroika years.

- To some extent, he was his best continuation. The best of all who claim this continuation. Dima was the same knight of the theater, an uncompromising person and at the same time deeply intelligent, sincere, and warm-hearted. It always seemed to me that for him people, human relationships, decency and citizenship stood above some kind of artistic skill,” says the artistic director of the Theater. Pushkin Evgeny Pisarev.

The backbone of the troupe he heads is made up of actors who studied with Dmitry Brusnikin and Roman Kozak at the Moscow Art Theater School - Victoria Isakova, Alexandra Ursulyak, Alexander Matrosov, Sergei Lazarev...

With Roman Kozak, Brusnikin not only studied in the same course, and later nurtured stars, but also played on stage - capital theatergoers still remember Gennady Yalovich’s play “Friends” at the Moscow Art Theater, where Brusnikin played Maxim Gorky, and Kozak played Leonid Andreev.

This was one of six performances in which Dmitry Vladimirovich managed to appear on the stage of the Art Theater over almost a quarter of a century. “An actor of unrealized potential,” critics wrote about him. Brusnikin was not offended, because it was more interesting for him to teach the secrets of mastery to others. And he fully satisfied his ambitions in cinema, where he was an actor, a director, and even a screenwriter.

Dmitry made his screen debut back in 1984, playing the Red Army soldier Nikitin in the film “Detachment”. And he became truly famous after the release of the series “St. Petersburg Mysteries”, where he played the fatal seducer, Prince Shadursky. The success was so loud that the actor was invited to play the already aged prince in the continuation of the film.

And in 2002, Brusnikin himself began filming TV series. In “Sleuths-2” a team worked with him, which then accompanied Brusnikin for many years. At the same time, the genre in which the master was destined to prove himself on television took shape - fans of detective-crime series will probably remember “Moore is Moore,” “Law and Order” and “Snoop.” Moreover, Brusnikin recently finished work on the sequel to this popular film...

Teacher

Dmitry Brusnikin began teaching as an assistant in 1982 immediately after graduating from the Moscow Art Theater School. Since 1993, he taught the discipline “Acting”.

In 1999, together with his classmate Roman Kozak, the actor took the course as a leader. Among its graduates are Sergey Lazarev, Daria Moroz, Alexandra Ursulyak, Ekaterina Solomatina, Yuri Kvyatkovsky, Anastasia Skorik, Daria Kalmykova, Maria Zorina, Alexander Matrosov, Alexey Rozin, who have declared themselves loudly and talentedly.

In 2007, he released another course, the graduates of which were Anastasia Lebedeva, Mikhail Mironov, Anastasia Panina, Igor Teplov, Igor Khripunov, Anton Feoktistov. With them, he staged the play “Untitled Play” (“Platonov”), which received the “Golden Leaf” award for the best acting ensemble in graduation performances.

In 2011 there was another course, again recruited together with Roman Kozak. Among the graduates are Paulina Andreeva, Yana Gladkikh, Nina Guseva, Sergey Godin, Victor Khorinyak, Mikhail Rakhlin.

The graduating class of the Moscow Art Theater School of 2020, which even during their studies became known as “Dmitry Brusnikin’s Workshop,” was accepted in its entirety into the Moscow Drama Theater “Man”. Dmitry Brusnikin himself was appointed to the position of deputy artistic director of this theater.

In 2006, Dmitry Brusnikin became a professor.

Marina Brusnikina: The theater cannot live without modern dramaturgy

Photo: Elena Nikitchenko/TASS Ɔ. “The Man from Podolsk” and “Seryozha is Very Dumb” are two plays by Moscow playwright Dmitry Danilov. Why did you decide to combine them?

It all started with the fact that the guys from the Brusnikin Workshop wanted to stage “The Man from Podolsk,” and I really love the play “Seryozha is very stupid” - and I proposed to unite them. At first the guys had doubts: it seemed to them that the plays were in some sense the same, since both used the same move - provocation. But this is precisely where I saw the opportunity to combine them into one action and create a provocation for the viewer.

Ɔ. Both plays are in the repertoire of Moscow theaters. “The Man from Podolsk” is shown at Teatr.doc, and “Seryozha is very stupid” is shown at the Fomenko Theater. What new awaits the viewer at the Praktika theater?

Of course, these are very popular plays. Danilov won various competitions with them ( the play “The Man from Podolsk” received the “Golden Mask - 2018” award in the “Work of a Playwright” category. - Ed.

). That is, he hit on some topic that resonates with people, regardless of their ideology, personal qualities and social status.

