How does Savvina’s son live now? Actress Iya Savvina and her son Sergei - a brilliant artist with Down syndrome

// Photo: Ekaterina Tsvetkova / PhotoXPress.ru

In the “Live Broadcast” program they remembered the life of the great Soviet actress Ia Savvina. The artist died in 2011 due to complications of melanoma. 10 days before her death, she married Anatoly Vasiliev. According to the second husband of the theater star, she had a presentiment of her death.

“She said sadly and sadly: “Let me go,” it was a hint at euthanasia,” recalls Vasiliev.

From her first marriage to Vsevolod Shestakov, Savvina has a son, Seryozha. The boy was born with Down syndrome. As friends noted, the actress was carefully involved in the boy’s development. As a rule, children born with this diagnosis cannot live long. However, Savvina’s heir will soon turn 60 years old. He received higher education, learned to play the synthesizer and draw pictures.

The host of the “Live Broadcast” program Boris Korchevnikov visited Sergei Shestakov and showed how his son lives famous actress. Faina Ranevskaya said that Savvina has “a real cross at home,” meaning her child.

Iya Sergeevna’s friend Yuri Gorin recalls that she never hid her son. In front of guests, the boy read poetry. Savvina did not intend to give up the child, but, on the contrary, was proud of him. According to the star’s friends, her mother and nannies helped her in raising Seryozha. Vasiliev became the guardian of his adopted son after the death of his wife.

“He's unassuming. He goes about his business for hours. He plays the synthesizer, draws, learns English... He is left alone. He uses the microwave very well... He remembers all the birthdays, we even forget,” said Anatoly Isaakovich.

Boris Korchevnikov came to visit Seryozha and saw his diary, in which he carefully records the events of every day. Several pages were dedicated to New Year's celebrations.

Yuri Gorin noted that Vasiliev saved Seryozha from persecution. “There was an apartment on Frunzenskaya Embankment. She was claimed by Zaira, Shestakov’s other wife. I had to hide Seryozha,” said the actor.

The property scandal arose in 2012. Savvina’s friend notes that Zaira wanted to take advantage of the situation and become the guardian of the actress’s son. The woman knew Iya Sergeevna and gained her trust. According to the family's lawyer, Yulian Sobolev, this moment the property situation is still unresolved.

After death famous actress Two of the men dearest to her were immediately orphaned: her husband, actor Anatoly Vasiliev, and her son Sergei, who had long been an adult, but who remained a small and naive child for the rest of his life.

On August 27, 2011, Iya Savvina passed away. Fate rewarded the actress, adored by millions of viewers, with an amazing, almost angelic appearance and prepared for her a difficult test: the only and beloved son of the star of the films “The Lady with the Dog”, “The Story of Asya Klyachina, who loved, but did not marry”, “Two Comrades Served”, and other famous paintings born with Down syndrome.

Strong women don't cry

Iya Savvina in her youth. Source: Globallookpress.com

Iya Savvina did not initially plan to become an actress. She graduated from the journalism department of Moscow State University and played in the student theater. It was there that Alexey Batalov saw young Savvina in the incredibly popular play “Such Love” in the late 50s and told director Joseph Kheifitz that he had found him a real Chekhovian heroine. In 1960, “The Lady with the Dog” was released, starring Batalov and Savvina, and in the same year the 24-year-old actress was invited to the Mossovet Theater. Later, Iya Sergeevna served in the Moscow Art Theater, after its split she moved to the Chekhov Moscow Art Theater.

Among the most famous films with her participation - “Lady with a Dog”, “The Story of Asya Klyachina, who loved, but did not marry”, “Two comrades served”, “Garage”, “ Private life", the actress’s voice was familiar to all children: Piglet spoke to them in the cartoons about Winnie the Pooh.

The kids laughed merrily while watching the cartoon, their parents watched the films with her participation, applauded Iya Savvina in the theater, her incredible energy was felt by the entire hall to the last rows. But few people knew what a spiritual wound in the heart of the actress beloved by millions. And those who were aware of her personal drama believed that when she had to cry on stage or in the movies, Iya Sergeevna simply gave free rein to her emotions, exposed her pain.

