Maria Babanova

Maria Ivanovna Babanova (Russian: Мария Ивановна Бабанова; 11 November 1900 – 20 March 1983) was a Soviet and Russian Empire stage and film actress. She has been described as Vsevolod Meyerhold's greatest actress[1] and was named a People's Artist of the USSR in 1954.

In this Eastern Slavic name, the patronymic is Ivanovna and the family name is Babanova.
Maria Babanova
Born29 October 1900
Moscow, Russian Empire
Died20 March 1983 (82 years)
Moscow, USSR
NationalityRussian
Alma materMoscow Art Theater 1979-1982 Mayakovsky Theatre 1922-1983 Gostim 1920 - 1922
Known forActress, Theater Teacher

Babanova made her debut in Theodore Komisarjevsky's theatre in 1919. A year later, she joined Vsevolod Meyerhold's acting courses. Described as "a small, radiant, energetic actor",[2] Babanova captivated the Moscow public in Meyerhold's production of The Magnanimous Cuckold (1922).

The three leading players, Igor Ilyinsky, Maria Babanova and Vasily Zaichikov were so in harmony they became known collectively as 'Il-Ba-Zai'.[3] Babanova was viewed as the first great actress to emerge after the October Revolution. A typical review of her acting read as follows:[4]

Today no one knows her name but tomorrow she will be hailed as the first of a new galaxy of young actresses. Actresses magically born and reared amidst an arid expanse of wooden constructions, under the piercing gaze of a spotlight on a bare stage - stripped of curtains, wings, of all the mysteries of the old theatre. Actresses who owe that theatre nothing.

Babanova's triumphs allegedly aroused the jealousy of Meyerhold's wife, Zinaida Reich. In 1927, Babanova was forced to leave Meyerhold's troupe, as major female roles went to Reich and she felt underemployed. Babanova excelled at the Mayakovsky Theatre in the roles of children and adolescents. She retired from acting in 1979 and died in 1983, aged 82.[5]

The Snow Queen

The eponymous character the Snow Queen from the film of the same name, was voiced by actress Maria Babanova. The animators took a new approach to drawing the Snow Queen. They emphasized the spectral presence of the Snow Queen by using the animation technique known as rotoscoping or "éclair" named after the table manufactured by the company of the same name. Éclair method used a epidiascope that would be fixed on one side of a furniture equipment provided by furniture company Éclair and the screen projector was fixed on the other side.[6] As one of the acclaimed actress of Soviet Union, Maria Babanova and some of the other cast members was cinematographically filmed as if the actors are in live performance with makeup and costume. Then the film footage is transferred to celluloid with some corrections. The role of the Snow Queen would resemble the mannerisms and unique qualities of the actress as the film footage is translated into frame-by-frame drawings.[7][8] Maria Babanova's voice was fitting for the character the Snow Queen.[6]

Babanova's grave at the Novodevichy cemetery

Selected filmography
  • Blue Meteorite (1971) (TV) as narrator
  • The Snow Queen (1957) as The Snow Queen (voice)
  • In a Certain Kingdom (1957) as Pike (voice)
  • Gusi-lebedi (1949) as River (voice)
  • Alisher Navoi (1947) as Gyuli (voice)
  • The Tale of Tsar Saltan (1943) as Tsarevna Swan (voice)
  • Alone (1931) as wife of the village council chairman
  • Hearts and Dollars (1924) as Jen
  • Elder Vasili Gryaznov (1924) as schismatic daughter

References
  1. Robert Leach. Makers of Modern Theatre. Routledge, 2004, pg. 65.
  2. Theatre Histories: An Introduction (ed. Phillip B. Zarrilli). Taylor / Francis, 2010. Page 382.
  3. Robert Leach. Revolutionary Theatre. Routledge, 2005. Page 111.
  4. Edward Braun. Meyerhold: A Revolution in Theatre. AC Black, 2013, pg. 182; ISBN 9781408148792
  5. Большая российская энциклопедия
  6. "Леонид Шварцман: «Самые лучшие люди – это кошки и собаки»". Кино-Театр.РУ. 2020-08-30. Retrieved 2020-09-16.
  7. "5 малоизвестных фактов о мультфильме "Снежная королева"". Яндекс Дзен | Платформа для авторов, издателей и брендов. Retrieved 2020-08-23.
  8. "Аниматор.ру | Новости | В Галерее на Солянке 23 декабря откроется выставка, пос..." www.animator.ru. Retrieved 2020-08-18.
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