Firstly, I really like the combination of these names - just like that, without a period. Secondly, our viewer ceases to be an observer. He becomes a participant in our experiment - a psychological installation. And, of course, these are wonderful artists from the “Brusnikin Workshop” - many of them already have their own fans who come “to see them” - and the artist of the play Savva Savelyev, with whom we are working together for the first time. For Savva, the director of many sensational ceremonies, concerts and one-off performances, this is his first work in a repertory theater.

In general, in response to a question about something new, the words of Oleg Tabakov come to mind: “Talent is the only news that is always new.” A new team and a fresh look at the play is always great and in itself something new.

Ɔ. What is the experiment you are talking about?

In both plays, an experiment takes place on human consciousness. We will hold it not only in two halls at the same time, but also in the foyer, buffet, on the street and even in line for the toilet. We will explore our viewer, and we ourselves are interested in how everything will turn out in the end. We will definitely share the results.

Ɔ. Why are more and more productions appearing in theaters dedicated to modern man and his problems?

I think that the theater cannot live without modern drama. Fortunately, now there are many talented authors and good works about people. They definitely need to be found and shown.

Ɔ. Who is currently involved in the Praktika theater?

Shortly before Brusnikin's death, the theater divided the positions of director and artistic director. Dmitry Vladimirovich wanted him to have more time to do the artistic part. The Department of Culture appointed Boris Mikhailovich Mezdrich as director, and he and Dima managed to draw up a plan for this season. Now everything rests on Mezdrich, but we all help him. He is a very thoughtful and attentive person, a great professional who wants everything to be worthy. And just as Dmitry Brusnikin wanted.

Apart from releasing planned performances, the most difficult and important thing we are currently trying to implement is a development program. Seminars, discussions, creative laboratories and, of course, a huge educational program that was written under Dmitry Vladimirovich. “Practice” is the theater of a modern text, and in this vein it will remain so, but it will develop, as Brusnikin wanted.

Ɔ. How do Praktika and Brusnikin’s Workshop interact with each other?

“Brusnikin’s Workshop” is a separate wonderful team with its director Katya Troepolskaya. Formally, the artists are not tied to Praktika; they are residents and participate in approximately half of the theater’s performances. Most of the hits of “Praktika” were created by the Brusnikites: “Chapaev and Emptiness”, “This is Me Too. Verbatim" and others.

Of course, they have a close relationship with each other. Therefore, at one time it was decided that Dmitry Vladimirovich would head both the “Practice” and the “Workshop”. But Brusnikin initially had an ironclad position: the theater will not stage only plays by Brusnikinites, it should be an open platform for all interesting and talented projects.

The theater's residents this season are also the Kudryashov Workshop and the Ryzhakov Workshop. In October and November they will present their premieres - “Some Conversations about (Christ)” and “Rain in Neukölln”.

Ɔ. How will Brusnikin's Workshop work now?

Here we also have plans that were developed for a year or two in advance, all of them were discussed together with Dmitry Vladimirovich.

And most importantly, there are people who are simply bursting with ideas. Moreover, many guys are brought up in such a way that they look for any way to realize their plans: they join in everything that is offered to them, and they themselves give a lot in return.

Now we have the play “Death and Chips” coming out. This is entirely the initiative of the guys. The actors from “Brusnikin’s Workshop” Vasya Butkevich and Masha Krylova pestered everyone with this material for a very long time, as a result, they independently found a director and money and produced this performance. Our children have a lot of ideas, inspiration and creative freedom, and I am sure that this flow will not stop.

Of course, only now do we understand how much was concentrated in one person. But we are all ready to help each other and implement our plans. We must not let down Dmitry Vladimirovich, who has done so much for modern theater. Ɔ.

Interviewed by Sasha Chernyakova

Awards and titles

• 1993 - Honored Artist of Russia
• 1998 - Order of Friendship for many years of fruitful activity in the field of theatrical art and in connection with the 100th anniversary of the Moscow Art Academic Theater.
• 2007 - Silver memorial sign “The Seagull” of the Chekhov Moscow Art Theater “for 25 years of service to the theater”
• 2009 - Honored Artist of the Russian Federation
• 2013 - Oleg Tabakov Prize - “For the return to the stage of the Art Theater of one of the most profound and original playwrights of our time - Lyudmila Petrushevskaya (play “He is in Argentina”)
• 2015 — Winner of the Moscow Prize in the field of literature and art in the category “Theater Art” (“For many years of fruitful activity in training actors”)
• 2015 — Winner of the “Snob” magazine award “Made in Russia - 2015” in the “Theater” category for success in education and course completion at the Moscow Art Theater School
• 2017 - Golden memorial sign “The Seagull” - “for 35 years of service to the theater”

Based on materials from Wikipedia and websites: kino-teatr.ru, fb.ru, 24smi.org.

