Actress Irina Mazurkevich spoke about plastic surgery

Irina Mazurkevich is a theater and film actress who is remembered by audiences from films of the eighties. In the nineties, she played in two films directed by Astrakhan. Today, the actress does little acting, but is involved in several performances of the Akimov Theater, to which she has devoted more than a quarter of a century. The biography and personal life of Irina Mazurkevich is the topic of the article.

Childhood and youth

Irina Mazurkevich was born in the Belarusian city of Mozyr in 1958. As a child, I did rhythmic gymnastics. After graduating from eight classes, the future actress left her hometown and entered the Gorky Theater School.

Irina Mazurkevich was only 16 years old when she played her first film role. It was the film “Miracle with Pigtails” directed by Viktor Titov. The young actress played the role of a gymnast, whose prototype is Olympic champion Olga Korbut.

In the biography of Irina Mazurkevich, the name of Vladimir Vysotsky is often mentioned. It is believed that the legendary bard and poet played a decisive role in her acting career.

Actress

Miracle with Pigtails (1974)

She was called in several times, examined and sent home. The famous gymnast Olga Korbut was to play in the movie. The role was important and required authenticity, and the director doubted the actress for a long time. But having learned that Mazurkevich had been doing gymnastics for eight years, he still approved her. The actress performs some of the exercises without a stunt double.

She was immediately noticed by both critics and film fans, and directors took a closer look at the graceful and talented actress. A year later, out of dozens of applicants, Vladimir Vysotsky himself chose 16-year-old Mazurkevich as his partner in “The Tale of How Tsar Peter Married the Arab.”

It is generally accepted that Vysotsky seriously courted the rising star, but in numerous interviews the actress refutes the gossip. She says that she was just a child and did not even look at the great Vysotsky as a potential gentleman.

But he didn’t insist. Irina sincerely loved him as an actor, watching him every time he finished work and went home surrounded by a flock of fans with glowing eyes and various gifts.

But she fell in love quickly and for the rest of her life, but much later and with a completely different actor.

“The Tale of How Tsar Peter Married a Blackamoor”

This picture is the second in Irina Mazurkevich’s filmography. The actress’s personal life does not give rise to gossip. She was married for many years, raised a daughter, and now helps her raise her grandchildren. But once upon a time, actress Irina Mazurkevich was credited with an affair with Vladimir Vysotsky. In an interview, she refutes these rumors, claiming that she was connected with the bard only by friendship. Nevertheless, it was thanks to Vysotsky that Mazurkevich played in the film based on the work of Alexander Sergeevich Pushkin.

For the role of Natasha Radishcheva, Alexander Mitta considered many applicants, among whom were mainly schoolgirls or students of theater universities. After a long selection process, only two candidates remained. One of them is Irina Mazurkevich.

The director asked the leading actor, Vladimir Vysotsky, which actress he would like to play with. He named the heroine of this article. The young actress’s partners on the set of Mitta’s film were such actors as Alexey Petrenko, Mikhail Kokshenov, Valery Zolotukhin.

After the release of this film, Mazurkiewicz played in only four films in three years. The most famous is “Three in a Boat, Not Counting a Dog.”

Irina Mazurkevich

She made her film debut at the age of fifteen, and very soon, in Alexander Mitta’s film about the Blackamoor Peter the Great, she played opposite Vladimir Vysotsky himself. “Say a word for the poor hussar” by Eldar Ryazanov, “Three in a boat, not counting the dog” by Naum Birman and several other films - there is not a single passable work in the actress’s small filmography. The same thing happens on stage: any of the four performances of the Comedy Theater with the participation of Irina Mazurkevich invariably turns into her benefit performance.

