A.N. Ostrovsky is one of the most popular playwrights in Russia, and it is worth considering some interesting facts from the life of Ostrovsky. He was the founder of the Russian theater school, as well as the teacher of the widely known Stanislavsky and Bulgakov. Ostrovsky's life is as interesting as his work.
- The playwright was born on April 12, 1823 in Moscow, in a family of clergymen and studied at home. His mother died when the future pioneer of the Russian theater was seven years old and his father married Baroness Emilia von Tessin. The stepmother took an active part in the upbringing and education of the future writer with his brothers.
- Ostrovsky was a polyglot, and from an early age he knew many foreign languages, including: French, Greek and German. He later learned more Spanish, Italian and English. Throughout his life, he made translations of his plays into foreign languages, honing his mastery of them.
- Ostrovsky entered the university, but was forced to drop out due to conflicts with one of the teachers.
- After leaving school, Alexander got a job at the Moscow Court as a scribe, where litigation between relatives was dealt with.
- In 1845, the future playwright went to work in the office of the commercial court.. This stage of his career gave Ostrovsky many vivid impressions that were useful to him in the future for his works.
- The released comedy “Own people - let's settle!” gave the playwright recognition and popularity. But along with a huge success, this play almost became the last in the writer's work. She angered the bureaucrats she denounced. Alexander Nikolaevich was removed from service and taken under close police surveillance.
- An unenviable fate could also expect the play "Thunderstorm". This work could not have been born at all, if not for the intervention of the Empress, who liked it. Dobrolyubov called this play "A ray of light in a dark kingdom."
- Despite the fact that Ostrovsky was from the upper class, he knew the customs of the common people very well.. This is the merit of his wife, who was a commoner. This union was not approved by the parents of Alexander Nikolaevich, and opposed his marriage with a representative of the lower class. Therefore, he lived for 20 years in an unofficial marriage with his first wife. They had five children, but they all died early. The second marriage was with actress Maria Bakhmetyeva, with whom they had 2 daughters and 4 sons.
- In 1856, he worked in the Sovremennik magazine, and went on an expedition along the upper reaches of the Volga, where he did research. The materials on language and customs collected during the expedition will be very useful to the playwright later on in order to make his works more realistic.
- Many do not realize that the opera P.I. Tchaikovsky's "The Snow Maiden" is a joint work of the eminent composer and the great playwright. The opera was based on folk tales and legends.
- As the founder of the Russian theatre, Ostrovsky played a big role in Stanislavsky's career.. We can say that Alexander Nikolayevich was a pioneer of Russian acting. He created a school in which he taught actors expressive and emotional acting without losing authenticity. This approach has gained immense popularity. But there were also clear opponents of this technique. Shchepkin, a well-known actor at that time, openly criticized this method of acting and left the rehearsal of the play The Thunderstorm.
- Even by modern standards, it should be recognized that Ostrovsky was a genius. Polyglot, outstanding playwright, founder of Russian theatrical art. An outstanding, educated and inquisitive person.
- After many years of hard work, the writer's health deteriorated, and on June 14, 1886, Alexander Nikolaevich passed away and was buried in the Kostroma region.
- For 40 years spent in art, he had a strong influence on a whole layer of Russian theater.. For his achievements in art he was awarded the Uvarov Prize. At that time, he was a corresponding member of the Academy of Sciences in St. Petersburg, led the Artistic Circle, where he helped future talents grow.
- Ostrovsky wrote that the audience comes to watch the acting, not the play..
