Theater of the simple-minded. Life and creativity of people with developmental disabilities

This is where else I would like to go - to a play performed by the Theater of the Innocent. I couldn’t even imagine that this could happen, but I accidentally saw a mention in the news feed that they would be visiting the Federation Council tomorrow (in connection with a meeting of the Council for Disabled People).

"Theater of the Innocent" was created in 1999 by actor and director Igor Neupokoev. The entire troupe of this theater are people with Down syndrome. The theater does not have its own home; performances are performed at different venues.
In society, the attitude towards “downyats” is known - the whole range of emotions from disgust to fear. Meanwhile, people with Down syndrome are not at all helpless disabled people; If you engage with them and help them, then they are capable of much. Another thing is that few people care about them... It all started as a game, as a kind of therapy, then the actors and their families became friends with each other and it became something like social project, and then somehow imperceptibly the “Theater of the Simple-minded” turned into real theater, regularly giving performances in Moscow and regions of Russia. They have already gone on tour to France. According to reviews, after attending that performance, you will never again look at a person with Down syndrome as furniture - during the performance, everyone is imbued with the understanding that they are also people, albeit with some oddities of behavior.

I first became acquainted with the world of these people two years ago, first attending the premiere spanish film“Me Too,” is about one of these people, and then working at the film festival of films about people with disabilities, “Cinema Without Barriers.” I would really like for our society’s attitude towards these people to change, as it has in America and Europe. There, no one will even have the thought of making a face at the sight of a person in a wheelchair or laughing at people with Down syndrome.

Here's what I remember about this. Until the 19th century, deaf-blind children actually did not develop mentally - everyone immediately gave up on them as useless and unpromising. Then came Laura Bridgman, who learned to write poetry and work, and then Helen Keller, who became a full-fledged member of society. Now people who are deaf-blind from birth can easily assimilate into society and bring benefits to it - thanks to the fact that at one time there were caring people who tried to find a way to communicate with them. Same thing, I'm sure. perhaps in relation to the “downs” - we just need to reach them, and someday they may surprise us all. They say that they look like aliens - and who knows, maybe one day it will turn out that the salvation of the human race will depend on how our “Down syndrome patients” find common language with extraterrestrial intelligence?

It’s good that there are projects like this theater. Also our Paralympians, who always perform more successfully than the team at the regular Olympics. But we also need to make cities more convenient for the lives of such people. And start by stopping laughing at them or sympathizing with them. What they need is not sympathy, but human attitude. Now I really want to go to the theater.

People with Down syndrome live among us. They look into our eyes, we look at them. Do we see the image of God in them? Do they see Him in us? Down syndrome is the most common genetic abnormality in the world. According to statistics, one baby out of 600-800 is born with Down syndrome. This ratio is the same in different countries, climatic zones, social strata. It does not depend on the lifestyle of the parents, skin color, nationality. In our country, the life of people with Down syndrome is still surrounded by a lot of misconceptions and prejudices. They are considered deeply mentally retarded and unteachable. They often claim that they are incapable of experiencing real affection, that they are aggressive or, according to another version, on the contrary, they are always happy with everything. In any case, they are not considered as full-fledged individuals. Meanwhile, in all developed countries world, these stereotypes were refuted twenty to thirty years ago. In the US, such people are called alternatively gifted. And these words are not just a tribute to fashionable political correctness. The experience of the Moscow “Theater of the Simple-minded” confirms this.

“Theater of the Simple-minded” was created in 1999 by theater and film artist Igor Neupokoev. Theater artists are people with Down syndrome.

“It all started completely by accident,” recalls Igor. – Once at a sanatorium I met a group of parents who had children with Down syndrome. They tell me:

“You’re an actor, give us some kind of fairy tale.” I went to the library, found a fairy tale about Thumbelina, started rehearsing and was delighted with the organic and unusual nature of these children. I got very carried away. But then we played the play and went home - none of us then thought about serious work...

