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THE PATH of the ACTOR 6 7 8 9 1011 1 2 13111 Michael Chekhov, Nephew of Anton Chekhov, Was Arguably One of the Greatest 4 Actors of the Twentieth Century

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THE PATH of the ACTOR 6 7 8 9 1011 1 2 13111 Michael Chekhov, Nephew of Anton Chekhov, Was Arguably One of the Greatest 4 Actors of the Twentieth Century 1111 2 3 4 51 THE PATH OF THE ACTOR 6 7 8 9 1011 1 2 13111 Michael Chekhov, nephew of Anton Chekhov, was arguably one of the greatest 4 actors of the twentieth century. From his time as Stanislavsky’s pupil, followed 5 by his artistic leadership in the Second Moscow Art Academic Theatre, his 6 enforced emigration from the Soviet Union and long pilgrimage around 7 Europe, to his work in Hollywood, his life has made a huge impact on the 8 acting profession. Chekhov’s remarkable actor-training techniques inspired many Hollywood 9 legends – including Anthony Hopkins and Jack Nicholson – and his tech- 20111 niques remain one of the theatre’s best kept secrets. 1 This first English translation of Chekhov’s autobiographies combines The 2 Path of the Actor, from 1928, and extensive extracts from his later Life and 3 Encounters. Full of humorous and insightful observations involving promi- 4 nent characters from Moscow and the European theatre of the early twentieth 5111 century, Chekhov takes us through events in his acting career and personal 6 life, from his childhood in St Petersburg until his emigration from Latvia and 7 Lithuania in the early 1930s. 8 Chekhov’s witty, penetrating (and at times immensely touching) accounts 9 have been edited by Andrei Kirillov, whose extensive and authoritative notes 30111 accompany the autobiographies. Co-editor, Anglo-Russian trained actor, Bella 1 Merlin, also provides a useful hands-on overview of how the contemporary practitioner might use and develop Chekhov’s ideas. 2 The Path of the Actor is an extraordinary document that allows us unprece- 3 dented access into the life, times, mind and soul of a remarkable man and a 4 brilliant artist. 5 6 71 Translated by Simon Blaxland-Delange (The Path of the Actor) and David Ball (Life and Encounters) With notes by Andrei Kirillov Edited by Andrei Kirillov and Bella Merlin Russian Language Adviser Ilya Zilberberg © Michael Chekhov Centre UK 1111 2 3 4 51 THE PATH OF 6 7 THE ACTOR 8 9 1011 1 2 13111 Michael Chekhov 4 5 6 7 8 9 Edited by 20111 Andrei Kirillov and 1 Bella Merlin 2 3 4 5111 6 7 8 9 30111 1 2 3 4 5 6 71 First published 2005 by Routledge 2 Park Square, Milton Park, Abingdon, Oxon OX14 4RN Simultaneously published in the USA and Canada by Routledge 270 Madison Avenue, New York, NY 10016 This edition published in the Taylor & Francis e-Library, 2006. “To purchase your own copy of this or any of Taylor & Francis or Routledge’s collection of thousands of eBooks please go to www.eBookstore.tandf.co.uk.” Routledge is an imprint of the Taylor & Francis Group Work © 2005 the Estate of Michael Chekhov Translation © 2005 Michael Chekhov Centre UK Introduction © 2005 Andrei Kirillov Afterword © 2005 Bella Merlin Illustrations © Museum of the Moscow Art Academic Theatre Russian State Archive of Literature and Art The State Central Theatre Museum named after A.A. Bakhrushin Dartington Hall Archive Private collections