Youth years of Alexander Ostrovsky
Alexander Nikolaevich Ostrovsky was born in Moscow on Malaya Ordynka on March 31 (April 12, new style), 1823. His father - Nikolai Fedorovich - was the son of a priest, and decided to follow in the footsteps of his father and become a court cook, but he was able to rise to the rank of titular adviser, which is why in 1839 he received the title of nobleman. Mother Alexandra - Lyubov Ivanovna Savvina - was the daughter of a sexton, she passed away early, when the young playwright was only 8 years old. Alexander's family was quite large, but quite well off thanks to the efforts of the head of the family. Much attention was paid to the education of children, most of the classes were held at home.After the death of his wife, Nikolai Fedorovich decides to marry Baronnes Emilia Andreevna von Tessin. The girl was from a noble family of a Swedish nobleman. The woman did not offend the adopted children, but on the contrary, she was able to surround them with boundless affection and care. The stepmother also contributed to the children receiving a competent and high-quality education. Alexander spent all his childhood and even a little of his youth in Zamoskvorechye. His family had a significant library in which children could spend all day. Alexander read books with rapture and finally realized that his vocation was to write. However, Nikolai was against his son's hobby and insisted on the profession of a lawyer. However, his father was able to ensure that Alexander entered the 1st Moscow Gymnasium in 1835, and in 1840 became one of the students of the law faculty of Moscow University. However, Alexander never completed the full course, as he was able to make an enemy in the teaching staff. He left the university in 1943. The father, however, did not yield to his son and enlisted him to serve as a scribe to the court. Alexander continued in this position until 1851. 
Creativity Ostrovsky
Despite the ups and downs of fate, Alexander could not give up his passion for writing. He completely immersed himself in creativity, and in 1846 he was able to write more than one scene from the life of merchants. In the same year, he began to develop the plot of the comedy "Insolvent Debtor". A little later, the name was changed to "Own people - let's settle!". During the writing of the play, Alexander was falsely accused of plagiarism by Dmitry Gorev. The well-deserved fame in the world of literature comes to the playwright with the release of the play “Own people - let's settle!”. The work was published in 1850. Ostrovsky received positive feedback about this work from such great writers as N.V. Gogol and I.A. Goncharov. It is worth considering that with fame, new life tests also came to the writer. The play was banned by Nicholas I, and Alexander himself was deprived of his post and placed under police supervision. With the coming to power of Alexander II, the work was again allowed to be staged in 1861. The next play by Ostrovsky recognized by the public was the work “Do not get into your sleigh”. It was written back in 1852, and allowed to be staged in January 1854 in the city of St. Petersburg. Beginning in 1853, Ostrovsky's works were staged every season for almost 30 years at the Maly and St. Petersburg Alexandria theatres.
In 1856, Ostrovsky was hired permanently for the Sovremennik magazine. With the approval of the Grand Duke Konstantin Nikolayevich, Ostrovsky sets off on a long journey through the Russian lands. The playwright describes the life of the people in the expanses of tsarist Russia. He managed to more thoroughly study the Volga and its extension to Nizhny Novgorod. In 1859, Count G. A. Kushelev - Bezborodko contributed to the publication of a collection of Ostrovsky's works in two volumes, which was able to receive excellent reviews and the approval of Dobrolyubov himself. After that, Ostrovsky began to be called the founder of the "dark kingdom".
The world was able to see the popular work "Thunderstorm" in 1860, for which the writer published an article "A ray of light in a dark kingdom."
Later, Ostrovsky began to study the history of the Time of Troubles. The playwright received his first prize, namely the Uvarov Prize, in 1863. At the same time, he was accepted as a member of the St. Petersburg Academy of Sciences. Ostrovsky was able to found a circle called Artistic, which launched the careers of many prominent Russian artists. Alexander had excellent relations with many writers of that time, such as Turgenev, Saltykov-Shchedrin, Tolstoy, Dostoevsky and many others. 
Ostrovsky was the chairman of the famous Society of Russian Dramatic Writers and Composers, which dates back to 1874. He was able to stay in this position until his death. With his assistance, the conditions for artists were greatly simplified. Since 1885, he was the head of the repertoire of Moscow theaters, as well as the head of the theater school.
Throughout his life, Ostrovsky had financial problems, although his plays brought in significant income. In 1883, Emperor of the Russian Empire Alexander III was able to grant the playwright a significant pension of 3,000 rubles, but this did not improve the writer's material well-being. Ostrovsky wanted to realize many creative ideas, but his health only worsened from constant hard work. Death overtook the playwright on June 14, 1886. He died in his estate Shchelkovo, was buried near his father Nikolai. Later, his wife and daughter were buried next to Alexander.