Did your family try to dissuade you from your decision to become an actress? And they simply did not have time to come to their senses.
I grew up in the Belarusian city of Mozyr, on the Pripyat River, and had a vague idea of ​​how actresses become. But the older sister of one of my friends said: “Irka, you cry so easily. You need to go to VGIK!” I also had no idea what VGIK was, but I felt that my friends were in some kind of conspiracy. It turned out that they were going to Gorky to enter the theater school. And I said: “I’m with you!” That’s how, at the age of fifteen, I set off to distant lands. I went through three rounds, and they accepted me, despite the fact that I couldn’t pronounce the letters “zh” and “sh”, and my “re” combination was too soft. And then everything goes as planned? No. I didn't understand what I had gotten myself into. I didn’t want to leave Mozyr for good: I fell in love with a boy from my class and didn’t want to part with him. But when I returned, I found out that I would still have to move to another city - my father was transferred to work in Minsk. And I decided that it would be better for me to go study.

Who were your parents? Mom is a teacher. My father changed many professions, from paramedic to head of housing administration. He was transferred to Minsk because he did not sign one piece of paper. We were renting out a new house, all that remained was to write that the boiler room was also ready for rent. But this was not true, my father refused. High authorities from Minsk came to investigate. And a few years later, when one of these bosses was given a position in the ministry, he remembered the principled Mazurkevich and took him to his team. It turns out that I became an actress because my father refused to open a boiler room. (Laughs.)

What do you remember about your student time? I didn’t even rent an apartment, but a sofa from two grandmothers. We had to eat only gingerbread cookies with milk. I remember how I went to Leningrad for a screen test, went into a store opposite Lenfilm and for the first time saw a display case containing meat of all possible categories. I thought that it was probably not for sale, and when I found out that it could be bought, I picked up a little of everything and took it to my grandmothers as soon as possible, so that they would know that at least in Leningrad there is meat!

Did the actors quickly accept you into their midst? I was lucky: I immediately found myself on the same set with very good artists, who were also very good people, and this does not always coincide. Everyone took care of me, because I was much younger than the others - now this “flaw” of mine is already passing. Viktor Titov, Alexander Mitta and Eldar Ryazanov, the directors with whom I worked, did not give me offense. And on the set of “Arap Peter the Great” I was also looked after by the leading actor, Vladimir Vysotsky.

There are rumors that he not only looked after you, but was also in love with you. He took this secret with him. But as for my husband, actor Anatoly Ravikovich, whom we met at the Lensovet Theater, I will not deny love. Although at first we hid - we went for a walk to the Volkovskoye cemetery, away from prying eyes.

How did it happen that you moved to Leningrad? The chairman of the examination committee at our school was the chief director of the Lensoviet Theater Igor Vladimirov. He saw me in my graduation performance and the first thing he asked was: “Ira, can you dance on pointe shoes?” - “I don’t know how, but if necessary, I’ll learn!” He liked this answer so much that he took me into the troupe. It turned out that the pointe shoes were needed for the play “Lefty”, where I began to dance the Flea. We played this and a couple of other roles in turn with Larisa Luppian, the wife of Mikhail Boyarsky. When Larisa went on maternity leave, I replaced her in several performances, and then, on the contrary, she replaced me. And we never made the viewer jealous of each other.

Larisa Reginaldovna's daughter became an actress, like her parents, and yours chose a different path. My husband and I never advised Lisa to be an artist, but she herself did not aspire to this. I only wanted her to grow up to be an independent person. At the first opportunity, we resettled her so that she could learn everyday life. She herself chose the profession of an economist and always finds work herself.

Does she have the same decisive character as you? Just as nasty. True, now I am an angel compared to how harmful I was in childhood and adolescence. There is less maximalism in me, I make concessions more easily and can find an approach to any person if I want.

They say you are passionate about gardening. Yes, and almost in the same way as the theater. It's truly magical when tiny seeds grow into flowers! I remember my father gave me one useful book about gardening, from which I remembered the phrase: “You shouldn’t think that a lot of manure can replace a lack of knowledge.” In my opinion, these words apply to any life situation.

