Anatoly Vasiliev was born on May 4, 1942. He graduated from the chemical faculty of the Rostov State University. For several years he worked according to his professional specialty. In 1968 he matriculated at the Lunacharski State Institute of Theatrical Art (GITIS), studio of Andrei Popov and Maria Knebel. In 1972 he produced the performance “Stories of Old Arbat” (A. Arbuzov) at the educational GITIS theatre.
In 1973 Vasiliev joined the “Moscow Arts Theatre” troupe. He staged O. Zagradnik’s “Solo for a Striking Clock” with the participation of great MKHAT masters of the elder generation.
In 1977 he started to work at the Stanislavski Theatre where at that time his teacher from GITIS, Andrei Popov, was the general director. There Vasiliev produced two performances: “The First Variant of ‘Vassa Jeleznova’” (M. Gorki) and “Adult Daughter of a Young Man”, based on the play by Victor Slavnikov, one of dramatists from the new wave. Both performances caused a sensation in Moscow. Vasiliev started to make a film based on “Adult Daughter of a Young Man”. The film “Road to Chattanooga” took 10 years to make, premiering in 1992.
In 1982 Yuri Lubimov invited him to the Taganka Theatre of Drama and Comedy. On the small stage he restaged a performance by Gorki and rehearsed Slavkin’s play “Serso”. In addition to the actors Ludmila Polyakova, Albert Filozov, Yuri Grebentshikov, who began working with him during the performance “The first variant of “Vassa Jeleznova”, Vasieliev now worked with film actors Natalia Andreichenko and Aleksei Petrenko, rehearsing “Serso”. A poll made by the magazine “Theatrical life” recognized “Serso” as the best performance of the season.
In the eighties Anatoly Vasiliev with O. Morozov made two films. The first is “Don’t Go On”, dedicated to the rehearsals of the performance “Serso”, and the second is “Kashtanka”. Elena Koreneva played the main role in “Kashtanka”. The two premieres took place in June 1994, during the film festival “Message to Humanity” in Leningrad.
In 1987 six new theatres were opened in Moscow, among them the “School of Dramatic Art” on February 24th.
On this day was the premiere of Luidgi Pirandello’s play “Six Characters in Search of the Author”. Vasiliev’s students from the directing and dramatic faculty of the correspondence department, GITIS, participated in this performance. Critics called this performance “the best novel about theatre.”
Since 1987 the “School of Dramatic Art” has traveled to different countries.
The performance “Serso” took part in theatrical festivals in Rotterdam, Stuttgart, London, Belgrade, Paris and West Berlin, where the theatre went on tour with the motto “Portrait of Anatoly Vasiliev”. It has been performed in Helsinki, Budapest, Brussels and Rome, and was highly appreciated by the western press.
The performance “Six Characters in Search of the Author” was on in festivals in Vienna, Avignon, Milan, Split, West Berlin, Madrid, Barcelona, Palermo, Prato, London, Montreal, New York, Mexico, and Wroclaw. The European tour of “Serso” confirmed the success and popularity of the theatre.
The performance “Six Characters in Search of the Author” received several international prizes. In Milan it was given the Cup “Ubu” for the best foreign production of a year (1988). In 1989 it won the Grand Prix of the festivals of two American theatres in Montreal, the prize for the best direction, the prize for the best performance (Critics of Quebec), and the prize for best production of the season in Barcelona. In 1988 Vasiliev became a laureate of the Stanislavski Prize of the Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic, and in 1989 in France he was honored with the order of “Knight of Art and Literature”. In 1990 the prize for “New Reality of European Theatre” was awarded to A. Vasiliev in Taormina, Italy. In 1992 he was awarded the “Prize Chaos” (prize of Pirandello) in Agridjento, Italy. On February 1993 the rank of “Honoured Worker of the Russian Arts” was given to Director Vasiliev. In 1995 the prize of the Stanislavski fund “for contribution to development of dramatic pedagogics” was awarded to A. Vasiliev. In 1999 the rank of laureates of the State Prize of the Russian Federation in the field of literature and arts was given to A. Vasiliev and I. Popov for the making of the Moscow theatre “School of Dramatic Art”. In 2001 they were laureates of the prize “Triumph”. In 2005 Vasiliev was honored with the rank of the French Order of Academic Palms for the special deserts in the field of education and with the Karamzin medal and prize “Ad Nuntius Europea/ European herald” in the category “For achievements in the fields of literature, arts and culture”.