So great and unfortunate

Iya met her first husband, geologist Vsevolod Shestakov, at the Moscow State University Student Theater. In 1957, their son Sergei was born. At the maternity hospital, 21-year-old Ye was told that her baby had Down syndrome and offered to give up the newborn. But she did not leave the child. They said that after this, Savvina’s relationship with her family, which had previously been difficult, became even more strained, they say, her relatives could not understand why she, so young, needed a “sick” child. But the mother-in-law supported the girl’s decision.

Savvina acted a lot, played in the theater, Seryozha often remained in the care of her mother-in-law Yanina Adolfovna and nannies. The actress tried to raise him like an ordinary child. Teachers of English and music came to Seryozha to study; his grandmother, a teacher of Russian and literature by profession, gave her grandson an excellent education at home. Both Iya and Yanina Adolfovna were very proud of his success, the “special” son of the actress remembered the poems he read well, and remembered by heart many works of Russian classical poets. Subsequently, Sergei was able to obtain higher education. At the age of 30, he discovered his talent as an artist, he began to paint pictures, his relatives were surprised: fine arts no one taught him seriously. At the same time, he remained absolutely helpless in everyday life. “An adult man with the psychology of a child,” family friends said about Iya Savvina’s grown son.

more on the topic

How do the “special” children of celebrities live?Developmental features are not a death sentence, as these “star” children prove. Khakamada’s daughter is getting married, Meladze’s son has a friend, and the heir Bledans can even be called a media person. How the “special” children of celebrities live and develop, the site recalls

The actress lived with Vsevolod Shestakov for 16 years. They said that by the time of their divorce, the marriage had long since outlived its usefulness, but Savvina for a long time did not want to break up with her husband because of her son and mother-in-law. Soon after the divorce, the actress met her second husband, film director and actor of the Taganka Theater Anatoly Vasiliev.

They lived together for more than 30 years, soul to soul, despite the fact that Iya Sergeevna’s character was very difficult. Unlike the refined heroines she often had to play in films and theater, the actress did not mince words and could even swear. Savvina, unlike her famous heroine from Garage, was very emotional, the actress often “exploded” and lost her temper. “Savvinsky candles” - that’s what her famous angry tirades were called in the theater and at home. At the same time, she was the kindest and most sympathetic person; if one of her colleagues needed help, she immediately rushed to help.

After the actress’s death, Vasiliev said that his wife was a person of “monstrous inner strength”, she never complained herself and could not stand it when others whined. Sometimes emotions still broke through. As Anatoly Isaakovich later recalled, one day during a gathering in the kitchen with friends, Iya Savvina burst out: “Lord, why am I so great and so unhappy!” These words are a star Soviet cinema, People's Artist USSR and RSFSR, Honored Artist of the RSFSR, who had many awards, including a special prize at the Cannes Film Festival for her role in “The Lady with a Dog,” spoke without the slightest strain, with philosophical calm.

Iya Savvina with Oleg Tabakov, 2009

In the program "Live" ex-husband actress Iya Savina spoke about the fate of her son Sergei, who was born with Down syndrome.

Anatoly Vasiliev, the husband of the famous Soviet and Russian actress Ia Savina.

For the first time in 6 years after his death famous wife he broke his vow of silence and decided to tell details about the life of his son Sergei - the only child of the actress - who has Down syndrome.

Although such people do not live long, Sergei is already 60 years old. There are only 3 people in the world older than him who have this diagnosis. About how to famous mom extended his life and why she herself got married 10 days before her death - Iya Savvina’s husband Anatoly Vasiliev spoke about this for the first time.

The artist died in 2011 due to complications of melanoma. 10 days before her death, she married Anatoly Vasiliev. According to the second husband of the theater star, she had a presentiment of her death.

“She said sadly and sadly: “Let me go,” it was a hint at euthanasia,” recalls Vasiliev.

From her first marriage to Vsevolod Shestakov, Savina has a son, Seryozha. The boy was born with Down syndrome. As friends noted, the actress was carefully involved in the boy’s development. As a rule, children born with this diagnosis cannot live long. However, Savina’s heir will soon turn 60 years old. He received a higher education, learned to play the synthesizer and draw pictures.

