Igor Lyakh - famous Soviet and Russian theater and film actor

2024 Author: Leah Sherlock | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 05:25

The famous Soviet and Russian theater and film actor Lyakh Igor Vladimirovich lived a rich creative life and forever remained in the hearts of moviegoers. Unfortunately, due to a weak heart, the life of a wonderful Soviet artist ended quite early - at the age of 55.

Actor biography

Igor Lyakh was born on August 16, 1962 in the city of Zagorsk, which is now called Sergiev Posad. A cheerful and creative child quickly won the sympathy of classmates and teachers of school No. 9. For the summer, the boy, along with his brother Yuri, went to the Fakel camp named after Valya Kotik. Igor's acting abilities manifested themselves already at school age, and after receiving a certificate, the young man decided to become an actor. He applied to the Higher Theater School named after M. S. Shchepkin. Igor successfully passed the entrance tests and was enrolled in the course of N. Afonin. Photo by Igor Lyakh can be seen in this article.

The beginning of an acting career

In 1983, the young actor received his diploma. In the same period, Lyakhpassed the casting, which radically changed his entire career. Director Vladimir Menshov was looking for a character artist for the role of Leni Kuzyakin in the film Love and Doves. Alexander Ozerov was already approved for this role, but the actor had difficulties with the schedule, and he refused the role. Work on the film had begun by that time, the film crew had already arrived in Medvezhyegorsk. The director urgently watched videos from screen tests and ordered the young actor Igor Lyakh to be called to the site. The young man arrived in Karelia, was ready to act, but Ozerov suddenly changed his mind and refused to leave. The opinion of the group resolved the situation - everyone considered it fair to leave Lyakh and let Ozerov go. Interestingly, all the scenes with his character were filmed surprisingly quickly, the group kept within one filming shift. So, at the age of 21, Lyakh played his first role and received the first "portion" of popular fame. The debut turned out to be unusually successful, because the film became a cult film.

Work in the theater

After graduation, the young talented artist joined the Maly Theater and worked there for four years. Igor Vladimirovich also took part in productions of the Central Academic Theater of the Russian Army, and since 1989 he has performed at the Yermolova Moscow Drama Theater. From there, the artist left after 10 years of work, in 1999. In addition, Igor Lyakh participated in the entreprise of the Meyerhold Creative Center and played in performances at the Central House of Artists. Among the theatrical works of Lyakh, it is worth highlighting the play “Number in a Hotel in the City of NN” based on “The Deadsouls Gogol. This production was awarded the Golden Mask and the State Prize of the Russian Federation. In total, the artist played more than 25 roles on the stage.

Merit of the actor

In 1997, Igor Vladimirovich received the title of Honored Artist of the Russian Federation, and 10 years later he received the title of Honored Artist of the Republic of Kalmykia. A few years later, in 2000, he returned to his alma mater and began teaching acting to students, and in 2009 Lyakh became the artistic director of the course. At the same time, Igor Vladimirovich became the owner of the medal "For Services to the Fatherland" for his contribution to the development of culture and his teaching activities.

Actor in cinema

The artist's filmography includes no more than 13 films. Of these, the film "Undergrowth" in 1987 can be called successful, where Igor Lyakh played Mitrofanushka. 1987 brought Lyakh the lead role in Vladimir Motyl's television film Once Upon a Time Shishlov based on Salynsky's play. The difficult 90s were also reflected in the acting activities of Igor Vladimirovich, this period did not bring the actor significant roles. He stopped acting in films for almost a decade. In 2008, Lyakh took part in the filming of Yevgeny Bedarev's comedy New Year's Tariff, playing a nameless but charismatic policeman. The next film work was the serial military drama directed by Sergei Ursulyak "Life and Fate". The role of Colonel Nikolai Batyuk, entrusted to Igor Vladimirovich, was not a key one in the project, but the actor played it soulfully and sincerely.

Further movie career

In 2013, Dmitry Tyurin's picture "Thirst" was released, which was received very positively by viewers. Igor Lyakh in this project again received the episodic role of the headmaster. In the same period, the actor was invited to shoot in the family New Year's comedy "Yolki-3". In this part of the popular franchise, Lyakh appeared before moviegoers in the form of a charming and memorable Santa Claus, sitting in a pre-trial detention cell. The last film work of this remarkable artist was the four-episode melodrama directed by Olga Land "In the Hour of Trouble", which was released in 2014. In addition, Igor Vladimirovich appeared in Maxim Volodin's documentary "Secrets of Our Cinema" and played himself.

Actor's personal life

Very little is known about the artist's personal life. Igor Vladimirovich was married, but avoided publicity. Many believe that it was Lyakh's isolation and modesty that prevented him from achieving well-deserved roles and popularity. The ability to present oneself might be useful to an actor in his career, but the roles he played will forever remain in the hearts of the audience. It is known that the artist lived with his wife and stepdaughter Daria and had no he alth problems.

Igor Lyakh: cause of death

June 8, 2018, at the age of 56, Igor Vladimirovich died in his sleep. The news about this was posted by Larisa Bravitskaya, who was a classmate of Igor Vladimirovich. Doctors call the cause of death of Igor Lyakh a heartseizure.