In 1990 the premiere of the performance “Today We Are Improvising” based on the play by Luidgi Pirandello took place at the festival “Parma-90” in Fontanellato, Italy. Exalted critics wrote that “the performance in Fontanellato smells of miracle”. This performance was on at theatrical festivals in Austria and Croatia. In May, 1992, A. Vasiliev staged “Masquerade” based on the play by M.Y. Lermontov, in the theatre “Comedie-Francaise”, Paris. In April, 1994, Vasiliev staged “Uncle ’s Dream” based on the novel by F.M. Dostoevsky, in the Arts Theatre, Budapest. On February 1995 the premiere “Uncle’s Dream” took place in Russia.
For a long time Anatoly Vasiliev has taken up educational work. In the eighties he taught dramatic art and direction on the Higher Director’s Courses. From 1984 to 1991 he taught in the director’s studios of S. Soloviev and M. Huciev. Since 2004 Vasiliev has been the chief of the director’s course in the Higher National School of Dramatic Arts (ENSATT) in Lion.
For a long time A. Vasiliev has taught direction in the correspondence department at the Russian Academy of Dramatic Art (GITIS). In the theatre “School of Dramatic Art”, training of actors and directors continues. The process of teaching creates by way of student seminars and laboratories.
The following performances were produced:
“Dumas” – chapters from the Alexander Dumas’s novels, in 1987
“Via-a-vis” – chapters from Dostoevsky’s novels, in 1988
“Demons” based on the novel by F.M. Dostoevsky, in 1988
The night of “Maupassant” in 1988
“Dialogues about Art” by Oscar Wild, in 1989
“Plato’s dialogues” in 1990
“Everyone in His Own Way”, the show based on the play by Luidgi Pirandello, in 1991
Shows based on Thomas Mann’s play “Fiorenca” and his novel “Joseph and His Brothers” in 1992-1993
The Premiere of two performances at the festival “Toga-93” in Japan
Shows based on the plays “School of Wives” and “Amphitrio” by Moliere, in 1992
Shows based on the poetry and “Little tragedies” by A.S. Pushkin in 1992-1994
Shows based on Puskin’s novel “Evgeni Onegin” in 1994
Also there were joint projects:
The bilingual production of the play “Awakening of Spring” with “Laboratory for Theatre” in Lucerne, Switzerland, in 1990
The project “I-Gull” based on Chekhov’s plays, at the theatre festival in Volterra, Italy, in 1991
The performance based on Dostoevsky’s novel “Idiot” with actors from the Centre Kunstlerhaus Bethanien, Berlin, in 1992
Luidgi Pirandello’s “Everyone In His Own Way” with the Roman University, Centre Teatro Ateneo, and Teatro di Roma, in 1993
The show by the “Moscow Laboratory of Anatoly Vasiliev” based on Plato’s “Dialogues” and Moliere’s play “Amphitrio” in the context with the project “Laboratory of mise en Scene”, the “Experimental Theatre Academy” Ron-Puen theatre of Reno Barro, and Autumn Fesrival in Paris, in 1993
Since 1994 the “School of Dramatic Art”, consisting of actors and directors from Vasiliev’s courses, has analyzed texts by Plato, Homer, Dostoevsky, and Moliere.
In October 1994, the premiere of performance “Amphitrio”, based on Moliere’s play, was shown in Paris in the context of the project “From the Word to the Song”, organized by the “Experimental Theatre Academy”. This performance was on at the festival “Istropolitana Project” in Bratislava, the International Theatre Festival in Skopj, in Macedonia, in Taormina, Italy, and also at the festival “Contact” in Torun, Poland in 1995 and at the festival “Theatre Formen” in Braunschweig, Germany. In 1996 this performance was on at the festival “Ibero Americano de Teatro” in Columbia, at the Italian festivals “Festival delle Cultura” in Leche and “Factory of Europe” in Florence, and also at the Avignon Festival in France. Performances “Little Tragedies” and “Evgeni Onegin” by A.S. Pushkin were on at the festival “Theatre Formen” in Braunschweig, Germany, in 1995. In 1996 “Evgeni Onegin” was on at the festival “Istropolitana project” in Bratislava in Slovakia. In February 1996, the premiere of the performance “Ieremia’s Weeping”, with Vasiliev’s choreography and scenography, was on in the theatre “School of Dramatic Art”. In it, the book “Ieremia’s Weeping” was set to vocal music by composer V. Martynov. In 1997 “Ieremia’s Weeping” was on at the festival “Taormina Arte” in Italy, at the Hebbel Theatre in Berlin, and at the Avignon Festival in France. In 1997 this performance was awarded the National Russian “Golden Mask” prize in two categories: best performance and best scenography. In 1998 “Ieremia’s Weeping” was on at Goeteborg Тhеаtre & Dance Festival in Sweden, in the context of the program “Stockholm: Culture Capital of Europe-98”, and at the festival “Trialogos” in Tallinn, Estonia.
