Sumbatashvil-Yuzhin Alexandre

Sumbatashvil-Yuzhin Alexandre (1857-1927), Russian playwright and actor. He was born in Kukuevka village of Tula Region, Russia. In 1863-77 he lived in Georgia. After graduating from the 1st Classical School of Tbilisi, he continued his studies at the Faculty of Law of Petersburg University (1877-81). In 1877 he debuted as a playwright. He was the author of roughly 20 plays. His historic drama Treason (1903) highlighted the events of Georgian history. Sumbatashvil-Yuzhin’s plays were staged at the theaters of Russia. Starting from 1889 his plays were translated into Georgian. As an actor he debuted in 1876 in Tbilisi under the stage name of Solntsev. In 1878-1879 he walked the boards of Petersburg theaters. From 1882 till his death he worked at the Moscow Maliy Theater. In 1909 he headed the company of the theater; in 1918 he held the position of the chairman of the artistic board; as of 1923 he was the director of the Theater and from 1926 he had the title of the honorary director of the Moscow Maliy Theater. His best roles were Dunois (F. Schiller’s Maiden of Orleans), Marquis of Posa (Schiller’s Don Carlos), Don Carlos (V. Hugo’s Hernani), Macbeth (Macbeth by Shakespeare), Richard III (Shakespeare’s Richard III), Famusov (Griboedov’s Woe to Wit), etc. In 1923 he played in Z. Antonov’s The Eclipse in Georgia staged at the Rustaveli Theater by K. Marjanishvili.

A. Sumbatashvil-Yuzhin died in Nice, France. He was buried at the Novodevichye cemetery in Moscow.