The granddaughters of the legendary writer Sergei Mikhalkov, actresses Anna and Nadezhda Mikhalkov, spoke in an interview about the creation of a new New Year's show about the adventures of Uncle Styopa, the connection between generations through an image familiar from childhood, the formation of a domestic superhero, responsibility for the continuation of the dynasty, the principles of raising children and creative plans. Interviewed by Maria Polyakova.
– Anna, Nadezhda, the premiere of the New Year's show “Uncle Styopa.” They say, on New Year's Eve… based on the works of Sergei Vladimirovich on his 110th birthday will take place in Moscow on December 30. Let's start the conversation with the main character of the show: Uncle Styopa was the hero of many children generations, but perhaps among modern children, growing up in an abundance of children's content, it is not as popular as before. What do you think?
Nadezhda: It seems to me that in In principle, turning to parents' childhood heroes is a very revealing moment. Parents introduce children to the culture of fairy tales, to who the heroes are. This is a good motive for uniting generations in one hero. Uncle Styopa is a fairly understandable and warm character. The gap between generations is thus decreases.
Anna: “Uncle Styopa,” like most poems by Mikhalkov, Chukovsky, Barto, is the very poetic form with which children begin to become acquainted with literature. These poems fit very well into children's perception; they are understandable, plot-based, and figurative. In addition, now is a good moment to introduce into the information field something that we are proud of and, I think, will continue to be proud of.
Children now have a really wide choice of characters. I believe that since children are always omnivores and by and large do not know the difference between good and bad content, they consume it entirely. Therefore, Uncle Styopa is a good start to instill a good taste for literature.
“It’s great that it unites generations.” However, some of the most popular heroes in modern popular culture, including for young children, are superheroes, unfortunately, mostly created by Hollywood. Can Uncle Styopa be called a domestic superhero? And is he subsequently able to replace and displace popular foreign characters in the minds of modern children?
Anna:He may be some kind of alternative to those heroes. We are just moving towards the fact that Uncle Styopa is not only a retro character. Why isn't he a superhero? He helps and saves – what superheroes are supposed to do. His superpower is that he is a giant. Plus, he is truly a great friend of children. This gives him certain advantages over an ordinary adult.
Nadezhda:We are reviving Uncle Styopa not because we want to displace existing heroes. This is in no way an attempt at substitution. Sometimes we simply don't notice what we already have and try to reinvent the wheel. But we need, on the contrary, to create something new on the basis of history and culture. That's what we're trying to do. Not to invent it anew, but to convey this hero to children on a fruitful basis that is understandable to parents. We want young children to hear about him and fall in love with him.
— Will Uncle Styopa from the works of Sergei Vladimirovich be somehow adjusted in accordance with modern realities? Will you add something new to his image?
Nadezhda:He will not have a mobile phone or tablet. The plot is not built on modernizing it, because anyway, any heroism is based on helping someone and fighting against evil. For dramaturgy, by the way, an anti-hero appears who must be defeated and lure the children to the side of the world. The only thing that changes is probably technology.
Anna: Let's just say that the content remains the same: the story could have happened at any time.
— Is the plot of the show a new story?
Anna: We have 14 numbers in the program, connected by one story. It is united by a cross-cutting storyline: on New Year’s Eve, two sides are fighting for the children: Uncle Styopa and his anti-hero. Inside each issue there are poems by Mikhalkov, about eight of them: “Yulia doesn’t eat well” or “Well, just think, an injection, an injection – and off you go” – well-known poems that are woven into the plot. Each verse tells about one of the characters whom Uncle Styopa is trying to save.
— Who worked on the script and music and how? What participation did you take in creating the show?
Anna: We all work on this together day and night, doing this as full participants. The script was written in verse by several authors. The music was written specifically for Uncle Styopa. Our composer is Nikolai Panin.
— How was the artist chosen for the role of Uncle Styopa?
Anna:There were several options for very good artists. From the very beginning it was clear that Uncle Stepa should be a young actor who could emotionally interact with children and become a great friend to them. Castings are the hardest thing, because you are afraid to look through some diamonds because of the large selection.
— How long have you been looking for a candidate for the main role?
Anna: < /strong>This is always sought to the last.
Nadezhda: We haven't found it yet (laughs). Do you happen to have Uncle Styopa?
— No, unfortunately.
Anna: A really tall candidate was needed. We decided to emphasize the proportions with special effects: for example, to enlarge him with light or with the help of decorations, to play with scales in order to make him a real superhero. Our main actor, who will eventually play Uncle Styopa, came to the casting in shorts and a T-shirt. When he ran in, he had a teapot in his hand. He also did exercises, squats, push-ups, and did some kind of somersault. In general, it immediately became clear that he was absolutely Uncle Styopa.
— If we turn to your personal memories: what was Uncle Styopa like for you in childhood? Did you perhaps want the story to continue? Did you ask grandfather to write it?