Death

Since the beginning of this summer, Dmitry Vladimirovich has been treated at the Botkin Hospital due to chronic heart failure. He did not complain about his health and had no intention of quitting work, and the doctors saw no reason for concern. But on August 8, his condition worsened sharply, and the next day Dmitry Brusnikin died. The news of his death shocked his colleagues and students, because the director and artistic director of the theater was full of creative plans.

https://youtu.be/https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-hKAty-LDo0
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Filmography: Actor

• Ice hole (2017)
• Mysterious Passion (2015), TV series
• Champions (2014)
• Freud's Method-2 (2014), TV series
• Whirlpool of Other People's Desires (2013)
• Unequal Marriage (2012), TV series
• Russian chocolate (2010), TV series
• Frozen Dispatches (2010), TV series
• Law and Order (2007-2009), TV series
• The Most Beautiful-2 (2008), TV series
• Love on a Knife's Edge (2007)
• Commercial Break (2006), TV series
• Happiness by prescription (2006), TV series
• Madcap (2005)
• The Most Beautiful (2005), TV series
• Team "01". Firefighters (2004), TV series
• A Place in the Sun (2004), TV series
• Jackpot for Cinderella (2004), TV series
• Detectives-3 (2003), TV series
• Detective without a license (2003), TV series
• Instructor (2003), TV series
• Sacred Fire (2002), film-play
• Moscow Elegy (2002)
• Detectives-1 (2001), TV series
• Stop on demand-2 (2001), TV series
• Don't Leave Me, Love (2001)
• Citizen Chief (2001), TV series
• The denouement of St. Petersburg mysteries (2001), TV series
• Turkish March (2000), TV series
• Detective Dubrovsky's file (1999), TV series
• Chekhov and K (1998), TV series
• Three Sisters (1997), film-play
• Petersburg Mysteries (1995), TV series
• Prokhindiada-2 (1994)
• Party Gold (1993)
• Rodolfo (1991), film-play
• Brother, love the revolution! (1987), film-play
• Theater I.S. Turgenev (1986), film-play
• The Path (1986), film-play
• At the Call of the Heart (1986)
• Flight Accident (1986)
• The Prince and the Pauper (1985), film-play
• Karmelyuk (1985)
• Squad (1984)

Filmography: Director

• Bloodhound-2 (2018), TV series
• Bloodhound (2015), TV series
• Avenger (2013)
• I'll give my wife in good hands (2012)
• Beagle (2012), TV series
• Law and Order (2007-2009), TV series
• Paid with death (2007), TV series
• Game of Shindai (2006)
• Happiness by prescription (2006), TV series
• The Most Beautiful (2005), TV series
• MUR is MUR-2 (2005), TV series
• MUR is MUR (2004), TV series
• Salome (2001), TV series
• Chekhov and K (1998), TV series

MASTER AND MARINA

Marina Sycheva, who was destined to become Brusnikin’s wife and muse, also entered the studio school. Later she admits that she fell in love with Dmitry at first sight, stood and thought: “What if he is a bad person, and I already love him? What then? But her chosen one turned out to be a positive hero. By the end of the second year the guys got married.

True, Marina’s parents did not like this marriage - their daughter was only 17, the groom had no stake, no yard. And Brusnikin’s own friends did not believe in the seriousness of his intentions, so they jokingly gave him a wedding gift... a yellow suitcase, hinting that this marriage would not last long. They were mistaken - there was not only love here, there was also passion. Fanatical passion for the theater.

Four years later, Marina and Dmitry became parents. Their only son Philip at first categorically did not want to follow in his father’s footsteps. After graduating from the Faculty of Law of the University of the Ministry of Internal Affairs, he worked for a year as an operative in the criminal investigation department. But then he finally came to art - he began producing films and TV series. He also appeared as an actor - in the third part of the series “MUR is MUR”.

Well, Marina Brusnikina herself, from being an actress (at the Moscow Art Theater she is currently involved in only one play - “The Goose of Flight”) has migrated over the years to become a director. Today she has almost 30 productions to her credit. Performances are held at the Theater. Pushkin, in “Satyricon”, in the Theater. Mossovet, in the Novosibirsk Globus and even in Spain.

Marina also tried herself in film directing - together with her husband she filmed the TV series “Law and Order”. Both played there, although they still preferred not to work together. They preferred to live together - in a house 200 kilometers from Moscow, where they indulged in silence, read, admired nature and were simply happy...

* With his wife Marina