All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reprinted or reproduced or utilized in any form or by any electronic, mechanical, or other means, now known or hereafter invented, including photocopying and recording, or in any information storage or retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publishers. British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library Library of Congress Cataloguing in Publication Data Chekhov, Michael, 1891–1955. [Put′ aktera. English] The path of the actor/edited by Andrei Kirillov and Bella Merlin. p. cm. Includes Life and encounters, English translation of Zhizn′ i vstrechi. Includes bibliographical references and index. 1. Chekhov, Michael, 1891–1955. 2. Actors–Russia–Biography. 3. Actors–Soviet Union–Biography. I. Kirillov, Andrei. II. Bella Merlin. III. Chekhov, Michael, 1891–1955. Zhizn′ i vstrechi. English. IV. Title: Life and encounters. V. Title. PN2728.C45A3 2005 792.02′8′092247–dc22 2005006121 ISBN 0–415–34366–6 (Print Edition) 1111 2 3 4 51 CONTENTS 6 7 8 9 1011 1 2 13111 List of plates vii 4 Acknowledgements xi 5 6 Introduction by Andrei Kirillov 1 7 8 Part 1: The Path of the Actor 11 9 20111 Part 2: Life and Encounters 131 1 2 Afterword by Bella Merlin 197 3 4 5111 Notes 203 6 Bibliography 229 7 Index 233 8 9 30111 1 2 3 4 5 6 71 v 1111 2 3 4 51 PLATES 6 7 8 9 1011 1 2 13111 DHA – Dartington Hall Archive. 4 GCTM – The State Central Theatre Museum named after 5 A.A. Bakhrushin. 6 MMAAT – Museum of the Moscow Art Academic Theatre. 7 Private – images from private collections. 8 RGALI – Russian State Archive of Literature and Art. 9 20111 Front cover Michael Chekhov. 1930s. (RGALI) 1 1 Michael Chekhov. 1920s. (Private) 12 2 2 Michael Chekhov. 1900. (MMAAT) 15 3 3 Natalya and Alexander Chekhov with Alexander’s 4 sons from his first marriage, Nikolay and Anton. c.1890. 5111 (RGALI) 18 6 4 Caricature by Chekhov of his life in the family. (RGALI) 21 7 5 Michael Chekhov. 1910s. (MMAAT) 25 8 6 Natalya Chekhov. (RGALI) 29 9 7 Michael and Olga Chekhov. 1915. (MMAAT) 31 30111 8 Self-portrait by Chekhov. (RGALI) 34 1 9 Michael Chekhov as Tsar Fyodor. 1911. (RGALI) 37 2 10 Konstantin Stanislavsky. (MMAAT) 46 3 11 Michael Chekhov as Cobe and Anna Popova as Saart. 4 1913. (MMAAT) 49 5 12 Michael Chekhov as Caleb. 1914. (MMAAT) 50 6 13 Leopold Sulerzhitsky. (MMAAT) 51 71 14 Evgeny Vakhtangov. (MMAAT) 53 vii PLATES 15 Caricature by Chekhov. Evgeny Vakhtangov and Michael Chekhov. (MMAAT) 53 16 Michael Chekhov as Skorokhodov. 1927. (Private) 56 17 Self-portrait by Chekhov. (MMAAT) 62 18 Caricature by Chekhov of himself, Evgeny Vakhtangov and Lydia Deykun. (MMAAT) 67 19 Caricature by Chekhov of Evgeny Vakhtangov at a rehearsal. (MMAAT) 69 20 Michael Chekhov as Frazer. 1915. (MMAAT) 75 21 Michael Chekhov as Malvolio. 1920. (MMAAT) 91 22 Michael Chekhov as Khlestakov. 1921. (MMAAT) 93 23 Michael Chekhov as Erik XIV. 1921. (MMAAT) 94 24 Caricature by Chekhov of Evgeny Vakhtangov as Tackleton. (GCTM) 95 25 Caricature by Chekhov of Serafima Birman. (MMAAT) 99 26 Michael Chekhov as Khlestakov. 1921. Drawing by Yuri Annenkov. (GCTM) 100 27 Michael Chekhov as Hamlet. 1924. (MMAAT) 106 28 Scene from Hamlet. 1924. (Private) 109 29 Michael Chekhov as Ableukhov. 1925. (RGALI) 110 30 Michael Chekhov as Muromsky. 1927. (MMAAT) 111 31 Design by Nikolay Andreyev for the costume and make-up of Chekhov’s Muromsky. 