Ranevskaya Faina

I went up to my young students and told them about how Ranevskaya rehearsed: about the notebook she kept for every role, all marked up in red pencil, and the responsibility before rehearsal. She knew: when a show went up, everyone came to watch Ranevskaya – and she ought not disappoint, because it’s terribly shameful when you disappoint.

Some of my “youth" haven’t got that feeling, to be frank. It’s possible that they don’t yet believe in the seriousness of their reputation, and therefore don’t worry about losing it. True, they start to worry when it gets close to dress rehearsal, but at the beginning they’re busy with God-knows-what, their eyes are vacant, and there’s not a single notebook sight – or anything else, for that matter. These young people, even some of the talented ones, will never become actors like Ranevskaya.