Ostrovsky's personal life
It is known that the writer was fascinated by the beautiful actress L. Kositskaya, but the girl categorically rejected the feelings of the playwright. Ostrovsky was also in a civil relationship with a girl from a simple family - Agafya Ivanovna. Despite the fact that this woman was not educated, she could always listen to the writer and share his experiences and feelings. They were destined to live together for 20 years. Ostrovsky later married actress Maria Bakhmetyeva. He was able to give birth to the playwright four sons and two daughters.Born March 31 (April 12), 1823 in Moscow, grew up in a merchant environment. His mother died when he was 8 years old. And my father remarried. There were four children in the family.
Ostrovsky was educated at home. His father had a large library, where little Alexander first began to read Russian literature. However, the father wanted to give his son a legal education. In 1835, Ostrovsky began his studies at the gymnasium, and then entered the Faculty of Law at Moscow University. Due to his passion for theater and literature, he never completed his studies at the university (1843), after which he worked as a scribe in court at the insistence of his father. Ostrovsky served in the courts until 1851.
Creativity Ostrovsky
In 1849, Ostrovsky's work “Our people - we will settle!” Was written, which brought him literary fame, he was highly appreciated by Nikolai Gogol and Ivan Goncharov. Then, despite the censorship, many of his plays and books were released. For Ostrovsky, writings are a way to truly depict the life of the people. The plays "Thunderstorm", "Dowry", "Forest" are among his most important works. Ostrovsky's play "Dowry", like other psychological dramas, non-standard describes the characters, the inner world, the torment of the characters.
Since 1856, the writer has been participating in the issue of the Sovremennik magazine.
Ostrovsky Theater
In the biography of Alexander Ostrovsky, theatrical work occupies an honorable place.
Ostrovsky founded the Artistic Circle in 1866, thanks to which many talented people appeared in the theater circle.
Together with the Artistic Circle, he significantly reformed and developed the Russian theater.
Famous people often visited Ostrovsky's house, including I. A. Goncharov, D. V. Grigorovich, Ivan Turgenev, A. F. Pisemsky, Fyodor Dostoevsky, P. M. Sadovsky, Mikhail Saltykov-Shchedrin, Leo Tolstoy, Pyotr Tchaikovsky, M. N. Ermolova and others.
In a brief biography of Ostrovsky, it is worth mentioning the appearance in 1874 of the Society of Russian Drama Writers and Opera Composers, where Ostrovsky was chairman. With his innovations, he achieved an improvement in the lives of theater actors. Since 1885, Ostrovsky headed the theater school and was the head of the repertoire of theaters in Moscow.
Writer's personal life
It cannot be said that Ostrovsky's personal life was successful. The playwright lived with a woman from a simple family - Agafya, who had no education, but was the first to read his works. She supported him in everything. All their children died at an early age. Ostrovsky lived with her for about twenty years. And in 1869 he married the actress Maria Vasilievna Bakhmeteva, who bore him six children.
last years of life
Until the end of his life, Ostrovsky experienced financial difficulties. Hard work greatly depleted the body, and health increasingly failed the writer. Ostrovsky dreamed of reviving the theater school, which could teach professional acting, but the death of the writer prevented the implementation of long-planned plans.
Ostrovsky died on June 2 (14), 1886 at his estate. The writer was buried next to his father, in the village of Nikolo-Berezhki, Kostroma province.
Chronological table
Other biography options
- Ostrovsky knew Greek, German and French from childhood, and at a later age he also learned English, Spanish and Italian. All his life he translated plays into different languages, thus improving his skills and knowledge.
- The creative path of the writer covers 40 years of successful work on literary and dramatic works. His work influenced the whole era of theater in Russia. For his work, the writer was awarded the Uvarov Prize in 1863.
- Ostrovsky is the founder of modern theatrical art, whose followers were such prominent personalities as Konstantin Stanislavsky and Mikhail Bulgakov.