1927. (GCTM) 112 32 Ksenya and Michael Chekhov in St Mark’s Square, Venice. 1925. (MMAAT) 120 33 Michael Chekhov as Epikhodov. 1914. (Private) 124 34 Michael Chekhov as Pashka. 1930. (RGALI) 132 35 Michael Chekhov as Skid. 1928. (Private) 146 36 Ksenya Chekhov and Fyodor Shalyapin. 1931. (RGALI) 149 37 Michael Chekhov, Hans Schlettow and Olga Chekhov in Troika. 1930. (RGALI) 154 38 Michael Chekhov and Sergey Rakhmaninov. 1931. (MMAAT) 163 39 Michael and Ksenya Chekhov. 1930s. (RGALI) 176 40 Michael Chekhov as Ivan the Terrible. 1932. (Private) 177 41 Michael Chekhov as Foma Opiskin. 1932. (Private) 179 42 Michael Chekhov as Daddy. 1932. (RGALI) 180 viii PLATES 1111 43 Michael Chekhov with the participants of the Theatre 2 Seminar in Riga. 1932. (Private) 182 3 44 Michael Chekhov as Khlestakov. 1935. (RGALI) 190 4 45 Vera Grech as Anna Andreyevna, Michael Chekhov as 51 Khlestakov, Maria Kryzhanovskaya as Maria Antonovna. 6 1935. (Private) 191 7 46 Michael Chekhov rehearsing A Spanish Evening. 1938. 8 Photograph by Fritz Henle. (DHA) 192 9 47 Michael Chekhov as Solomon Levi. 1946. (RGALI) 193 1011 48 Michael Chekhov as Max Poliakov. 1946. (RGALI) 194 1 49 Michael Chekhov as Peter. 1946. (RGALI) 194 2 50 Michael Chekhov as Abelian. 1948. (RGALI) 195 13111 4 5 6 7 8 9 20111 1 2 3 4 5111 6 7 8 9 30111 1 2 3 4 5 6 71 ix 1111 2 3 4 51 ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS 6 7 8 9 1011 1 2 13111 The text of Michael Chekhov’s autobiographies has been translated by 4 Simon Blaxland-Delange (The Path of the Actor) and David Ball (Life 5 and Encounters). Russian Language Advisor Ilya Zilberberg. With 6 notes by Andrei Kirillov. Edited by Andrei Kirillov and Bella Merlin. 7 The editors are extremely grateful to the following individuals and 8 institutions for their considerable help in the completion of this volume, 9 without whom it would not have been possible: Mala Powers (Executrix 20111 of the Michael Chekhov Estate); Martin Sharp, Graham Dixon and 1 Sarah Kane (from the Michael Chekhov Centre UK to whom the 2 translation belongs); William Elmhirst and the Dorothy Whitney 3 Elmhirst Trust; Marina Ivanova (who shared with us some of her 4 materials); Konstantin Lizunov (photographer); Talia Rodgers and 5111 Minh Ha Duong of Routledge (Taylor & Francis); Rose Whyman 6 (University of Birmingham); Franc Chamberlain (University of North- 7 ampton); Alexander Delamere; and all the acting practitioners and 8 scholars researching and teaching Michael Chekhov’s life, techniques 9 and theatre system across the globe. 30111 For providing us with illustrations for this book, we would like to 1 thank: the Russian State Archive of Literature and Art, the Museum 2 of the Moscow Art Academic Theatre, the State Central Theatre 3 Museum named after A.A. Bakhrushin (all in Moscow); the Russian 4 Federal Archive Agency; the Dartington Hall Archive (UK); and Maria 5 Henle and the Henle Archive Trust. 6 71 xi 1111 2 3 4 51 INTRODUCTION 6 7 Andrei Kirillov 8 9 1011 1 2 13111 Michael (Mikhail) Chekhov, nephew to the playwright Anton Chekhov, 4 is renowned in the theatre world as a great actor of the twentieth century 5 and a brilliant teacher of acting, who created his original approach to 6 performance while dividing his life between Russia, Europe, Great 7 Britain and America.
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