Anatoly Vasiliev - husband of Iya Savina

The host of the “Live Broadcast” program visited Sergei Shestakov and showed how the son of a famous actress lives. said that Savina has “a real cross at home,” meaning her child.

Iya Sergeevna’s friend Yuri Gorin recalls that she never hid her son. In front of guests, the boy read poetry. Savina was not going to give up the child, but, on the contrary, was proud of him. According to the star’s friends, her mother and nannies helped her in raising Seryozha. Vasiliev became the guardian of his adopted son after the death of his wife.

“He's not pretentious. He goes about his business for hours. He plays the synthesizer, draws, learns English... He is left alone. He uses the microwave very well... He remembers all the birthdays, we even forget,” said Anatoly Isaakovich.

Boris Korchevnikov came to visit Seryozha and saw his diary, in which he carefully records the events of every day. Several pages were dedicated to New Year's celebrations.

Yuri Gorin noted that Vasiliev saved Seryozha from persecution.

“There was an apartment on Frunzenskaya Embankment. She was claimed by Zaira, Shestakov’s other wife. I had to hide Seryozha,” said the actor.

Sergei is the son of Iya Savina

The property scandal arose in 2012. Savina’s friend notes that Zaira wanted to take advantage of the situation and become the guardian of the actress’s son. The woman knew Iya Sergeevna and gained her trust.

According to the family's lawyer, Yulian Sobolev, at the moment the situation with the property is still not resolved.

“There's a problem here. Seryozha has limited legal capacity, therefore he cannot draw up a will, and neither can his guardian. The reality is that if something happens to Seryozha, the apartment will go away distant relatives"- noted the specialist.

How Iya Savina's son lives with Down syndrome. Live

ACTRESS IYA SAVVINA AND HER SON SERGEY - A GENIUS ARTIST WITH DOWN SYNDROME. ABOUT THE FEAT OF PARENTAL LOVE. When Iya Savvina was at the peak of her career, trouble came knocking on their family - Vsevolod and Iya had a son, Seryozha, with Down syndrome. Resolutely refusing the offer to place the child in a special boarding school, Iya Sergeevna herself, from childhood, developed the child’s ability to understand the world, and also invited teachers to the house. Many advised her to leave work for the sake of her son, but this time she flatly refused. “I don’t blame those who are unable to bear this burden. I myself had a moment of weakness in my life. When Seryozha was seven, I found out that there was an excellent forestry school near Moscow, and I wanted to send him there. The man I called - I often forget last names, but I remembered this one for the rest of my life, Chentsov, - asked: “Do you want to give up the child?” “No, what could you think...” - “Then don’t give him anywhere, ever." So I did. Serezha was saved by Professor Speransky, a famous pediatrician who lived for 96 years and jumped out of a window when he found out that he had he had cancer. Then he was 80, he looked 60, radiated confidence and strength. I carried my three-month-old son to him, having heard enough talk about how such children do not know how to sit by the age of four and rarely live to be twenty. Speransky took Seryozha in his arms and went with him for forty minutes - how can you examine a baby for forty minutes, I can’t imagine what he was listening to and tapping out there - and returned with the words: “It will be very difficult for you, but I think you can handle it.” At first he prescribed one thing: buy liver at the market, wipe it and feed it. Show up in three months. Three months old! Calf liver! But they wiped it and fed it, and when he saw six-month-old Seryozha, he said: “You brought me a completely different child!” And then - a foot massage, because the legs were like wheels. And then - grandmother Yanina Adolfovna, a teacher, left her job and took care only of her grandson. Because of this grandmother, I lived for sixteen years in the family of my first husband, when for a long time there was no family at all. was. But Seryozha grew up, and studied, and knows hundreds of poems by heart, and speaks English, and he is 53 years old. If he had not been sick, he would, I think, be a genius - but even with an extra chromosome he is more valuable than others healthy. I remember how, shortly before his death, Oleg Efremov called me and suddenly asked me to attend my annual khash - January 1, when everyone comes. “Can I, Iya?” - “Guess three times from the lantern.” He came, already out of breath, sat down at the table, and saw Seryozha. “Are you Seryozha?” - “Hello, Oleg Nikolaevich!” When we went to see him off, he said: here, Seryozha, the year of Pushkin is coming - together with you we will learn his poems. And Seryozha, looking at him with loving eyes, reads: “There was that troubled time when young Russia, straining its strength in struggles, matured with the genius of Peter.” He knows all of Poltava by heart. And Efremov cried. However, I don’t want to deceive anyone. It was very difficult for me. But on the other hand, I look at my life without disgust and shame, and that’s worth something. I only pray to God that he will take me and Seryozha at the same time. Neither I can live without him, nor can he live without me" (Iya Savvina) After the death of his mother and father, Sergei lives with his guardian Anatoly Vasilyev, has a circle of close people - friends of his mother. He continues to study literature, music, drawing, and attends theaters. Sergei spends every summer in the village of Dorofeevo, Kostroma region, where he draws a lot. The main subjects of his drawings are wild and garden flowers, village landscapes. He does all the work himself, including building a composition and choosing a color palette. The exposition of the current, third exhibition was includes over 40 paintings painted by Sergei in 2012 – 2013. The work of Sergei Shestakov destroys deep-rooted stereotypes regarding people with Down syndrome, giving a feeling of sincere delight and admiration to everyone who comes into contact with his special gift.