In 2000, I came to the Down Syndrome Association - we met its chairman in that same sanatorium - and said: “Seryozha, I want to make a play with your guys.” I took the association’s list and started calling everyone. For two weeks he called all day and said:

“Hello, I’m Igor Neupokoev, I want to do a play with your guys. Come." And they came. Of course, not all. I didn't select anyone. At first, of course, the idea was to find more talented, more gifted people, but then I realized that I had to go a different route. It is necessary that there remain those who want it themselves.”

As a result, seven people remained, and with them Igor began rehearsing a play based on “The Tale of Captain Kopeikin” by Gogol. The choice of the play was not accidental.

“I've been thinking about this for several years. There main character- disabled person. No arm, no leg. He is seeking a pension. That is, he opposes the big state machine - officials, ministers, generals who persecute him and do not give him the money he deserves. I looked at my actors and understood: this is their theme, no one can play it better than them. This is the first.

Second. The characters in the story are “little people”, cogs of a huge Empire, ordinary people who believe that somewhere out there, in the government, they will be taken care of. And then I simply saw that they themselves were Gogol’s characters. All they have to do is put on a frock coat or uniform and they don’t even have to play anything.”

It was very difficult to start working on the play. There was no place for rehearsals. In search of premises, Neupokoev had to visit many organizations, but again everything was decided by a happy accident.

“Once I was walking my dog in the Shabolovka area, I met a friend, and suddenly she said to me: well, what are you looking for, here’s the school. It was a special school for the disabled. The next day I went there, and in five minutes the issue was resolved - there was a physical therapy room there, with such a mirrored wall, it was quite suitable for us. We were given strictly two hours twice a week. And we worked almost without breaks. Just five minutes to drink water and then rehearsal again.”

But there were not only organizational difficulties. Working with special artists required an unusual approach. True, this understanding did not come to Igor right away.

“My initial attitude was - no concessions, work as with ordinary artists, as they taught at the institute, as it was in the theater! But as rehearsals progressed, it became clear that this was not possible here: if an ordinary actor had to say it five times in order for him to understand what was required of him, then here he had to repeat it a hundred and five times. And I repeated, realizing that I needed to go through this. The most important thing is not to get excited, not to get irritated, but to do it with a smile, very kindly and gently, because these guys are very touchy. How did I do this? Don't know. It wasn't difficult for me. We're rehearsing now new performance, and I break down, rush, force events. And then we were in no hurry.”

Friends and “colleagues in the shop” perceived Igor’s new hobby differently: some were perplexed - “why does he need this,” others remained indifferent, others openly condemned.

“When I started working, I heard a lot. They told me: why are you doing this, is this saving their souls, is there blasphemy in this? By the way, one Orthodox woman told me. But I myself am Orthodox, and I didn’t see anything like that in this. On the contrary, I wanted to lift these people onto the stage so that they would find themselves in a magical space, themselves becoming objects of art. Besides, I wanted to aggravate the problem. People with Down syndrome often just sit within four walls, outside the world, outside society. I understood that the stage was unique place meetings between these people and spectators. I wanted everyone to see them. Not in illness, not in squalor, not in weakness, but transformed by the power of art, very beautiful. In space artistic image. That’s how it all happened.”

Indeed, everyone who has ever seen a performance of the “Theater of the Innocent” agrees on one thing - a miracle happens on stage. At first there is a feeling of some strange circus, panopticon or booth, but literally after a few minutes you see how real life begins on stage. People with Down syndrome are big children, vulnerable, pure and sincere in expressing their feelings. Everything they do is done seriously. They work 100% according to the Stanislavsky system. Many spectators cry when leaving the performance. Just because we touched something real.

However, there are also completely indifferent people.

“I come to visit and say: I brought a tape of our rehearsals, let’s take a look. And to me - give it later, give it tomorrow. And I understood that many simply did not want to look at it. I even stopped communicating with someone.”

However, help and support also came. It seemed random, but always precisely at those moments when it was hardest.