It seems that cinema has now faded into the background for you. But it was never my first priority, although I started acting before acting on stage. You can't fix anything in the movies, and this creates a feeling of bitterness. Of my mature works, I like the film “Everything will be fine” by Dmitry Astrakhan, because it was very easy to work with him. However, I never had any difficulties with other directors. I need to say thank you to cinema because thanks to it people begin to recognize you, but theatrical roles are dear to me because they change with me over time. I enjoy playing in plays: in my favorite “Makropoulos Remedy”, in “The Merry Wives of Windsor”, “The Country Wife”, “Dating in the Suburbs”, in enterprises.

Isn't it difficult to play together with your husband? It’s easy, he’s a good actor. And if something is wrong, we’ll come home and find out! (Laughs.)

Thank you for your help in filming the Untsia cafe (Nevsky Prospekt, 63)

“Say a word for the poor hussar”

This film was filmed in Moscow, Leningrad and Pavlovsk. The script was written back in 1978, but the cinematic authorities for a long time did not give permission to Ryazanov to shoot the film. And after approval, changes had to be made to the plot, in which the outbreak of the war in Afghanistan played a significant role.

The casting was completed in 1980. Many actresses, including Tatyana Dogileva, applied for the role of Nastenka Bubentsova, played by Irina Mazurkevich. In the film, as in many other films by Eldar Ryazanov, there are many songs. “Nastenka’s Romance” was performed by the actress Irina Mazurkevich herself. A photo of her heroine in the film “Say a Word for the Poor Hussar” is presented in the article.

In 1983, the actress played in the film based on Agatha Christie’s book “The Mystery of the Blackbirds.” Here she played a minor role. Other films with Irina Mazurkevich, released in the eighties: “Meet me in the subway”, “Last visit”, “Bay of Happiness”, “The Life of Klim Samgin”, “It”.

Filmography[ | ]

"Everything will be fine!"

In the nineties, many famous Russian actors disappeared from the screen. Irina Mazurkevich, who was in great demand at the beginning of her career, starred in only two films in ten years. These were paintings by Dmitry Astrakhan. The films of this director came at the right time. They were reminiscent of a fairy tale, which people so needed during this difficult time.

In the film “You Are the Only One for Me,” Irina Mazurkevich played a cameo role. She appeared on screen for just a few minutes as a beggar. In the next film by Dmitry Astrakhan, the actress received a big role.

In films of the eighties, viewers saw Irina Mazurkevich in the image of a young, sophisticated girl. In 1993, she appeared before them in the role of a tired, middle-aged woman. Irina Mazurkevich in Astrakhan’s film “Everything will be fine!” played the role of the wife of a drunken musician.

Once in her youth she loved a young man, but they broke up. Years later, when the heroine Mazurkevich already has an adult son and works as a commandant in a hostel, she meets him again. Now he is not a poor student, but a millionaire.

Theater

After graduating from a theater university, the actress was accepted into the troupe of the Lensovet Theater. She played on his stage for eleven years. However, the roles became fewer and fewer every year, and Irina Mazurkevich decided to leave. Since 1988, the actress has been playing at the Akimov Comedy Theater.

She performed her most striking roles in the plays “Zoyka’s Apartment” and “The Makropoulos Remedy”. In the latter, based on the work of Karel Capek, the heroine Mazurkiewicz strives for eternal youth, in which a miracle drug helps her. Having lived three hundred years, she understands that endless life has given her nothing but loneliness.

Biography[ | ]

From an early age, Irina practiced gymnastics for eight years. At the age of 15, having completed eight classes, she left for Gorky, where she entered the Gorky Theater School. A year later, an assistant to director Viktor Titov arrived at the school, who was preparing to film the sports drama “Miracle with Pigtails” at Mosfilm. Taking her photo, the assistant left. Then Irina was called for auditions several times, after which she was finally approved.