And life, and tears, and love...

When Iya Savvina’s son, who suffers from Down syndrome, was told that his mother was no more, he replied: “Then I’ll go and light a candle.”

Iya Savvina did not have an acting education. Since childhood, she dreamed of becoming a journalist, wrote articles for the school wall newspaper and, being a gold medalist, easily entered the journalism department of Moscow State University. With her knowledge of literature and especially poetry, young Iya amazed admissions committee. She liked the way the girl read Mayakovsky so much that she was asked to recite it again and again. Then there was the student theater of Moscow State University, which opened several actors and directors, before whose name today it is appropriate to put the adjective “great”. Iya Savvina is one of them.

She made her screen debut in Joseph Kheifitz’s film “The Lady with the Dog,” striking both viewers and film critics with an amazing combination angelic appearance, extraordinary acting talent and strong character.

The actress starred in more than 60 films, a good third of which are today considered classics of Russian cinema - “They’re calling, open the door!”, “Anna Karenina”, “The Story of Asya Klyachina, who loved but did not marry”, “Two Comrades Served” , "The plot for a short story", "Romance of Lovers", "Private Life", "Tears Fell", "Garage".

While still a student, Iya Savvina married geology professor Vsevolod Shestakov. The birth of her son, which she expected as the greatest miracle, turned into a terrible shock - the boy had Down syndrome. Doctors suggested that the actress leave the child in the hospital, but she refused. And she was able not only to provide Seryozha with careful care, attention and care, but also to prolong his age, which is limited in children of the Sun (as people with Down syndrome are called).

After a divorce from her first husband, fate gave the actress personal happiness - first a stormy romance with theater director Pyotr Stein, then a quiet one, without riots and shocks, but happy family life with her second husband, Taganka Theater actor Anatoly Vasiliev.

Iya Sergeevna learned that she had melanoma - skin cancer - several years ago. She was operated on and seemed to be on the mend. Last March, the actress celebrated her 75th birthday, but in May she was struck down by a stroke, and two months later she was in a car accident, receiving serious injury. chest. Since then, the actress's days were numbered.

With mother Vera Ivanovna, late 30s

Iya Savvina died late in the evening of August 27 in the arms of her husband, with whom, after two decades life together finally formalized the relationship - literally a few days before her death. They buried her at Novodevichy Cemetery next to the grave of the poetess Bella Akhmadulina, whose voice is spoken by Piglet from the famous cartoon about Winnie the Pooh, voiced by Savvina.

ACTRESS AND TEACHER ALLA POKROVSKAYA: “SHE NEVER SHOWED OUT HER UNHAPPINESS, AND DID NOT DEMAND LENIFF FOR HERSELF”

Iya Savvina had a long friendship with the actress and teacher of the Moscow Art Theater School Alla Pokrovskaya.

- Alla Borisovna, how did Iya Savvina, a graduate of the Faculty of Journalism at Moscow State University, become a brilliant actress?

