Biography
Lyubov Konstantinova is from St. Petersburg. From early childhood, Lyuba knew that she would be an actress. “My parents say that at the age of five I said that I would go to a theater studio, and from the age of six I went there,” recalls the artist.
After graduating from school, the girl set off to conquer the capital. Later she shared: “Then I just took the train, arrived - and suddenly all the theater universities in Moscow - it was a happy year for me - opened their doors for me. I entered GITIS and the Moscow Art Theater. I chose the Studio School. I was fascinated by the building, the master, and the course he took. All this entered me very deeply and still sits in me, that is, love for this place.”
However, a year later Lyuba returned home. “I couldn’t live in this city. I didn't have any inspiration there. There was a feeling that this was a working anthill, a construction kit. That’s why I came back,” the actress clarifies.
In St. Petersburg, Konstantinova continued her studies at the Russian State Specialized Academy of Arts (RGISI) at the faculty of acting and directing. The young artist’s mentor was the famous theater director, Professor Sergei Dmitrievich Cherkassky.
Biography[edit | edit code]
Born on October 15, 1953 in Saratov. Her mother raised her and her younger brother alone.
In 1971 she graduated from Saratov secondary school No. 71 (10 classes)[1].
After school, Lyuba Timoshina entered the Saratov Book Trade College (now the Saratov College of Book Business and Information Technologies[2]).
According to one of the official biographies, she got a job in the personnel department of a construction organization (the name of the organization was not indicated). According to other information, Sliska began her career as a secretary at Rospechat, later becoming an inspector in the personnel department. According to some reports, she became the deputy head of the personnel department of Rospechat, but a number of publications reported that at Rospechat Sliska was first a lawyer, and later - in her own words, in 1985 - the head of the personnel department. Some publications reported the third version: from 1977 she worked in the personnel service at the Soyuzpechat enterprise, and subsequently (after 1987) - the released chairman of the trade union committee of the enterprise.
I entered the evening department at the Saratov Law Institute named after. D.I. Kursky. In 1990[3] she graduated from the institute with a degree in jurisprudence. After that, she continued to work in the trade union and in 1992 became the chairman of the regional committee of the trade union of heavy engineering workers in the Saratov region.
Career in the Saratov region[edit | edit code]
In 1996, as the chairman of the trade union, she was included in the Saratov City Election Commission as deputy chairman. It was probably then that she met the vice-mayor of Saratov, Dmitry Ayatskov.
On April 15, 1996, Ayatskov was appointed by decree of the President of the Russian Federation Boris Yeltsin as head of the administration of the Saratov region, and on September 1, 1996 he was elected governor of the Saratov region. And in September he appointed Lyubov Konstantinovna as his deputy. However, she did not work for long as the first deputy governor of the Saratov region - until November 1996. Appointed permanent representative of the governor in the Saratov Regional Duma. She worked in this position until 1998.
In 1998-1999 - Deputy Chairman of the Government of the Saratov Region. Some publications, as well as the official website of the United Russia party, report that Sliska only held the post of permanent representative of the Saratov governor and the regional government in the regional Duma, without being deputy chairman of the regional government.
In 1999, Lyubov Sliska entered the electoral list of the Unity movement and in December 1999 was elected as a deputy of the State Duma of the Federal Assembly of the Russian Federation of the third convocation on the federal list of the electoral bloc "Bear" (Interregional movement "Unity").
Moscow. State Duma[edit | edit code]
Lyubov Sliska (center), February 2000
In January 2000, Sliska was nominated for the post of first deputy speaker of the State Duma. From 2000 to 2003 - first deputy chairman of the State Duma Gennady Seleznev.
On December 7, 2003, Sliska was again elected as a deputy of the State Duma of the fourth convocation, and was again elected first deputy chairman of the State Duma Boris Gryzlov.
Deputy Chairman of the State Duma since 2007 (in the State Duma of the fifth convocation). Member of the State Duma Committee of the fifth convocation on security, member of the State Duma Commission for the consideration of federal budget expenditures aimed at ensuring the defense and state security of the Russian Federation. Deputy head of the United Russia faction.