Then her photo, which ended up in the Mosfilm file cabinet, was noticed by director Alexander Mitta. He started painting “The Tale of How Tsar Peter Married an Arab.” Tests followed, after which Mitta hesitated for some time between the candidacy of Mazurkevich and another contender. The choice of Irina fell thanks to Vladimir Vysotsky, to whom the director asked with the question of who he would like to act with.

In 1977, Irina graduated from the Gorky Theater School (workshop of Nikolai Selivestrovich Khlibko). In the graduation performance “Much Ado About Nothing,” I. P. Vladimirov, the chief director of the Lensovet Theater, drew the attention of her. He was the chairman of the state committee that year and immediately invited her to his troupe. Irina, like all aspiring actresses, had to go through extras. Together with Larisa Luppian (wife of Mikhail Boyarsky) in the play “Lefty” they took turns dancing the flea and portraying the people[4][5].

Irina Mazurkevich and Anatoly Ravikovich were brought together by the play “Kid and Carlson”, in which Irina played Malysh, and Anatoly, respectively, Carlson. They got married in July 1980.

In 1979, she played in the musical comedy by Nahum Birman “Three in a Boat, Not Counting the Dog.” This was followed by a role in Eldar Ryazanov’s film “Say a word for the poor hussar.” Later, sometimes the actress herself refused roles; sometimes she was called for auditions and was not approved. It wasn't until the late 1980s and early 1990s that she played several big roles. She was not busy in the theater as often as she would like. Among the rare large works are the plays “Hurry to Do Good” and “Zinulya”, which remained one of the most beloved for the actress.

Not seeing a future for herself, Irina Mazurkevich left the Lensovet Theater in 1988 and moved to the N. P. Akimov Comedy Theater, where she gradually became one of the leading actresses. In her repertoire:

• Zoya Peltz in the play “Zoyka’s Apartment”;
• Mrs. Page - The Merry Wives of Windsor;
• Steffi Blondel - “I want to act in films”;
• Emilia Marty - "Makropoulos Remedy."

In the play “The Makropoulos Remedy” based on the play by Karel Capek, the heroine Irina Mazurkiewicz struggles throughout the entire time for the recipe for eternal life, but in the end, having lived 300 years and having comprehended the full extent of the loneliness of a person who lives endlessly, she refuses eternal life.

Romantic Khobotov

She was eighteen. And he is forty. Ravikovich was married and had a daughter growing up. He had to leave his family for literally nowhere. Mazurkevich later recalled that her future husband courted her like the romantic Khobotov - ineptly, but touchingly.

When the young actress saw him for the first time on stage, he showed her as an ancient old man. Ravikovich played age-appropriate roles. He was an experienced and famous actor. But one day Irina noticed that, despite his mature age, he had beautiful and young eyes. But then she could not yet imagine that she would have an affair with a man who was twice her age. At first she admired him, but only as an artist.

It is worth saying that eighteen-year-old Mazurkevich was not entirely free then. After graduating from theater school, she came to Leningrad with her common-law husband, who had nothing to do with cinema or theater. The actress never mentioned the name of this person in an interview.

Anatoly Ravikovich was remembered by the audience for his role as the clumsy, middle-aged Khobotov. But when he met Mazurkiewicz, he looked different - slender, lean, athletic. However, they met for the first time just two years before the release of the film “Pokrovsky Gates”. And Irina Mazurkevich fell in love with her future husband, of course, not for his appearance.

Anatoly Ravikovich loved his daughter from his first marriage very much. Shortly before meeting Mazurkiewicz, he received an apartment. In order to go to a young lover, in a twelve-meter communal apartment, you had to find the courage within yourself. The actor decided to take this action for about two years.

All this time they had to hide their relationship. They, like the heroes of the film “Pokrovsky Gates,” rode the tram and walked through parks and squares. Despite the huge age difference, they had a lot in common.