This is probably largely the merit of Rolan Bykov - she went through an excellent acting school with him at the student theater of Moscow State University. The play in which Iya played the main role, “Such Love” based on the play by Czech playwright Pavel Kohout, then thundered throughout Moscow. There was a very strong cast, so, in addition to Savvina, Alla Demidova was also involved in the play. After a successful debut, Iya became famous among the theater community, and Joseph Kheifits chose her for the main role in “The Lady with a Dog,” where she turned out to be the partner of Alexei Batalov himself.

As for the lack of acting education, I will say this: acting cannot be taught - either a person has talent or not. She had.

- But there are some special skills and skills!

Not everyone who studies at theater institutes and masters these skills subsequently becomes actors. Iya, in addition to her acting talent, had excellent appearance. She was beautiful, gentle, with incredibly attractive eyes, unimaginable charm - you just had to be born like that! All these components formed her artistic talent.

But she was also a very good journalist, she had many wonderful articles about outstanding actors with whom she was familiar - Faina Ranevskaya, Lyubov Orlova, Mikhail Ulyanov, Sergei Yursky.

Iya wrote books, knew poetry very well, and we often invited her to the students of the Moscow Art Theater School to read poetry. You see, she was noticeably superior average level both in acting talent and education. At the same time, she did not at all give the impression of a person not from this world. On the contrary, she was an excellent housewife, loved to live in the village, where she acquired a small house, knew how to work on the land - she planted something there, then harvested it, made some supplies. She succeeded in everything!

- They say she had a complex character...

-(Laughs). What kind of person can it be if one person combines so many talents? When you see mediocre people around you, uttering all sorts of nonsense with a smart look, you will inevitably begin to demonstrate a tough disposition.

Yes, she had some friction from time to time, but Iya was smart enough to make conflicts not look stupid.

At work she could be demanding and intolerant, but surrounded by friends and loved ones she became completely different - soft, kind, peaceful - and helped many. If she loved someone, she was ready to do everything in her power for that person.

- Who was Iya Sergeevna friends with?

Many people loved her, so their house was never empty - there were always people there. From our theater she became friends with Natasha Tenyakova and me, her close friend was Lyuba Strizhenova, who went to a monastery several years ago.

- Personally, what surprised and delighted you most about her?

Perhaps her fortitude and courage, which would have been difficult to expect from such a small and fragile woman. It would seem that giving birth to a child with Down syndrome is great sorrow. But she never stuck out her misfortune, did not demand any leniency towards herself just because her child was sick. I treated his condition as something completely natural (although due to some slips of the tongue, reservations, I understood that it was very difficult for her).

It was her cross, and she bore it bravely. And we see the result - Iya extended the life of her son: as a rule, people with Down syndrome live no more than 40 years, and Seryozha is already 54. There is even talk of including him in the Guinness Book of Records as the longest-living person among such people.

ACTOR, DIRECTOR AND TEACHER DMITRY BRUSNIKIN: “SAVINA OPENLY TOLD THE FOOL THAT HE WAS A FOOL”

Dmitry Brusnikin - not only good friend, but also a colleague of Iya Savvina - he was the director of the last play in the actress’s life, in which she never had the chance to appear on stage.

- Dmitry Vladimirovich, viewers very often confuse actors with their roles and make mistakes...

Iya Savvina was the same on screen and stage as in life. And besides, she was so rich spiritually that she could find in herself any of the rehearsed images - she was enough for everything. Many were afraid of her absolute sincerity, honesty and integrity: they say, she is overly strict. Sometimes Iya got into trouble because of this.

But she never participated in any vulgar projects, did not do anything that she did not like, citing financial necessity. She relied only on her own taste, and not on the opinions of others.

It was not easy to earn her favor. Savvina openly told the fool that he was a fool. She was generally very sharp-tongued, in this sense she can be called a successor to Faina Ranevskaya, whose aphorisms and caustic statements are well known. By the way, Iya Sergeevna was friends with Ranevskaya, respected her very much, and Faina Georgievna answered her in kind.

- Actress Savvina was also a very courageous woman. Agree, a disabled child is a difficult test...