At the beginning of July 2011, it became known that Lyubov Sliska would no longer be elected to the State Duma and would not participate in the United Russia primaries. Sliska refused to explain the reason for her decision to the public, but according to information leaked to the press, the whole point is in her long-standing conflict with her fellow countryman, who oversees the election campaign of United Russia, Deputy Prime Minister Vyacheslav Volodin[4]
Career after the State Duma[edit | edit code]
On April 25, 2012, Lyubov Konstantinovna announced her resignation from the United Russia party[5].
Theater
In 2020, Lyubov graduated from RGISI. She played in the youngest professional theater in St. Petersburg, the City Theater, created on the basis of the workshop of S. D. Cherkassky. And she was accepted into the trainee group of the St. Petersburg Academic Maly Drama Theater - Theater of Europe, where she serves to this day.
The actress says about the famous Dodinsky group: “The Maly Drama Theater simply absorbed me with its atmosphere. It turned out that there is something old there that you can only feel, the energy, the atmosphere of the time in everything: in the way rehearsals are held, in how the actors feel on stage, in what Lev Abramovich Dodin talks about during rehearsals. This is something incredible. As it is described in books: when the master speaks, and the whole troupe sits with bated breath, afraid to miss even one word.”
Theater works
Diploma performances:
- “The Death of “Nadezhda” Herman Geijermans - Io, Gerda’s bride
- "The Cricket on the Stove" Charles Dickens - Mary
- “Without coins there are no sweets” by Jörg Isemeier – Julia
- “Illusions” Ivan Vyrypaev – First Woman
MDT:
- “Gaudeamus” based on the story by Sergei Kaledin - Tatyana
- “Cleansing” Sofi Oksanen – Zara
- "Brothers and sisters. Version 2015" Fedor Abramov - Avdotya Lobanova
- “Russian and Literature” Maxim Osipov – Verochka
- "Shadow of the Gunslinger" Sean O'Casey - Minnie Powell
- “Fear Love Despair” based on the plays of Bertolt Brecht – vocals, backing vocals
- “The Snow Queen” Evgeniy Schwartz – The Little Robber
Movies
Immediately after graduating from RGISI, in 2020, Lyuba began her career in the young professional City Theater, directed by Sergei Dmitrievich Cherkassky, who knew the girl from the institute. Then Konstantinova was accepted into the St. Petersburg academic Maly Drama Theater, called the Theater of Europe. Lyuba still plays on the stage of the Theater of Europe.
In the same 2020, the theater actress made her film debut: Lyuba immediately received one of the main roles in Alexei Kozlov’s film “Golden Transit”. Konstantinova was delighted with her work on the set and admits her confidence that this is only the beginning of her film career. And fate immediately confirms the girl’s words.
Before the end of 2020, Lyuba again receives an offer to film. This time - a role in the mini-television series “The Well of Forgotten Wishes” directed by Peter Amelin. Moreover, Lyuba is again starring in the title role: she plays young Veronica Bashilova.
The success of the young actress did not end there: the casting director of the Fancy Shot agency, who noticed Lyuba while still studying at the institute, approached her with an offer to star in the video for Leningrad - “Tits”. Considering that Lyuba loved the work of the Leningrad group even before filming the video, she went to the casting with pleasure.
As the girl says in an interview, at the casting the director set the task of telling on camera about how Lyuba was abandoned by her beloved man. Lyuba coped with this role brilliantly; according to her, a real situation from the girl’s personal life helped her get used to the character.
The frontman of the group was unable to personally attend the filming, but even this did not spoil Lyuba’s impressions of the work. By the way, in the interview, the girl emphasizes that in a number of episodes of the video, her breasts were specially tightened to make them appear smaller, although in reality Lyuba does not have the same problem as the heroine of the video.
Cinema
"Golden Transit"
The actress made her film debut in 2020. And she immediately got the main role in Alexei Kozlov’s action adventure film “Golden Transit”.
According to the plot, the events described in the film take place in the 20s of the last century. Former gold miner Astakhov (Vadim Andreev), who escaped during the revolution, returns to the small town of Chuisk on the border with China. He is accompanied by security officer Pashka Samsonov (Alexei Mantsygin). Astakhov must indicate where all his gold was hidden, while he keeps 25 percent for himself and gives the rest to the state.
However, few people know that in fact Astakhov came not so much for gold, but for his daughter Masha (Lyubov Konstantinova), with whom he had to part seven years ago. Astakhov shows the hiding place; the bags are stored in the vault of a former bank. However, at night the precious metal disappears without a trace...