- see all
Alexander Nikolaevich Ostrovsky V.G. Perov. Portrait of A.N. Ostrovsky (1877) Date of birth: March 31 (April 12) 1823 (18230412) Place of birth ... Wikipedia
Ostrovsky, Alexander Nikolaevich- Alexander Nikolaevich Ostrovsky. OSTROVSKY Alexander Nikolaevich (1823-86), Russian playwright. Creativity Ostrovsky laid the foundation for the national repertoire of the Russian theater. In comedies and socio-psychological dramas, Ostrovsky brought a gallery ... Illustrated Encyclopedic Dictionary
Ostrovsky, Alexander Nikolaevich, famous dramatic writer. Born March 31, 1823 in Moscow, where his father served in the civil chamber, and then engaged in private advocacy. Ostrovsky lost his mother in childhood and no ... ... Biographical Dictionary
Russian playwright. Born in the family of a lawyer official; mother - comes from the lower clergy. He spent his childhood and early youth in Zamoskvorechye - special ... ... Great Soviet Encyclopedia
Ostrovsky Alexander Nikolaevich- (18231886), playwright. He came to St. Petersburg repeatedly from 1853, was closely connected with the social, literary and cultural life of the capital. Most of Ostrovsky's plays were first published in St. Petersburg in the journals Sovremennik, ... ... Encyclopedic reference book "St. Petersburg"
- (1823 86) Russian playwright, corresponding member of the St. Petersburg Academy of Sciences (1863). Creativity Ostrovsky laid the foundation for the national repertoire of the Russian theater. In comedies and socio-psychological dramas, Ostrovsky brought out a gallery of types from those covered by ... ... Big Encyclopedic Dictionary
- (1823 1886), playwright. He came to St. Petersburg repeatedly from 1853, was closely connected with the social, literary and cultural life of the capital. Most of O.'s plays were first published in St. Petersburg in the journals Sovremennik and Vremya. In the journal… … St. Petersburg (encyclopedia)
Dramatic writer, head of the repertoire of the Imperial Moscow Theater and director of the Moscow Theater School. A. N. Ostrovsky was born in Moscow on January 31, 1823. His father, Nikolai Fedorovich, came from a spiritual rank, and according to ... ... Big biographical encyclopedia
- (1823 1886), Russian playwright, corresponding member of the St. Petersburg Academy of Sciences (1863). Brother of M. N. Ostrovsky. Creativity Ostrovsky laid the foundation for the national repertoire of the Russian theater. In comedies and socio-psychological dramas, Ostrovsky brought out ... ... encyclopedic Dictionary
OSTROVSKY Alexander Nikolaevich- (182386), Russian playwright. Organizer and Prev. About va rus. dramatic writers and opera composers (since 1870). Plays (comedies and dramas): in prose "Family Picture" (1847, post. 1855), "Our people let's get along" (1850, post. 1861), ... ... Literary Encyclopedic Dictionary
Books
- Dowry. Thunderstorm (CDmp3), Ostrovsky Alexander Nikolaevich. Ostrovsky Alexander Nikolaevich (1823 - 1886) - Russian playwright, whose work laid the foundation for the national repertoire of the Russian theater. In the plays of A. N. Ostrovsky, the color is captured ...
- Plays: Ostrovsky A. N., Chekhov A. P., Gorky M., Gorky Maxim, Ostrovsky Alexander Nikolaevich, Chekhov Anton Pavlovich. A. Ostrovsky, A. Chekhov and M. Gorky are brilliant reformers and innovators of the stage, who radically changed the theater. This book includes five famous plays by great playwrights - "Thunderstorm", ...
Biography
Alexander Nikolayevich Ostrovsky was born on March 31 (April 12), 1823 in Moscow on Malaya Ordynka. His father, Nikolai Fedorovich, was the son of a priest; he himself graduated from the Kostroma Seminary, then the Moscow Theological Academy, but began to practice as a court lawyer, dealing with property and commercial matters; rose to the rank of titular councilor, and in 1839 received the nobility. Mother, Lyubov Ivanovna Savvina, the sexton's daughter, passed away early when Alexander was only eight years old. There were four children in the family. The family lived in abundance, paid great attention to the study of children who received home education. Five years after the death of his mother, his father married Baroness Emilia Andreevna von Tessin, the daughter of a Russified Swedish nobleman. The children were lucky with their stepmother - she surrounded them with care and continued to study them.
