Vasily Sigarev

Vassily Sigarev
Vassily Sigarev in 2018
Born
Vassily Vladimirovich Sigarev

(1977-01-11) January 11, 1977 (age 47)
Verkhnyaya Salda, Sverdlovsk Oblast, Soviet Union
Alma materYekaterinburg Theatre Institute
Occupation(s)Film director, screenwriter, playwright
Years active2000–present
WorksWolfy, Living, The Land of Oz,
AwardsKinotavr: Best Director, 2012 and Best Screenplay, 2009 and 2015

Vassily Vladimirovich Sigarev (Russian: Васи́лий Владимирович Си́гарев, born 11 January 1977, Verkhnyaya Salda, Sverdlovsk Oblast, Soviet Union) is a Russian playwright, screenwriter and film director.[1] His plays Plasticine, Black Milk and Ladybird were first produced in the West by the Royal Court Theatre, in 2002, 2003 and 2004, respectively.[2][3] In 2002, Sigarev was named the winner of the Charles Wintour Award for Most Promising Playwright given out by the Evening Standard for Plasticine.

Biography

Sigarev was born in 1977, in Verkhnyaya Salda, Sverdlovsk Oblast, a small town 180 kilometers (110 mi) north of Yekaterinburg, into a working-class family.[4] He studied at the Nizhny Tagil Pedagogical Institute and graduated from the Yekaterinburg Theatre Institute where he studied under Nikolay Kolyada.[5]

Theater

The subject matter of Sigarev's plays is the decay of post-Soviet Russia. Plasticine deals with child rape, Black Milk features a husband and wife team of con men in an abusive relationship, while the main characters of Ladybird steal cemetery markers to sell them to raise money for booze.

U.S. Productions

Ladybird had its American premiere at The Bootleg Theatre in Los Angeles in 2007.[6]

Sigarev's work had not been seen in New York until a production of Black Milk was produced Off-Broadway in July 2012, at the 13th Street theater. Directed by Columbia M.F.A. student Michel Hausmann, the production received mixed reviews.[7] Alexis Soloski of the Village Voice called it an ..."unnuanced, indifferently acted production".[8] nytheatre.com called it "strong piece of theatre, taking its audience headfirst into a deserted wasteland of fear, confused morals and a profound fall from purity. With resonating performances, impeccable design and a truthful directorial vision"[9]

Cinema

Sigarev has directed three films, Volchok, which was made in 2009 and which he adapted from his own play, Zhit (Living) (2012) and The Land of Oz (2015). He also wrote the screenplay for Prodayotsya detektor lzhi (2005), which is based on his plays Detektor lzhi and Fantomnye boli. In his 2021 interview with Yury Dud Sigarev mentioned Elem Klimov's Come and See as the film that influenced him the most.[10]

Personal life

Sigarev lives in Moscow and was married to Russian actress Yana Troyanova from 2013 to 2020.[11]

Sigarev openly supports Alexei Navalny and was detained at 2021 Russian protests.[12]

Filmography

Films by Vasily Sigarev
Year Title Title in Russian Director Writer Awards
2005 Lie Detector for Sale Продаётся детектор лжи Yes
2009 Wolfy Волчок Yes Yes 12 wins and 6 nominations
2012 Living Жить Yes Yes 9 wins and 8 nominations
2014 Goodbye Mom До свидания, мама Yes 1 win and 1 nomination
2015 The Land of Oz Страна ОЗ Yes Yes 5 wins and 11 nominations
2018 Guppy Fish Гупёшка Yes

Selected Plays

  • Plasticine
  • Black Milk
  • Ladybird

Awards and nominations

Winner

Nominations

References

  1. ^ Peter Rollberg (2016). Historical Dictionary of Russian and Soviet Cinema. US: Rowman & Littlefield. pp. 689–690. ISBN 978-1442268425.
  2. ^ "The Royal Court Theatre Presents 'Lady Bird'". Royal Court Theatre. Retrieved 1 August 2012.
  3. ^ O'Mahoney, John (3 February 2003). "'He's probably passed out somewhere with a bottle in his hand....': John O'Mahoney goes in search of Russia's most promising playwright". London: GuardianUK. Retrieved 1 August 2012.
  4. ^ Birksted-Breen, Noah (2020). Vasilii Sigarev and the Presniakov Brother: Staging the New Russia. Routledge. pp. 168–184. ISBN 9781138084223.
  5. ^ "About the Author". vsigarev.ru (in Russian). Retrieved 1 August 2012.
  6. ^ "US Premiere: Vassily Sigarev's LADYBIRD". TicketsRHere. Retrieved 1 August 2012.
  7. ^ Finkle, David. "Black Milk". TheaterMania. Retrieved 1 August 2012.
  8. ^ Soloski, Alexis. "Black Milk Rails Away; Russia goes offtrack in Vassily Sigarev's angry drama". Village Voice. Retrieved 1 August 2012.
  9. ^ http://www.nytheatre.com/Show/Review/blac14949 [dead link‍]
  10. ^ "Сигарев о фильме "Иди и смотри": "Будет правдиво и больно. Очень больно" — Статьи на КиноПоиске". КиноПоиск (in Russian). Retrieved 2021-02-06.
  11. ^ "Василий Сигарев и Яна Троянова расстались: "Она разлюбила меня как мужчину"". www.spletnik.ru (in Russian). Retrieved 2021-02-06.
  12. ^ "Режиссера Василия Сигарева задержали в Москве на акции в поддержку Навального". www.znak.com. Retrieved 2021-02-06.
  13. ^ "EVENING STANDARD THEATRE AWARDS – Most Promising Playwright Winners, 1956 to present | WestEndTheatre.com". www.westendtheatre.com. 2011-03-28. Retrieved 2021-02-06.
  14. ^ Standard, Evening (2019-11-05). "Evening Standard Theatre Awards 1980-2003". www.standard.co.uk. Retrieved 2021-02-06.
  15. ^ "Kinotavr". kinotavr.ru. Retrieved 2021-02-06.
  16. ^ "Zurich Film Festival". Zurich Film Festival. Retrieved 2021-02-06.
  17. ^ "Kinotavr". kinotavr.ru. Retrieved 2021-02-06.
  18. ^ "Kinotavr". kinotavr.ru. Retrieved 2021-02-06.
  19. ^ "Le Palmarès du festival L'Europe autour de l'Europe 2016 « L'Europe autour de l'Europe — 2016" (in French). Retrieved 2021-02-06.