Director as conductor: visitors to the "Legacy. Theatre. The Greats" exposition learn how to bring a production together as "a single orchestra"
A creative meeting dedicated to the art of directing was held at the National Centre RUSSIA as part of the Union of Theatre Workers' exposition "Legacy. Theatre. The Greats", held under the motto "A Union of Happy People". The masterclass gave every participant an opportunity to learn about the fundamentals of the profession and gain a new perspective on how a theatre production comes to life. The event continued the educational programme of the large-scale exposition project marking the organisation's 150th anniversary. The exposition is supported by the Ministry of Culture of the Russian Federation and the Presidential Fund for Cultural Initiatives.
Honoured Artist of Russia, director, teacher and member of the Writers' Union of Russia Yelena Olenina explored the key aspects of the directing profession during the masterclass, explaining how a stage director can preserve the author's vision while making it clear and relevant to a contemporary audience. Participants learned how directors work with dramatic material, how they interact with actors, designers, composers and choreographers, and how all members of the production team come together to form a single theatrical organism.
In her presentation, Yelena Olenina also addressed creative exploration and time constraints when working on a production: "Many directors spend their whole lives working towards their main production. I know professionals who work on a production for years, carefully exploring the material and everything else. At the same time, a production can be staged in just a few rehearsals. It all depends on the circumstances and the time available. Sometimes a theatre sets strict deadlines — for example, one month to stage a production, and you have to fit within that timeframe. Sometimes you are given as much time as you need. But there are also times when you have to return to a production and rework it. In the directing profession, everything is very, very relative."
Yelena Olenina did not limit herself to theoretical discussion and readily shared her own experience as a director with the audience. She has faced all sorts of situations in her career, but described one episode as truly unique — a production that nearly fell through but ultimately found a new lease of life.
"The most vivid example from my career was the production "The Sons of My Brothers" by Serbian playwright Siniša Kovačević at the Shchepkin Belgorod State Academic Drama Theatre. The production later received the prestigious "Zolotoy Vityaz" ("Golden Knight") award. But that is not what I remember it for. The matter is, during literally the second rehearsal, I tripped and broke my leg. I spent the entire rest of the production process on crutches. I only stopped using them by the time of the premiere. I find the situation amusing because before that I had never broken anything in my life — it was my first and only fracture. And the most remarkable thing was that, despite the physical ordeal, the production went ahead. I remember that theatre with tremendous warmth and affection. And I value this work not only because of the amusing story involving my leg, but above all because the production remains incredibly relevant and speaks to the present day," she shared.
In response to a question about how to become a world-famous director, she noted that success in theatre is rather like a lottery ticket — and urged the audience not to confuse fame with genuine mastery.
"Becoming a famous director is a matter of circumstances coming together. Theatre is a lottery, really. You may win your ticket, or you may not. But in any case, the most important thing is to become a professional," she added.
The "Legacy. Theatre. The Greats" exposition opened at the National Centre RUSSIA on 28 July and will run until 25 September. It features more than 600 exhibits across 17 thematic sections exploring life behind the scenes and the history of Russian theatre.
All expositions and events at the National Centre RUSSIA are free of charge, although some events require advance registration. Check the programme on the official website russia.ru and on the venue's social media channels.
The forum aims to: develop international cooperation in volunteering.