Widow of Anatoly Ravikovich: “I promised him that I would get married”

Anatoly Ravikovich as Khobotov from the film “Pokrovsky Gate” // Photo: frame from the film

The famous Khobotov from the lyrical painting by Mikhail Kozakov - People's Artist of the country Anatoly Ravikovich - passed away five years ago. The actor died on April 8, 2012 in a St. Petersburg hospital from heart failure. Anatoly Yuryevich never recovered from his previous heart attack.

A few years later, his widow, actress Irina Mazurkevich, became the heroine of the NTV channel program “Once Upon a Time”, in which she made an unexpected confession. Irina Stepanovna, shortly before the death of her beloved husband, promised him that she would not be lonely after his departure and would definitely marry again.

Irina Mazurkevich // Photo: frame from the “Once Upon a Time” program

“When he was sick, he said: “Well, we knew that I would leave earlier. And you should definitely get married, don’t be alone.” It will probably happen... someday. In any case, I already perceive people of the opposite sex, well, as... as someone with whom I can continue to live... This is probably how it will be. It’s a matter of time,” said Irina Stepanovna.

Anatoly Ravikovich and Irina Mazurkevich // Photo: frame from the “Once Upon a Time” program

Actress Mazurkevich is 59 years old; from her marriage to Ravikovich, she has a daughter, Elizaveta, who gave birth to two grandchildren.

Irina Stepanovna met her future husband at the Lensovet Theater. She was 18, he was 40. But the age difference did not interfere with a happy family life, albeit not very long, as Mazurkevich herself says. Remembering her husband, whom she affectionately calls Ravik, the actress cannot hold back her tears.

“When you say “33 years”, it really seems like a lot. Maybe because now not many people, especially in our environment, can withstand such a period. But in life, looking back, this is quite a bit... When we met, we had a big age difference, I couldn’t do something, but Ravik was a good cook... He was like Khobotov in some ways, because he was an intellectual, and in some ways he didn’t - he knew how to do a lot with his hands,” said Irina Mazurkevich.

Anatoly Ravikovich died in April 2012 // Photo: frame from the “Once Upon a Time” program

Irina Mazurkevich made her film debut at the age of 15, playing the role of gymnast Tanya in the film “Miracle with Pigtails,” and at 18 she already became Vladimir Vysotsky’s partner in the film “The Tale of How Tsar Peter Married the Arab.” The premiere of the film coincided with the artist’s graduation from the Gorky Theater School.

Director Igor Vladimirov noticed Irina in her graduation performance and invited her to work in Leningrad. The master was looking for a travesty actress to replace Alisa Freindlich, who had grown out of the role of the Kid in the play about Carlson. The role of the man with the propeller himself was played by Anatoly Ravikovich.

“A year before his death, Ravik was clinically dead. Since Ravik loved me very much and pitied me, as I say, he prepared me for this... Therefore, when he died, I already understood what feelings to feel,” said Irina Mazurkevich.

Family

Irina Mazurkevich and Anatoly Ravikovich got married in 1980. Many years later, when the actress was no longer involved in the theater much, they bought a house in the village. Irina Mazurkevich once admitted in an interview that family comes first in her life. Fame and fame are good, but when they go, a woman is left alone, no matter how talented she is.

“You need to get married, have children, so that at some point you don’t end up in limbo,” the actress once said.

In the early nineties, when there was no work at all, Irina Mazurkevich worked as a driver. She does not hesitate to talk about that dark period and even recalls with delight how in just a day she earned as much as she earned in a month in the theater and realized that her family was not in danger of starvation.

Anatoly Ravikovich had a bad heart. In recent years he suffered a heart attack. Despite feeling unwell, he continued to work. He died on April 8, 2012.

Daughter

The actress once said that her only regret was having only one child. Daughter Elizabeth was born in 1981. She did not follow in her parents’ footsteps, although at the age of six she starred in the film-play “Cat’s House.” For some time he worked as a television administrator. But in 2003 she still played a cameo role in a movie.

Elizabeth took her mother's surname. She is married and has a daughter and son. It is unknown what Elizaveta Mazurkevich is doing today. She is a non-public person.