To be fair, it must be said that Seryozha did not live with his mother all his life, only for the last 10-12 years. This was connected with the notorious housing issue: as soon as Iya was able to afford a larger apartment, she immediately took him away from her mother and sister, where he had lived before.

Although Iya Sergeevna did not go to church, she had a special relationship with religion, with faith, the priests respected her very much. She took her son’s illness for granted. Despite everything, this was her child, her happiness, her joy, her sunshine. She treated him like any mother would treat her child. Seryozha draws beautifully, plays the piano, reads poetry wonderfully, knows well English language and even received a higher education, which is very rare for people with such a disease.

- In your opinion, whose merit is this?

Whoever worked with him: his mother, his father, Vsevolod Mikhailovich Shestakov, and his grandmother, Iya’s mother-in-law. They all devoted a lot of time to Seryozha, he was not deprived of attention. I think his life was even more eventful than that of many of his healthy peers.

- How long did you know Iya Savvina?

Since my student days.

I studied at the Moscow Art Theater School with Oleg Nikolaevich Efremov, together with the late Roman Kozak, Sasha Feklistov. At the end of the first course, our masters took us to Solovki. Iya Sergeevna and her husband, Anatoly Isaakovich Vasiliev, joined us, and that’s where we met them. Since then we have become frequent guests in their house.

- Were the owners hospitable people?

There were always a lot of guests in their house. If it had been uncomfortable and cold there, then he probably wouldn’t have been so attractive. Iya Sergeevna also cooked fantastically; one might say, she was a world champion in cooking - she would have taken first place at any cooking competition. She loved reading cookbooks, from ancient to modern, she had a million different recipes - told by someone, copied from somewhere. At the same time, she still improvised, she had her own style. As someone who had the opportunity to try her dishes, I can say: it was incredibly delicious! She was equally good at hodgepodge, jellied meat, aspic, khachapuri, and dolma.

- Iya Sergeevna seemed to me a woman indifferent to her appearance...

IN Last year She felt very bad in life, she didn’t even have enough strength for this. But Iya was always very neat.

- Did they know at the theater that she was so seriously ill?

Of course, but it was not leaked to the press. Iya Sergeevna generally had a cool relationship with the media: she rarely gave interviews, did not like increased attention to her person, she never celebrated anniversaries. She was not a character in gossip columns either - she was not interested in that.

But she was very interested in her work. Almost until the last day of Iya’s life, we rehearsed Petrushevskaya’s play “He’s in Argentina,” in which Savvina was involved with Natalya Tenyakova. Iya Sergeevna, who had not played new roles in the theater for a very long time (she always took a very responsible approach to their choice), passionately wanted to rehearse. We all hoped for the best, and she believed that she would definitely go on stage and play the premiere. But, alas, due to her poor health, the rehearsals had to be interrupted...

- What will happen to her son Seryozha now?

Iya Sergeevna often said that she and Seryozha had to pass away on the same day, otherwise there would simply be no one to take care of him. But fate decreed otherwise. Fortunately, Savvina’s mother is still alive, God bless her, she has a sister and a husband who is the official guardian of her stepson. I hope everything will be fine for Seryozha.

IA SAVVINA’S HUSBAND ACTOR ANATOLY VASILIEV: “I REACTED TO SOME LIFE CONFLISITIONS SHARPLY BUT FAIRLY”

Almost a year had to pass before Iya Savvina’s husband, actor Anatoly Vasiliev, agreed to talk about his wife. This courageous man went through with her all the circles of hell associated with the disease, and especially the last, most difficult week, when the actress suffered from unbearable pain. Despite everything, he believed that his wife would recover and would definitely go on stage. She fainted in his arms without saying a word to him goodbye. He called an ambulance, which - alas! - I couldn’t help.

- Anatoly Isaakovich, you know better than anyone else what kind of person Iya Sergeevna was...

First of all, she was very wise. I reacted to some life collisions sharply, but fairly. Some people probably didn’t like it, but she was irritated by other people’s stupidity, stupidity, stupidity, dishonesty, lack of professionalism - things that irritate us all. She was different, like all of us: cheerful when she sang and danced, concentrated when she read or wrote, angry - then she cursed and could even shout.

