Theater director Eduard Boyakov said that he resigned from the Moscow Art Academic Theater named after Gorky at the suggestion of the new director of the Moscow Art Theater Vladimir Kekhman.

“Director Vladimir Kekhman invited me to write a statement in the evening.

I did it despite the fact that I have a five-year contract.

It is not in my rules to arrange opposition or opposition in a situation when the leadership does not want to work with me.

The reason voiced by Kekhman is my attitude to Doronina, ”Boyakov wrote on his Facebook page on the evening of Monday, November 1.

He stressed that he would not comment on "neither these nor other aspects" of his communication with Kehman, since he does not see the point in this.

The director also thanked the people who collaborated with him.

“It was a joyful and meaningful three years.

I sincerely wish the Moscow Art Theater success and development.

As for my plans - I'll write later.

Thanks to those who believed in me and our team.

Ahead, God willing, there are many interesting things - in cinema, theater, education and, in general, in life, "Boyakov concluded.

The Ministry of Culture called Boyakov's dismissal a surprise.

“For us, the dismissal of the artistic director of the Moscow Art Theater was an absolute surprise.

We learned about it from the media, ”the ministry's press service said.

They noted that, according to the charter, the theater director must agree on the candidacy of a new artistic director with the founder.

“And we, in turn, will discuss this candidacy with the professional community,” the department said.

Theatrical twists and turns

Eduard Boyakov was appointed artistic director of the Moscow Art Theater.

Gorky in December 2018.

His appointment also entailed other personnel changes: Honored Artist of Russia Sergei Puskepalis became deputy head of the theater for creative work, and writer Zakhar Prilepin became deputy for literary work.

The former artistic director of the Moscow Art Theater, at that time 85-year-old People's Artist of the USSR Tatyana Doronina, with the arrival of Boyakov, moved to the honorary position of the president of the theater.

A few months after Boyakov's appointment, part of the troupe expressed dissatisfaction with the policy of the new leader.

Several artists recorded an appeal to Vladimir Putin with a request to return Tatyana Doronina the opportunity to influence the artistic policy of the Moscow Art Theater.

The actors argued that Boyakov's actions had a negative impact on the theater's repertoire.

The Kremlin then stressed that the appointment of artistic directors is not the prerogative of the head of state.

The leadership of the Moscow Art Theater, in turn, called all the accusations "rubbish".

Deputy artistic director of the theater Alexander Zamyslov said that ticket sales at the Moscow Art Theater are growing, and Boyakov continues to keep in touch with Doronina.

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In an interview with RT, Eduard Boyakov explained that what happened is a natural part of theatrical life.

“I don’t want to hide anything here, but believe me, the mood inside the Moscow Art Theater.

Gorky is amazing.

We are passionate about each other, inspired, we believe.

I don't think it's obvious that the peak of this conflict has passed.

Someone will leave, someone left.

It has always been that way.

This was the case in the 1920s and 1930s.

And even the great Stanislavsky and Nemirovich-Danchenko at some point stopped sitting at the same rehearsal table.

They retained great respect for each other until the end of their lives, nevertheless there were difficulties in their relations, ”the artistic director said.

He also noted that conflicts, disputes, grievances are a natural environment for theater people.

Nevertheless, Boyakov's actions as artistic director, including his repertoire policy and his measures to attract attention to the theater, were often criticized by the media and specialized Telegram channels.

Thus, the artistic director's decision to involve the singer Olga Buzova in the play "The Wonderful Georgian" about the young Joseph Stalin caused a wide resonance.

The actress got the role of the cabaret singer Bella Chantal, who, according to the plot, saves the main character.

Part of the audience considered inappropriate the intention of the Moscow Art Theater management to "hyip" on the name of Buzova, and the singer's fee, which amounted to more than 400 thousand rubles, also resonated among commentators.

On October 27, it became known that the position of General Director of the Moscow Art Theater.

Gorky was appointed Vladimir Kekhman, and Boyakov remains the artistic director of the institution.

In the theatrical environment, this decision was considered unexpected, given the divergence of views of Boyakov and Kekhman on the management of the theater.

A few days after the appointment, the leadership of the Moscow Art Theater announced the cancellation of the performance "The Wonderful Georgian" on November 2 "due to poor ticket sales during the period of quarantine restrictions."

It was noted that the decision to cancel was made by Kehman.