In one of the interviews, the artist talks about her first steps in cinema: “For me, participation in this project was real happiness. During these two weeks of filming, I was sincerely happy when I heard, even a thousand times a day: “Motor! Camera! Let's start! We all worked together, gave our all to make a good movie. I really hope we succeeded. I’m sure that everything is just beginning for me.”
"The Well of Forgotten Wishes"
The actress received her second role in the mini-series “The Well of Forgotten Wishes” by Pyotr Amelin, based on the novel of the same name by Tatyana Ustinova. Here the artist played the main character Veronica Bashilova in her youth.
Plot: The life of Oleg Petrovich Nikonov turned upside down in just a few days. It all started with the icon of St. Seraphim of Sarov, which seemed to fall into his hands. Then, almost before his eyes, the murder of an old friend, an antique dealer, and the theft of a unique Demidov box from the museum occurred. And finally, he met the woman of his life. This cannot be explained by mere coincidence. Clear as day - it was predetermined. Predetermined by someone from above...
In the film, the ensemble of the actress consisted of: Pavel Trubiner, Irina Goryacheva, Grigory Nekrasov, Sofya Shutkina, Georgy Shtil, Ernst Romanov, Arthur Vakha, Philip Azarov.
"Berezka"
In 2020, director Alexander Baranov began filming the film “Beryozka,” which tells the story of the behind-the-scenes of the world-famous dance group. For 70 years now, the ensemble, created by the outstanding choreographer Nadezhda Nadezhdina, has been captivating audiences with its outlandish, “floating” step, creating the impression that the girls are standing still, and the stage is rotating underneath them.
In the series, talented dancers - the daring provincial Varya, the ambitious beauty from Tallinn Edita and the native Muscovite Lena - have to go through a difficult path to the big stage, despite a series of ups and downs. One of the dancers in the film will be represented by Lyubov Konstantinova. And among the famous artists who will star: Lidiya Velezheva, Alexey Serebryakov, Sergey Shakurov, Evgeny Sidikhin, Mikhail Efremov, Nina Usatova, Nadezhda Markina.
Executive film producer Ilya Papernov about the project: “We will tell the stories of people involved in the world of dance - pure and greedy, dreaming and cynical, loyal and betraying, but always passionate, pursuing their dreams. The events in the film unfold from 1984 to 1991 against the backdrop of epochal changes in our country and become a huge challenge for the ensemble. But, despite this, the founder of the ensemble created a choreography that turned out to be above the immediate flow of time, everyday issues and circumstances.”
Projects
In the fall of 2020, the Leningrad group presented a new, shocking video for the song “Tits”, where the main female role was played by Lyubov Konstantinova. The video tells about a young girl named Lena, who was cheated on by her boyfriend. According to the heroine, the reason for the guy’s action is her small breasts. This thought haunts her and becomes a fixation.
“During the filming of the video, the make-up artists had to reduce my breasts in some shots. For example, during a scene in the fitness room, my chest was tied with tape,” says the actress. “Although I actually have breasts!”
“In my opinion, now the public perfectly understands all the irony of Sergei Shnurov’s songs and videos,” adds Lyubov. — These are all very relevant topics - they are all about us. You can't be a prude. There is nothing scary in such topics, you need to be able to laugh at yourself. That's why people love Sergei's songs. When we were filming the video, I myself had to laugh at my own complexes.”
Personal life
The actress is not married. She is still very young and has not yet met her “prince”; she devotes herself entirely to work.
The artist prefers to spend her free time reading a book. Her favorite authors: Joseph Brodsky, Marina Tsvetaeva, Boris Vasiliev, Vasily Shukshin, Erich Maria Remarque, Mikhail Sholokhov, Leo Tolstoy.
Lyubov also enjoys watching movies. She was most impressed by “Reservoir Dogs” by Quentin Tarantino, “Knocking on Heaven’s Door” by Thomas Jahn, “Life is a Miracle” by Emir Kusturica, and “Choristers” by Christophe Barratier. As well as Richard Linklater’s dramas “Before Sunrise”, “Before Sunset”, “Before Midnight”.
The artist considers her motto in life to be a phrase once uttered by Irina Muravyova: “What to dream? Need to do something!"
