Gods of the Stage of the Russian Empire

The series of programs “Gods of the Stage of the Russian Empire,” broadcast this summer on the “Russian World” radio.
The author and host of the show is an artist, singer, collector, journalist, musical and public figure Nadir Shirinsky. He will tell about an especially interesting period in the development of Russian musical culture—the Silver Age: a romantic time, rich in events and grand achievements.
The program is aimed both at professional musicians and at amateurs—at everyone for whom the history of Russian culture matters.

On “Russian World Radio,” Nadir Shirinsky reads his book with audio illustrations:

1–3. Chapter 1. “Shalyapin’s First Love”.
4–5. Chapter 2 “The Great Song of Love of the Singer Behind the Scenes” (Leonid Sobinov).
6–8. Chapter 3 “Soloists of His Majesty” (Nikolay and Medea Figner).
9. An interview with the granddaughter of N.N. Figner, Tatyana Yuryevna Kasparova (St. Petersburg). Recording from 1999.
10. Chapter 4. Singer Nadezhda Ivanovna Zabela-Vrubel. (broadcast 30.08.2012)

In 2004, Nadir Shirinsky’s photo book “Gods of the Stage of the Russian Empire. Life on the Boards and Behind the Scenes” was published as part of Moscow’s publishing and information program.
The book tells about the most interesting period in the development of Russian musical culture—the “Silver Age”: a romantic time, full of great events and grand achievements.
This is not a scholarly musicology study; this is life itself.
Great talents are also people, with their own weaknesses, habits, superstitions, and quirks. It is insanely interesting to trace the fate of the genius—especially the stage stars of that time, the era of the Empire.
The publication is based on authentic documents related to the stories of the stars’ lives and work, memories of contemporaries, and pages from memoirs.
The album contains over 300 illustrations—original photographs taken by photographers of the Imperial Theatres, capturing the publication’s heroes both in stage roles and in makeup, and in everyday life; original sheet music with portraits; advertising leaflets and posters from the author’s personal collection, family archives, and periodicals from a hundred years ago.
The book has 3 parts and 20 essays.
Each essay is devoted to an Artist.
The first part tells about opera singers. These are the soloists of Moscow’s Bolshoi Theatre and St. Petersburg’s Mariinsky Opera, Zimin’s private opera, Mamontov’s, and St. Petersburg’s Theatre of Musical Drama: F. I. Shalyapin, L. V. Sobinov, N. I. Zabela-Vrubel, Nikolay and Medea Figner, Maria and Max Maxakov, A. M. Davydov, G. A. Baklanov, V. P. Damaev, E. I. Zbruyeva, M. S. Davydova, V. N. Petrova-Zvantseva.
The second part is devoted to the stars of Russian variety: A.D. Vyaltseva, N.V. Plevitskaya, V.V. Panina, Sashа Davydov.
The third part tells about foreign touring performers who played a significant role in the history of Russian musical culture: Lina Cavalieri, Adame Didure, Feliya Litvin, Mariya Gai, and Giuseppe Anselmi.
Particular interest is represented by the memoirs of descendants of former stage stars—details of their personal lives, unknown to the wide circle of readers, presented to the author by their grandchildren and great-grandchildren.
Undoubtedly, music lovers will find it interesting to learn, for example, the story of the relationship between F. I. Shalyapin and his two wives, the story of L. V. Sobinov and his two life partners, the history of a romantic meeting, shared life, and the dramatic parting of the Soloists of His Majesty Nikolay and Medea Figner, the tragic love and death of artist M. Vrubel and his wife, an opera soloist S. Mamontov’s Nadezhda Zabelа, the tragic death at the peak of the career of the brightest star of the variety stage of the Empire “incomparable” Anastasia Vyaltseva. And, of course, it’s amusing to look at old merchant Moscow through the eyes of the opera prima donna of Western Europe, Feliya Litvin, and to learn details of the night life of early 20th-century St. Petersburg, reported to the “first beauty of the world” Italian Lina Cavalieri—as well as the secrets of her beauty.
Two thirds of the three hundred photographs illustrating the book have never been published before.