- Your late wife is spoken of as a wonderful connoisseur of poetry...

She knew a lot of poems by heart, but this only concerned her favorite poets - Yuri Levitansky, Bulat Okudzhava, Joseph Brodsky... And Ia loved Vladimir Vysotsky precisely as a poet, and not as an actor or bard, she adored reading his songs as poetry. So the point here is not a unique memory that grasps any information on the fly, including poetic information - she only remembered well those she loved.

- Nowadays, few people know poetry by heart...

Iya Sergeevna and I’s generation is different from the modern one: today’s youth do not need such knowledge, and we could not and did not want to live without it. There was a so-called samizdat: works banned in the country were reprinted as carbon copies on typewriters on tissue paper. We read such books in strict confidence and passed them on to each other. Now the poems are forgotten - time is different. But someday the pendulum, as has happened a million times in history, will swing in the opposite direction, and people will again begin to gather for poetry evenings.

Is it true that one of your wife’s friends was the poetess Bella Akhmadulina, next to whom she was buried?

It’s difficult for me to talk about this: only Iya herself could name the names of those whom she really considered close friends. But the circle of people entering our house was very wide. By the way, they did not intersect with Akhmadulina so often in life, although they had mutual acceptance - I nurtured the most good feelings to Bella Akhatovna, and she responded in kind. To treat each other well, they did not need close communication: it was enough to understand from a distance that there was a person who coincided with you in some way.

And there were people whom Iya simply bowed to. For example, ballet dancers Ekaterina Maksimova and Vladimir Vasiliev, whom she considered living geniuses and told them about it to their faces.

By education, Iya Sergeevna is a journalist, and this profession also did not let her go. Where can you read her essays and essays on great actors today?

Friends collected them in a collection and presented them to Iya Sergeevna for her 60th birthday.

This book contains everything she managed to write, with the exception of two or three articles. Unfortunately, there are very few of them. She had a very light pen, intelligence and depth - such a combination is rare among the modern journalistic fraternity. That’s why Iya and I even argued about this from time to time: they say, why don’t you write anything? After that, she sat down at her desk, but her patience did not last long. Apparently, her time as a journalist has passed. At Moscow State University, and immediately after graduating from the Faculty of Journalism, she was passionate about this work, typing articles on a typewriter - there were no computers at that time. But over time, the desire to write disappeared, disappeared until it came to naught.

- One of the heroines of Iya Savvina’s essays is Faina Ranevskaya. Did they have a special relationship?

It was a very touching friendship. I remember calls in the evenings: when Iya picked up the phone, Faina Georgievna in a low voice asked: “My girl, what are you doing?” We have a picture hanging on the wall with the inscription: back side, made by Ranevskaya’s hand: “Talented Savvina from the same Ranevskaya. 1974."

When my union with Iya was three years old, Faina Georgievna one day accidentally bumped into me on the phone: “Can I have Iechka?” “She,” I say, “is not here now.” “Are you,” she asked, “her friend?” And, hearing an affirmative answer, she exclaimed: “How I envy her!”

True, they rarely met, but once every few months Iya told me: “I want to visit the old woman” - that’s what she called Ranevskaya. We got into the car, I drove Iya to the house on Bronnaya, and I walked in the yard and waited for her to return. And although they had conversations for two and sometimes four hours, it was not a burden to me.

“EVERYTHING IS SIMPLE FOR SEREZHA, HE LIVES IN HIS WORLD, WHICH IS APPEARANTLY BETTER THAN OURS”

- They say that Iya Sergeevna had a special relationship with plants?

She simply adored them! All the window sills in our apartment were filled with flowers and flowers, which had to be entrusted to someone when we left for the summer outside the city. Despite the fact that in Lately It was already hard for her to do this; she took them to friends and acquaintances. When we arrived in Moscow in the fall, the reverse process of returning the pots and placing them on the window sills began.

And she loved to dig in the ground as long as I knew her. She liked to grind the lumps so that the earth became like fluff, plant something, and then watch how it all grew. And it was enough to poke a dry branch into the ground, and it immediately turned green and bloomed.

- Was the process itself important or the result in the form of a harvest?

