Muristek
‘Ukrainians are being treated as enemies, as wild animals’ – film star Ada Rogovtseva
The beloved Ukrainian-Soviet star of more than 100 film and TV shows, now 84, is calling for a boycott of Russian cinema and these days concentrating on ‘being there for people in Kiev who need food or a hug’
One of the proudest boasts in any realm of the performing arts in Soviet times, be it acting, music, ballet or comedy, is the accolade of “Narodny Artist” or “People’s Artist”. Imbued with a sense of duty and service, it’s a title that has far more significance and gravitas that “Academy Award winner” or “Hollywood star”. It also contains a linguistic contradiction – because when you say “people”, which people are you talking about? In Soviet times, a blurring of distinctions of nationality and identity was encouraged, using the ubiquity of the (enforced) state language – Russian – to paper over the cracks. But now many Soviet-era “narodny” artists want to claim a very different and definite identity.
Ada Rogovtseva is one of these hallowed stars: People’s Artist of the Soviet Republic of Ukraine (1967) and People’s Artist of the USSR (1978). Born in Hlukhiv, in what was the Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic, in 1937 and a cherished fixture of film and television, these are just two of her many awards: her Russian-language Wikipedia page lists 17 quasi-militaristic decorations under her name. Her status is a reflection of her dozens of prominent theatre roles from 1959 onwards and appearances in more than 100 film and TV productions. Perhaps her most famous role is Maria in Hail, Mary!, a 1970 Soviet drama set in 1919 during the civil war, about a Soviet revolutionary who later goes on to work in an intelligence school. A fan site explains the appeal of her performances: “The screen heroines she plays are soulful, proud women who are, at heart, aristocratic.” (“Aristocratic” here means “haughty” or “self-possessed”.)
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