On March 1996 Vasiliev put on Tchaikovsky’s opera “Queen of Spades” at the “National German Theatre and State Chapel of Weimar” in Weimar, Germany.
In 1998 Vasiliev staged the performance A.S. Pushkin’s “Don Juan or ‘Stony Guest’ and Other Verses” at the theatre “School of Dramatic Art”. This performance was on at the Theatre du Soleil in Paris and in Grotobsky’s Center in Wroclaw.
In 1999 Vasiliev staged the performance “A.S. Pushkin’s “K***” in the theatre “School of Dramatic Art”. Its premiere was at the All-Russian Pushkin Festival, Pushkin Mountain.
In 2000 Vasiliev staged performance “Mozart and Salieri” by A.S. Pushkin in the theatre “School of Dramatic Art”. This performance was on at the Autumn Festival in Rome and in Budapest.
The Laboratory’s performance “To friends in the Marvelous Art”, by Pushkin, was on at the Seventh All-Russian Festival, Pushkin Mountain.
In April 2001, the theatre “School of Dramatic Art” was admitted into the “Union of European Theatres”. On May 4, 2001, the new building of the theatre “School of Dramatic Art” was opened on Sretenka street. A. Vasiliev and I. Popov were the authors of this architectural project. B. Thor and S. Gusarev are from the municipal undertaking “Department Mosproekt-2”.
In 2001 Vasiliev staged the performance “Medea. Material” based on the play by H. Muller at the “School of Dramatic Art”. In 2002 this performance became a laureate of the prize “Hit of the Season” instituted by the Union of the Theatrical Figures of the Russian Federation. “Medea. Material” was on in the context of the project of the Academy of Experimental Theatre “Academie Traverséi” in Paris, at the festival “Fabrica Europa-2002” in Florence, at the Avignon-2002 in France, in Villeurbanne, Renne, France, in Seville, Granada, Milan, Amsterdam, Barcelona and at the festival “Europalia-Russia” in Antwerp.
In 2001 the premiere of Vasiliev’s film “Old Ditties (Work Positive)” was put on as part of the program prepared by the “School of Dramatic Art” in the context of the Third All-Russian Dramatic Olympiad.
In 2002 Vasiliev staged the performance “Amfitrio”, based on the play by Moliere, in “Comédie-Française”.
In 2003 Vasiliev staged the performance “From Onegin’s Journey” by Pushkin, in the theatre “School of Dramatic Art”. This performance was on at the festival “Toga-2004” in Japan.
In 2004 Vasiliev staged the performance “Song Twenty Three” based on Homer’s Iliad at the “School of Dramatic Art”. In 2005 this performance became a laureate of the Prize “Hit of the Season”. “Song Twenty Three” based on Homer’s Iliad was on at the festival of the Union of European Theatres in Porto, Portugal, and at the festival “Europalia-Russia” in Antwerp.
The last performance staged by Vasiliev in his own theatre was “Stony guest or Don Juan is dead” in 2006. This performance was on in the lodgment of the theatre at Povorskaya Street.
P.S. Находясь в должности художественного руководителя театра, в 2004 году после просмотра спектакля «Недосказки» (2004) издал указ о создании в театре «Школа драматического искусства» творческой лаборатории под руководством Дмитрия Крымова, которая существует и по сей день. За что мы ему очень благодарны.
P.P.S. In 2007, after a forced reorganization of the theatre and assignation of the lodgment at Povorskaya Street to another organization, Anatoly Vasiliev left the theatre and Russia as a token of protest. Сейчас он живет и работает в разных странах мира.
