Mikhail Yanshin

Mikhail Yanshin was a Russian actor of Moscow Art Theatre.

He was born Mikhail Mikhailovich Yanshin on November 2, 1902, in Yukhnov, Smolensk province, Russian Empire (now Kaluga province, Russia). His father, Mikhail Yanshin, was a banking clerk. From 1909-1916 Yanshin studied at private Olkhovsky School in Moscow. From 1916-1919 he studied at Moscow Technical school, then entered the College of Technology, then joined the Red Army. He served in the Security Forces of the Red Army until 1922. That same year he was admitted to 2nd Studio of the Moscow Art Theatre where his teacher was Michael Chekhov. In 1924 he was promoted to leading roles by Konstantin Stanislavski and Vladimir Nemirovich-Danchenko.

Yanshin shot to fame in Moscow in 1926, with his successful performances as Lariosik in 'Dni Turbinykh' (The days of the Turbins) by Mikhail A. Bulgakov. The play ran more than two hundred performances and was attended by Joseph Stalin for at least fifteen times. In November of 1926 Yanshin married actress Veronika Polonskaya, who was just eighteen; writer Mikhail A. Bulgakov was his best man at the wedding. Polonskaya and Yanshin were friends of Vladimir Mayakovsky, who became involved in affair with Polonskaya. All three were together the night before Vladimir Mayakovsky killed himself by the gunshot.

From 1937-1941 Mikhail Yanshin was Artistic Director of Moscow Gipsy Theatre "Romen"; at that time he was married to the leading actress Lyalya Chyornaya (Nadezhda Kiseleva). Yanshin updated the repertoire by adding classic plays of Aleksandr Pushkin and Maxim Gorky to the traditional Gipsy show. In 1939 he also directed two plays by 'Federico Garcia Lorca', who was revered in Russia after his tragic execution in Franco's Spain. From 1941 to the end of his life Yanshin was again with the Moscow Art Theatre.

From 1950-1963 Yanshin was Artistic Director of the Stanislavsky Drama Theatre. There he met beautiful actress Nonna Meyer; they married in 1955 and remained together until his death. Yanshin was responsible for bringing new life to the struggling Stanislavsky Drama Theatre. He stimulated mature actors and encouraged young talents, such as Evgeniy Leonov, Evgeniy Vesnik, Evgeniy Urbanskiy, Boris Levinson, Pyotr Glebov, Liliya Gritsenko, Elizaveta Nikishchikhina, Vladimir Anisko and other notable Russian actors. After the death of Joseph Stalin, when the cultural "Thaw" was initiated by Nikita Khrushchev, Yanshin again staged 'Dni Turbinykh' (The days of the Turbins) by Mikhail A. Bulgakov. This time the legendary role of Lariosik was brilliantly played by Evgeniy Leonov.

In 1963 Yanshin was attacked by the Soviet Ministry of Culture. His effort to stage new contemporary plays was criticized by hard-line officials. Yanshin quit the Stanislavsky Drama Theatre and moved back to the troupe of Moscow Art Theatre, which was struggling after the death of both founders, Konstantin Stanislavski and Nemirovich-Danchenko. At that time, Yanshin was instrumental in bringing director Oleg Efremov to lead the struggling MKhAT to renewal and re-gaining popularity among the younger audiences. Yanshin together with Alla Tarasova were the strongest supporters of artistic innovations brought by Oleg Efremov to the Moscow Art Theatre.

Mikhail Yanshin was designated People's Artist of the USSR (1955), and was awarded State Prize of the USSR (1975). He was twice decorated with the Order of Lenin, and received other awards and decorations. He enjoyed a lasting film career spanning over 45 years, from silent films to Soviet comedies of the 60s and 70s. Yanshin died of a heart failure on July 17, 1976, in Moscow, and was laid to rest in Novodevichy Cemetery in Moscow, Russia.