Olga Knipper Olga Knipper Olga Leonardovna Knipper-Chekhova (; – 22 March 1959) was a Russian and Soviet stage actress. She was married to Anton Chekhov. Knipper was among the 39 original members of the Moscow Art Theatre when it was formed by Constantin Stanislavski in 1898. She played Arkadina in "The Seagull" (1898), played Elena in the Moscow premiere of "Uncle Vanya" (1899), and was the first to play Masha in "Three Sisters" (1901) and Madame Ranevskaya in "The Cherry Orchard" (1904). Knipper married Anton Chekhov, the author of these plays, in 1901. Knipper-Chekhova played Ranevskaya again in 1943, when the theatre
Anastasiya Vertinskaya strikingly vivid" and, even more extraordinary, continuously developing in the course of just four short scenes. "In Princess Liza there is a lot of inner dynamics and total integrity," according to the "Actors of Soviet Cinema" (1967) almanac. Vertinskaya's work in Sovremennik ("The Cherry Orchard", "Valentin and Valentina") made critics speak of the "unique gracefulness" and the "technical virtuosity combined with deep psychological insight." Critically acclaimed were her performances in "The Seagull" (Nina) and "Uncle Vanya" (Elena). In "Tartuffe", she elevated her Elmyra "onto on an enormous aesthetic pedestal, presenting her as a kind of noblewoman of old French canvasses,