Gourmand Humorist

October 20 is the centenary of the birth of Mikhail Yanshin (1902-1976), a member of the “second wave” of MKhAT theater actors who made their debut when Konstantin Stanislavsky was director there.

Yanshin joined the MKHAT in 1924 together with two other soon-to-be famous MKhAT graduates: Nikolai Khmelev and Boris Livanov, and he acted on the stage of MKHAT until the end of his life.

The young actor’s first big success was in the role of Lariosik, in Mikhail Bulgakov’s autobiographical play, “The Days of the Turbins.” In fact, Yanshin was a close friend of Bulgakov, who even attended Yanshin’s wedding. Other famous roles included Sir Peter in “Sheridan’s School of Gossip,” and the touching Frantisek Abel, in “Solo for a Clock” (which earned him a State Prize).