Mamedali Agayev: "Every performance is important for me!"

Recently, the President of Azerbaijan, Ilham Aliyev, awarded the Director of the Moscow Academic Theater of Satire, Mamedali Agayev, with the Dostlug Order for his services in strengthening cultural ties between the Republic of Azerbaijan and the Russian Federation. Vestnik Kavkaza visited Aghayev and spoke with him about how the repertoire of the theater is being formed. See the first part of the interview Mamedali Agayev: "We return to theatrical and cultural friendship that used to be in Soviet times"

- What are the Satire Theater’s  plans for the future?

- We are very fortunate that Alexander Shirvindt became the artistic director. We were friends when he was an artist, we are friends now. He is an artistic director, and I  am a director, together we solve the problems of the theater and collective. We have a prosperous theater, we live at our own expense, we earn our own money. There are no financial problems. The main issues for us are plays and directors. If some famous director is free, we immediately invite him to our place, choose a play. Now we are releasing "The Beggar's Opera", this is another version of the "Threepenny Opera". The leading character is played by Maxim Averin. The first night is scheduled on September 20. Then Vera Vasilyeva’s reading will be held at the Small Stage - she is 94 years old. Alena Yakovleva and Maria Ilyina work on the Small Stage. When we find good script, we find a good director and create a performance. Every year we create 4-5 performances on the Big Stage. And there is also a Small Stage for 150 seats, we call it the ‘attic of satire’.

-What is your favorite performance?

- How can parents distinguish one favorite child among others? As a woman bears a child, so we nurture performances - we have to search for a play, artist and director, make scenery, costumes, props. Every day there are problems. Our repertoire is big. If we go on tour - to America, Israel,  Australia,  Germany - we carry nails and screws from Moscow.

- How many times do you stage a performance?

- If we stage a new performance (and we have 18-19 performances only on the Big Stage), and we see that less audience comes to see it, then we close the performance. We do not play in front of the half-empty halls. We have the biggest hall in Moscow - 1206 places. When there are 300 people less in the hall, it can be seen. We would like to sold out every time.

- What guarantees the sold out?

- The performances with a star, where Shirvindt, Vera Kuzminichna, Vasilyeva plays. We had very famous artists, each artist had his own audience. Now there are good young people. We have Fyodor Dobronravov. Yuri Borisovich Vasiliev shoots movies and stages performances in our theater. Now we have invited Maxim Averin. He is a free artist, and I am proud that he is in our theater, because the audience will come to see him. He is a very talented artist, I think that we are lucky to get him.