As a child, Alexander became addicted to reading, receives a good education at home, knows Greek, Latin, French, German, and later English, Italian, and Spanish. When Alexander was thirteen years old, his father married a second time to the daughter of a Russified Swedish baron, who was not too busy raising children from her husband's first marriage. With her arrival, the household way of life noticeably changes, the official life is redrawn in a noble manner, the environment changes, new speeches are heard in the house. By this time, the future playwright had read almost the entire father's library.
History of personal life
Personal life story 2
First wife: Agafya Ivanovna. According to eyewitnesses, she was a kind, warm-hearted woman, to whom Ostrovsky owed much of his knowledge of Moscow life. According to the law of that time, unmarried marriages in Russia were not officially legally recognized (only since the 20th century, actual marriages have been recognized as legal, regardless of their registration), but they were fully recognized as such in society. The playwright lived in a civil marriage with a commoner Agafya Ivanovna, with whom he had common children, but they all died as children. Having no education, but a smart woman, with a thin, easily vulnerable soul, she understood the playwright and was the very first reader and critic of his works. Ostrovsky lived with Agafya Ivanovna for about twenty years, until her death.
Childhood
Ostrovsky spends his childhood and early youth in Zamoskvorechye - a special corner of Moscow with its well-established merchant-petty-bourgeois way of life. It was easier for him to follow Pushkin's advice: "It's not a bad thing for us sometimes to listen to Moscow mallows. They speak surprisingly pure and correct language." Grandmother Natalya Ivanovna lived in the Ostrovsky family and served as a parish maid. Nanny Avdotya Ivanovna Kutuzova was famous as a great master of telling fairy tales. His godfather is a titular adviser, his godmother is a court adviser. From them and from his father's colleagues who were in the house, the future author of Profitable Place could hear plenty of bureaucratic conversations. And since the father leaves the service and becomes a private attorney for trading firms, merchants have not been transferred to the house.
As a child, Alexander became addicted to reading, receives a good education at home, knows Greek, Latin, French, German, and later English, Italian, and Spanish. When Alexander was thirteen years old, his father married a second time to the daughter of a Russified Swedish baron, who was not too busy raising children from her husband's first marriage. With her arrival, the household way of life noticeably changes, the official life is redrawn in a noble manner, the environment changes, new speeches are heard in the house. By this time, the future playwright had reread almost the entire father's library
Studies
From 1835-1840 - Ostrovsky studies at the First Moscow Gymnasium. In 1840, after graduating from the gymnasium, he was enrolled in the law faculty of Moscow University. At the university, a law student Ostrovsky was lucky enough to listen to lectures by such connoisseurs of history, jurisprudence and literature as T.N. Granovsky, N.I. Krylov, M.P. Pogodin. Here, for the first time, the riches of Russian chronicles are revealed to the future author of "Minin" and "Voevoda", the language appears before him in a historical perspective. But in 1843, Ostrovsky left the university, not wanting to retake the exam. Then he entered the office of the Moscow Constituent Court, later served in the Commercial Court (1845-1851). This experience played a significant role in the work of Ostrovsky.
The second university is the Maly Theatre. Having become addicted to the stage back in his gymnasium years, Ostrovsky became a regular in the oldest Russian theater.
1847 - Ostrovsky publishes the first draft of the future comedy "Our People - Let's Settle" under the title "Insolvent Debtor" in the Moscow City Listing, then the comedy "Painting of Family Happiness" (later "Family Picture") and an essay in prose "Notes of a Zamoskvoretsky Resident" .
Creation
"Columbus Zamoskvorechye"
The play Poverty is Not a Vice (1853) was first staged on January 15, 1869 at the Maly Theater for a benefit performance by Prov Mikhailovich Sadovsky.
Ostrovsky Theater
It is with Ostrovsky that the Russian theater in its modern sense begins: the writer created a theater school and a holistic concept of acting in the theater.
The essence of Ostrovsky's theater is the absence of extreme situations and opposition to the actor's gut. Alexander Nikolaevich's plays depict ordinary situations with ordinary people, whose dramas go into everyday life and human psychology.