Lyubov Konstantinova now
As Lyuba notes in her photos on social networks, all her wishes come true quickly, one after another. So, in September 2020, the premiere of the play “Mu-Mu” took place, where Lyubov enthusiastically played the role of Tatyana. At the same time, Konstantinova is starring in the film “Birch” directed by Alexander Baranov. On the set, Lyuba met such stars of Russian cinema as Alexey Serebryakov, Evgeny Sidikhin and others.
On October 1, 2020, the television series “Dawn Will Rise” aired on Ukrainian television channels, where Lyuba starred in the main female role. As for rest, Lyubov simply does not have it - she is constantly at work. On her pages on social networks there are no breathtaking photographs from world resorts and European capitals, only work - filming, colleagues, the stage. The entire career of Lyubov Konstantinova is reflected in a quote from another Russian actress Irina Muravyova: “What to dream? Need to do something!".
Interview
About cinema and theater
“In general, when I first appeared in front of a movie camera, I realized that this was a different profession that I was not taught. And my first feeling was complete panic. My diploma says that I am a theater and film actress, and at the same time I am zero percent a film actress. When I first starred in Alexey Viktorovich Kozlov’s film “Golden Transit” - we filmed for three weeks - it was a panic, a disaster, because I came home every day and realized that I didn’t understand anything about the profession.
It’s somehow much easier to exist in the theater. You are on stage, you have entered the light - and then play. Open your soul, play, immerse yourself, be in the circumstances. And here you need to hold 100 objects in parallel: not cast a shadow on your partner, stand in the light so that your face does not, God forbid, do anything unnecessary, which is the worst thing for a theater actor. Because we are used to playing on the last row. You have to act in a movie as if you were half asleep. That is, it was very, very difficult to come to terms with. Hands too - in the theater they work easier, but in the cinema you have to control yourself. And at the same time, it is not clear what they see on the other side of the camera, whether they see the truth behind what you are trying. But I fell madly in love with it.”
“For me, cinema is a minefield. You have to walk along it so carefully and not stumble anywhere, otherwise it will all remain fixed. I’m a passionate person in this regard, so I want to do a big, big role in a movie and do it with dignity.”
“I realized that you have to love your destiny, and you can’t program it. I once said that I would only play in the theater, I would never act in films, why do I need this, this is the great art of theater. Now I understand that no. Another time - you need to talk to people from the screen. If you can speak to them in some equally large language from the screen, you should do it while you are young, while you are energetic, while you have something to talk about. Now for me cinema and theater are on an equal footing. Although, of course, theater is how I entered the profession, and cinema is what I’m trying to get to.”
About love
“I feel like I’m in love every day, to be honest. I guess I’m just an actress, so I can fall in love in the subway, on the street, and it’s just wonderful to live with this feeling, this feeling. Firstly, if you are an actress, you are always in love with anyone: with the character, with your partner, because on stage this is simply necessary. But in life - I don’t know, maybe I’m in love.”
About myself, time and music
“For example, I’m a big fan of Splin. But in general, I was simply brought up on different music. My parents raised me on the music of Anna German, Muslim Magomayev, Klavdiya Shulzhenko. This is what I've been listening to all my life. And I got involved in modern music relatively recently. But I joined in powerfully, because along with Anna German’s songs, I respect the work of Oxxxymiron, a rap artist.”
“All my life it seemed to me that I was born at the wrong time. All these Soviet films, Soviet music - this is what my soul is 100% passionate about. I like our time, but I don’t like that now there is no depth, sincerity, in creativity even more, in the work of musicians and directors. I really want to achieve what it was then.”
“You have to say “yes” to your time - and then it will accept you. I was told about this for a long time, and I really love this idea. If you love the place where you live, if you love the time in which you live, it will accept you.”
About poetry
“My whole room is littered with an insane amount of poetry books, and I am an absolute fan of poetry in any form. In this regard, I am a poetic music lover, because I read everything: from Mandelstam to Voznesensky, Pasternak, Tsvetaeva and Brodsky. In general, I am an absolute fan of Brodsky. This is what inspires you at once. That is, you woke up completely empty, spent half an hour with a book - you are ready to go into the profession today.”
Based on materials from the sites: kino-teatr.ru, ruskino.ru, kinopoisk.ru, aif.ru, spb-voyage.ru, mdt-dodin.ru, stuki-druki.com, svcasting.com, vk.com, vokrug. tv, dance.ru.
