Irina Sergeyevna Pegova (born June 18, 1978, Vyksa, Gorky Region) is a Russian stage and film actress, Honored Artist of the Russian Federation, and winner of the Golden Mask and Golden Eagle awards. A native of Nizhny Novgorod Region and a graduate of the Nizhny Novgorod Theatre School, she has been an actress of the Moscow Art Theatre named after A. P. Chekhov since 2006.[1]

Childhood and Youth in Vyksa

Pegova grew up in Vyksa: her father, Sergey Zakharovich Pegov, was a champion of Gorky Region in skiing and track and field and worked as a coach and physical education teacher; her mother, Vera Aleksandrovna, worked at the Vyksa Metallurgical Plant.[1] At her father's insistence, Irina took up track and field, skiing, figure skating, swimming, fencing, and horseback riding from an early age, while also completing music school in violin.[2] In her upper grades at school, taking part in the town contest "I Want to Be a Star" sparked an interest in singing: she joined a pop vocal studio, performed at concerts, and tried writing songs, taking Édith Piaf as her model.[4]

The Nizhny Novgorod Years

In 1995, after finishing school, Pegova applied simultaneously to the Nizhny Novgorod Polytechnic Institute — to reassure her parents — and to the Nizhny Novgorod Theatre School, in the department for dramatic theatre and film actors; Vasily Bogomazov became the master of her course.[1] In her second year, the Pyotr Fomenko Workshop came to Nizhny Novgorod on tour: the director visited the school, watched the students' work, and singled out Pegova.[4] This determined her path: in 1997 she moved to Moscow and enrolled at GITIS in Pyotr Fomenko's course.[1] The Nizhny Novgorod Theatre School officially counts her among its distinguished graduates.[1]

Theatrical Career

From 1997 to 2001, Pegova studied at GITIS; her classmates included Yevgeny Tsyganov and Sergey Puskepalis, and her teachers were Pyotr Fomenko, Sergey Zhenovach, and Valery Kamenkovich.[1] In 2001, Fomenko invited her to join the troupe of the Masterskaya (Workshop) theater, where she performed in productions of "War and Peace. The Beginning of a Novel," "Wolves and Sheep," "The Madwoman of Chaillot," "Barbarians," and others.[2] From 2004, she collaborated with Oleg Tabakov's Theater-Studio, where her role as Sonya in "Uncle Vanya" earned her the Golden Mask award; there she was also awarded the Crystal Turandot and the prize of the Oleg Tabakov Foundation.[3] In 2006, Pegova joined the troupe of the Chekhov Moscow Art Theater, where she became one of the leading actresses: her roles include Masha in "The Seagull," Agafya Tikhonovna in "The Marriage," and parts in "The Little Humpbacked Horse" and "No. 13D."[1] In 2012, she received the Russian national acting award named after Andrey Mironov, "Figaro," in the "Best of the Best" category.[3]

Film and Television

Her film debut came in 2002 in the movie "Spartacus and Kalashnikov."[2] Widespread recognition came with the lead role in Alexey Uchitel's film "The Stroll" (2003): for it, Pegova received the Golden Eagle and the prize of the "Window to Europe" festival.[2] In the following years, she appeared in the films "Space as a Premonition," "Special Purpose Girlfriend," "The Crew," "Doctor Richter," "The Midwife," and others.[2] In 2015, paired with Andrey Kozlovsky, she won the TV show "Dancing with the Stars."[2]

Links

Sources

  1. RIA Novosti — Irina Pegova — biography of the actress, personal life, films
  2. rus.team — Pegova Irina Sergeyevna — Actress — Biography
  3. globalmsk.ru — PEGOVA Irina Sergeyevna — GlobalMSK.ru
  4. persona.rin.ru — Pegova Irina Sergeyevna, photo, biography
Materials from articles used (1)

Nizhny Novgorod Theatre School