The main ideas of the theater reform:
the theater should be built on conventions (there is a 4th wall separating the audience from the actors);
invariability of attitude to language: mastery of speech characteristics, expressing almost everything about the characters;
betting on more than one actor;
"People go to see the game, not the play itself - you can read it."
Ostrovsky's theater demanded a new stage aesthetics, new actors. In accordance with this, Ostrovsky creates an ensemble of actors, which includes such actors as Martynov, Sergei Vasilyev, Evgeny Samoilov, Prov Sadovsky.
Naturally, innovations met opponents. They were, for example, Shchepkin. The dramaturgy of Ostrovsky demanded from the actor a detachment from his personality, which MS Shchepkin did not do. For example, he left the dress rehearsal of The Thunderstorm, being very dissatisfied with the author of the play.
Ostrovsky's ideas were carried to their logical end by Stanislavsky.
Folk myths and national history in the dramaturgy of Ostrovsky
In 1881, the successful premiere of N. A. Rimsky-Korsakov's opera The Snow Maiden, which the composer called his best work, took place on the stage of the Mariinsky Theater. A. N. Ostrovsky himself appreciated the work of Rimsky-Korsakov: “The music for my“ Snow Maiden ”is amazing, I could never imagine anything more suitable for it and so vividly expressing all the poetry of the Russian pagan cult and this first snow-cold, and then the irrepressibly passionate heroine of a fairy tale.
"The most memorable day for me in my life," Ostrovsky recalled, "was February 14, 1847 ... From that day on, I began to consider myself a Russian writer and already believed in my vocation without doubt or hesitation."
Ostrovsky was recognized by the comedy "Our People - Let's Settle" (original title - "Bankrupt", completed at the end of 1849). Even before publication, it became popular (in the reading of the author and P.M. Sadovsky), evoked approving responses from H.V. Gogol, I.A. Goncharova, T.H. Granovsky.
"He started unusually ..." - testifies I.S. Turgenev. His very first big play, "Own People - Let's Settle" made a huge impression. She was called the Russian "Tartuffe", the "Brigadier" of the 19th century, the merchant's "Woe from Wit", compared with the "Inspector"; Yesterday, the still unknown name of Ostrovsky was put next to the names of the greatest comedians - Moliere, Fonvizin, Griboyedov, Gogol.
In 1863 Ostrovsky was awarded the Uvarov Prize and elected a corresponding member of the St. Petersburg Academy of Sciences. In 1866 (according to other sources - in 1865) he created the Artistic Circle in Moscow, which later gave the Moscow stage many talented figures. I.A. visited Ostrovsky’s house. Goncharov, D.V. Grigorovich, I.S. Turgenev, A.F. Pisemsky, F.M. Dostoevsky, I.E. Turchaninov, P.M. Sadovsky, L.P. Kositskaya-Nikulina, Dostoevsky, Grigorovich, M.E. Saltykov-Shchedrin, L.N. Tolstoy, I.S. Turgenev, P.I. Tchaikovsky, Sadovsky, M.N. Ermolova, G.N. Fedotov. Since January 1866 he was the head of the repertoire of the Moscow imperial theaters. In 1874 (according to other sources - in 1870) the Society of Russian Dramatic Writers and Opera Composers was formed, whose permanent chairman Ostrovsky remained until his death. Working in the commission "for the revision of legal provisions in all parts of the theater management," established in 1881 under the directorate of the Imperial Theaters, he achieved many changes that significantly improved the position of artists. In 1885, Ostrovsky was appointed head of the repertoire of Moscow theaters and head of the theater school. Despite the fact that his plays made good collections and that in 1883 Emperor Alexander III granted him an annual pension of 3 thousand rubles, money problems did not leave Ostrovsky until the last days of his life. Health did not meet the plans that he set for himself. Reinforced work quickly exhausted the body; On June 14 (according to the old style - June 2), 1886, Ostrovsky died in his Kostroma estate Shchelykovo. The writer was buried there, the sovereign granted 3,000 rubles from the sums of the cabinet for burial, the widow, inseparably with 2 children, was assigned a pension of 3,000 rubles, and 2,400 rubles a year for raising three sons and a daughter.
