Soviet actress Irina Zarubina was a legend during her lifetime: in theatrical circles they said about her that she could play both a telegraph pole and a telephone directory. Poets dedicated poems to her acting talent - she was so organic, light and convincing in any role.
Moreover, Irina Petrovna often played without makeup, because all her heroines were very similar to herself, especially in appearance. It was difficult to call her a fatal beauty, but her natural charm captivated both spectators and colleagues.
Biography
Irina Petrovna Zarubina was born in 1907 in Kazan, a city on the Volga. She grew up as a cheerful and cheerful child, and she managed to keep these qualities for the rest of her life.
At school, she was the first in various amusements, in amateur performances and invented many ideas for her classmates. She was the ringleader and inspirer of pioneer and then Komsomol events.
She grew up in difficult times: first the revolution, then the Civil War. There was no time for dreaming about the profession of an actress, but Irina really wanted to be on stage. Therefore, immediately after leaving school, she entered the Leningrad Institute of Performing Arts, and in 1929 she received an acting education.
Immediately after university, Irina went to work at the Leningrad Proletkult Theater. She served in this theater for six years.
In the theater, the actor's appearance plays an important role - the so-called type. So, Zarubina's type was the most frivolous and perky. However, when she was given frivolous roles, the director was surprised to see that the actress showed such a depth of character that no one expected from her.
Another feature of Irina Petrovna is the dissimilarity of the images she creates both in the theater and in the cinema. Only the most talented actor knows how to change the plasticity, and facial expressions, and gestures so much that it seems unlike himself. This feature was fully possessed by the actress Zarubina. Each of her heroines was different, not like previous roles.
Therefore, both theater and film directors invited her to their projects. She was such a typically "Russian young lady" with a special article and appearance, similar to the women from the paintings of Kustodiev and Malyavin. Therefore, in the cinema, she mainly played ordinary Russian women.
And in the theater - a completely different matter: here her element was vaudeville and comedy. The charming, agile, sparkling Zarubina was a favorite of the audience in a variety of productions, even if it was a small role.
And when she embodied the image of the main character on the stage, it was either a storm of laughter, or a flurry of drama, if the role was serious.
Once the melodic voice of Irina Petrovna at one of the performances was heard by the director of the Leningrad radio and invited her to participate in radio shows. She agreed, and soon the heroines of the performances, which were broadcast on the radio, spoke in her voice.
Film actress career
In the cinema, Irina Zarubina made her debut after graduation, and her first work was the role of Varvara Kabanova, the sister of the protagonist in the film "The Thunderstorm" (1933). The film was directed by Petrov based on the famous play by Ostrovsky. Legendary actors Mikhail Zharov and Mikhail Tsarev starred in this picture, and Varvara Massalitinova played the role of Kabinikha. Zarubina got into the company of talented and experienced actors, and looked quite professional against their background.
In the portfolio of Irina Petrovna there are only 20 films, but in all the roles there is so much uncommon character, cordiality, good nature and light irony that this is quite enough to appreciate her talent as an actress.
Zarubina received many awards for her work in theater and cinema. Among them - the Order of the Red Banner of Labor, which the actress was awarded in 1939 for the role of Euphrosyne in the historical film "Peter I"; she was also awarded the title of Honored Artist of the RSFSR in 1939 and People's Artist of the RSFSR in 1951.
By the way, the film, for which the actress received the Order of the Red Banner of Labor, is included in the list of the best films according to Kinopoisk. Also included in this list are paintings: "Vasilisa the Beautiful" (1939), "Different Fates" (1956), "Chauffeur reluctance" (1958), "Village detective" (1969).
Personal life
Friends called Zarubina a "holiday woman": she loved noisy companies, knew how to have fun and cheer up those around her. She had a sea of charm, she looked at the world with radiant eyes and loved life.
It was impossible not to notice all this, and Irina had many fans. One of them was director Alexander Rowe, a famous storyteller. He proposed to Zarubina, and in 1940 they got married.
A year later, their daughter Tatyana was born, and then the war began.
Even before this terrible event, Zarubina's husband often left for the shooting, and they could be both in the north and in the Crimea. He was rarely at home, his family practically did not see him. And when he invited Irina to move to live in Moscow, she refused, because at that time she had just moved to the Leningrad Comedy Theater, where she had many roles. And in Moscow she would have to start all over again.
So they lived in two cities until the war began. Then Rowe was evacuated to Stalinabad, and Irina Petrovna lived the entire blockade in Leningrad - she played in the theater and was engaged in various works. At that moment, the actress realized that her family life had come to an end.
After the war, Zarubina recovered morally for a long time and began acting in films only in 1954.
She never married again, lived with her daughter in Leningrad.
Irina Petrovna Zarubina passed away in 1976, she is buried in St. Petersburg, at the Komarov cemetery. Her grave is considered a monument of cultural and historical heritage.