One was inseparable from the other for her. She liked to throw cucumbers into her hem, and the next morning go again and discover that she missed something yesterday - she was always incredibly happy. She loved to make all sorts of preparations - salting, drying, pickling. She generally loved to cook, and she did it wonderfully. Collected cookbooks: from the classic of Russian cooking Elena Ivanovna Molokhovets (this is the middle of the 19th century) to modern publications. All friends and acquaintances knew: if you want to give Iya Sergeevna a gift, buy a cookbook!

She could re-read these works endlessly, and then, scrupulously following the recipe, cook the most complex dishes. Some had to be worked on for a week, and sometimes 10-15 days: soaking the meat in some solution for a week, then beating it for a week, and then marinating it for another week - it was simply impossible to wait for the dish. Molokhovets especially has a lot of such recipes; each dish takes at least three days to prepare, which is why I didn’t like her. But it was Iya's element. Moreover, it was very important for her not so much to try the dish herself, but to treat the guests and see how their faces blur into smiles of pleasure.

- Did Iya Sergeevna rehearse a new performance until the last days of her life?

Together with Natasha Tenyakova they were supposed to play in the play by Lyudmila Petrushevskaya. Unfortunately, it was a table reading - they, so to speak, were warming up before they even had time to go on stage. Iya often read excerpts to me - she played them, felt out how she would do the role later.

It could be very interesting. Unfortunately, other actresses are now rehearsing this play. This upsets me very much, but nothing can be done: the theatrical process is a cruel thing.

- Was Iya Sergeevna a courageous woman both in life and in her profession?

Yes! This is especially evident from her last days. She accepted the news that she had only a few days to live calmly and stoically.

- Do you dream about your late wife?

Unfortunately, no, and this is very strange and offensive. In reality, like a vision, she appears to me very often, but for some reason she doesn’t come to me in a dream.

Religion saves many people in such cases, but I, unfortunately, am an atheist. Friends have repeatedly tried to convert me and baptize me, but this does not happen at the request or command of someone. And due to my atheism, I understand that she is gone forever, and this is very scary. Forever! If I were a believer, I would hope to meet her somewhere in another world, but I understand that this will not happen. She lives only in my memory.

- How are you saving yourself?

Worries have piled up. First of all, household things - Seryozhka, and work, and food needs to be bought, and clothes, and shoes - the old ones are worn out. All this somehow pushes the mental pain into the background.

- How are Seryozha doing?

Thank God, everything is fine with him - he has everything he needs: a synthesizer, a lot of paints, a lot of cardboard. And he does all this wonderfully - plays the synthesizer, draws, learns English. Everything is simpler for him, he lives in his own world, which is apparently better than ours. In general, Seryozha is always smiling, it’s not for nothing that people like him are called children of the Sun. It very rarely happens that he doesn’t like something, but he is always in a great mood.

- How did they tell him that his mother was gone?

Last August, the three of us were in our house near Kostroma, where we spent five months a year. When Iya fell ill, there was an urgent need to go to Moscow to show her at the clinic on Kashirka - our doctor friend suspected complications. Since we thought we were leaving for two or three days, Seryozha stayed there with a very nice village woman, Masha, who always helped us. But in Moscow it became clear that we would not return back - the disease progressed at a rapid pace.

When Iya passed away, I called Masha and asked her to tell Sergei that his mother was no longer there. But a day later she called me back and admitted that no matter how hard she tried, she couldn’t do it. I had to ask Seryozha to answer the phone and tell him everything. He replied: “Yes? Then I’ll go and light a candle.”

Iya’s son really loves going to church, so today he was in church, lighting candles for his mother, father and everyone he remembers. He was taught this by his father, who went to temples with him, and now this ritual gives him great pleasure.

Here I am talking to you (by phone. -Auto.), and right in front of me there is a portrait of Iya Sergeevna, a lamp is burning below. It happens that Seryozha, running past, suddenly stops, crosses himself, looking at his mother’s portrait, and after a pause runs on on his business. Therefore, I cannot understand how he feels in his heart about the fact that she is no longer there. Seryozha was left an orphan, that’s what’s scary. Today I am the only one of his relatives...

If you find an error in the text, highlight it with the mouse and press Ctrl+Enter