Kazan — summer 2010

Our group just got back from seeing Chekhov's "The Cherry Orchard" at the Kachalov Theater on Bauman Street. Simply excellent. I'm not a big fan of plays, but this was simply the best I've ever seen. The lead actress, Svetlana Romanova, was stellar, as was the woman who played the role of Varya, Nadezhda Eshkileva. Eshkileva was particularly striking to me. She had a classically beautiful face and a solidity to her presence that was simply remarkable. She is one of those rare beauties who nearly inspire idolatry. You can see her picture to the right. Down below you will see a picture of the theater itself.

Russians have a way of giving very long names to things. They seem almost ridiculous to the American eye. In this case the whole name of the theater is "The V. I. Kachalov Kazan Academic Russian Grand Dramatic Theater" (or in Russian Казанский академический русский большой драматический театр имени. В. И. Качалова). It is named after Vasili Kachalov, the actor.