Anna: We don’t have special stories, because for us it’s a part of everyday life. Grandfather came to us at school; he generally met with children very often and read poetry. For us it was ordinary, as it seemed to us. After all, he is just our grandfather. We did not ask for continuations: even then “Uncle Styopa” was a well-known work that had a completed form.
In general, how can I say… In the Soviet school where I studied, you turn your notebook over, read the words of the anthem and it says “Sergei Mikhalkov.” But for you it’s just grandpa. And there is no miracle in this. Therefore, there was no such thing that we had any special attitude towards this or that everyone was going to read Mikhalkov’s poems by the fireplace.
Just like, for example, our children. There is a monument to Sergei Mikhalkov on the former Vorovskogo street – now it is Povarskaya. He sits on a bench, you can climb on your lap or sit next to him. Nadya’s and my children, since their school is nearby, go there every year on September 1 with other children and wear flowers from the school. This is probably some kind of connection between times.
— At one time, didn’t you have the feeling that you had to share your loved one with the whole country?
Anna:It was a completely different generation! Grandfather was one of those people for whom social life was much more important than any family life. We saw each other quite rarely – only on holidays. Everyone was busy with their work, there was no desire for grandfather to play with his grandchildren. He always talked to children as if they were adults, because until his old age he felt like their peer. That’s why he could write children’s poems so accurately.
— Your family, of course, made a huge contribution to the development of Russian culture. Your children, too, one way or another, bear the responsible mission of continuing the dynasty…
Nadezhda:You know, the last thing I would like is for them to feel responsible for the family name. Immediately, some kind of framework appears where you deprive yourself of a flight of fantasy, inner freedom to invent something new or go into another profession; in general, it is very important in such a large family to learn to live your life while remaining part of your family. This is very difficult to do because of the fear of letting others down, not living up to someone’s expectations. But at some age you realize that everyone is busy with their own lives. I would really like, no matter what profession they choose, that they would be free in it and as happy as possible. These are, in general, two criteria by which, I believe, they can adequately continue our family.
Anna:They are absolutely not obliged to meet our expectations; they have no mission. Moreover, we tell them that they have nothing to do with this fame and success. If you want something like this, then you need to achieve it yourself.
— Some parents, on the contrary, are against their children following in their footsteps. If suddenly your children come and say: I want to become an actor or enter a literary institute, how will you feel about this?
Nadezhda:Great. If they said: “Mom, I want to be a doctor,” I would, of course, be amazed. But with the same joy I would have thought: “Great, please, here are your choice of institutes, tutors, and let’s go ahead.” Of course, due to the fact that they see the difficulties on the one hand, and the bonuses of the profession on the other, naturally, like any children, they have a romantic idea of the work of an actor or director.
These are children! The fact that they want to be like their parents is cool. However, at some point, it is necessary to expand their worldview to such a level that they see in themselves not only the opportunity to be like us, but, perhaps, to study some other area, to start a path in a different direction.
< strong>Anna: Become a nuclear physicist, for example.
October 16, 14:00— Yes, this is a promising direction. As for yourself: you have succeeded as an actress, and have also tried your hand at producing, directing, and working on television. Are you planning to turn to literature?
Anna: Nadya writes well here: she graduated from MGIMO, just the Faculty of Journalism. It seems to me that you, Nagy, just need to do more of this. Nadya really writes very well and understands dramaturgy well.
I never had these ambitions. I believe that you either need to do something very well, or give the opportunity to others to do it – those who are more talented than you.
Nadezhda: Here, it seems to me, another question is that There is no definite finish in our professions. If you have a passion for it, you can’t help but do it. In acting and directing, of course, they planted a mine on me. And in literature too. Therefore, there’s nowhere to go: I’ll be a little bit everywhere (laughs).
— Maybe someday you’ll want to share your memories or write a biography?
Nadezhda:Yes, I’ll write Anya’s memoirs (laughs).
—Okay, we’ll wait! What projects are you currently working on?
Anna:In fact, all thoughts and time are occupied with the anniversary of Sergei Vladimirovich. This work gives me great pleasure and gives me such drive. Incomparable to what we used to do. This is very moving: a person does not exist, but what he did continues to bear fruit from generation to generation. In his poems there is such a memory for us, very vivid. Our plans are to continue further, not to let Sergei Vladimirovich be forgotten. Perhaps we'll think about making a big children's museum using his characters and poems.
— Promising plans! In the meantime, returning to today and the upcoming show, I can’t help but ask: what do you still expect from it?
Anna:You know, now there’s a huge selection of everything. We exist in a reality where there are a huge number of New Year's performances, Christmas trees, shows, and so on. I really hope that the viewer will choose us! Because it is a time-tested classic, it actually fits very well into modern life. We did our best to make it colorful and spectacular. We also have a gift inside each ticket that every viewer will receive. And it will not just be a sweet gift, but a creative one.
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