“One day I went to the Sretensky Monastery and accidentally met the abbot of the monastery, Archimandrite Tikhon (Shevkunov). We know each other - we studied together at VGIK, he was in the screenwriting department, I was in the acting department, we went to churches near Moscow together. Back then, many did this because they were afraid that someone in Moscow would see and report, and then they would kick me out of the institute or from work. Father Tikhon began asking what I was doing. I told him the whole story. He listened with his mouth open. And then he says: “This is something incredible, it’s so interesting. What are they like? I would like my monks to learn from them. Their simplicity, their selflessness, their kindness.” And this is true - people with Down syndrome are deprived of the slightest aggression towards the outside world. They are defenseless. Then Father Tikhon always helped me. He was at our performance and I think he liked it. In general, I took our first conversation with him as his blessing and maybe that’s why everything worked out for us. Another person who takes an active part in our destiny is People's Artist Russia Ekaterina Vasilyeva. When I first told her about our performance, she was extremely interested and helped us a lot, seeking support for the theater from high authorities. And if she was interviewed in connection with our performance, she said words that no one else would say.”

After two years of rehearsals, the premiere took place at “Theatre.doc”.

“I thought that this was all a big gamble, and it was unknown how it would end: the guys’ speech is bad, and in general they are not artists - how convincing will they be? But the performance took place before our eyes. And after that there were no rehearsals: just a run-through on the day of the performance and then we played. It turned out that it was very solidly made. We have summer breaks of 3-4 months, then we get together, do only one run-through, and the guys play the play again.”

The birth of the “Theater of the Simple-minded” became a notable event not only in the theatrical environment. Much has changed in the lives of the children themselves and their parents. Sergei Makarov starred in Gennady Sidorov’s film “Old Women” and received the “Kinotavr” prize at the “Kinotavr” festival. golden rose”, Elena Chumakova was invited to the radio series “House 7, entrance 4”, and she played there for about a year along with professional actors. Articles and television programs began to appear about the theater, and work began on a new performance.

“I realized that two years of rehearsals were for the guys a real school acting skills and they are ready for more difficult work. The play is called “The Beast”. The action takes place after a global catastrophe. This is a story about how a small family - father, mother and daughter - try to survive in this destroyed world. They themselves no longer remember who they are and where they come from. These are people outside of civilization and culture. I invited a costume designer, a plastic director, and a real dramatic actress, Olga Chudaykina. Although another actress was initially invited, it turned out that not everyone is able to join this ensemble. But Olga coincided with the guys. I’m also playing in a new play, and for me it’s much more interesting than working with professional artists. An actor, no matter how wonderful he is, plays, but the guys don’t act, they just live. When I look into the actor’s eyes, I understand that he is at work, and when I look at Lenochka Chumakova, for me she is like a landmark on the road that Stanislavsky sought with such difficulty. “Don't lie” is very difficult. Our guys... they outplay Olga and me. In this performance, even their speech and plastic deficiencies play on them, and we have to constantly come up with something to be convincing.”

In the five years that have passed since the creation of the theater, both the artists themselves and their parents have changed a lot. According to Igor, they have already gotten used to their new status and take it very seriously. Their self-esteem has changed. Parents and their unusual children finally stopped feeling like outcasts in society. They realized that they were not worse than others, they were simply different.

“We have gathered a lot good company parents. There is serious people, Doctor of Science. Previously, they hid at work that they had such children, refused interviews, refused filming, and asked not to mention their names. And now they freely give interviews and come on television. They stopped being afraid - that’s what’s important! Parents saw that this was some kind of chance for their children and helped as much as they could: they printed the first programs, sewed suits. True, we are a little tired now, but I think it will pass.”

Much has changed in Igor’s own worldview. He loved this job. And if at first he treated the “Theater of the Simple-minded” as a one-time project, now it has become his life’s work.

“We have such a wonderful team, we all became like family. Unfortunately, organizational issues still remain unresolved. We are not registered, we have no status. But I would like it to be a paid job for the guys. Even at a minimum, but it would be a different structure of our entire body.”

Unfortunately, main problem theater - the lack of official registration and its own roof over its head - threatens its existence. There is no place to play “Kopeikin” and rehearse a new performance. If previously “Teatp.doc” provided its stage twice a month, now only once. There is no way to pay any salary to the director, lighting engineers, sound engineers and the artists themselves. One-time charitable contributions do not solve the problem. As they say, “don’t give a hungry man a fish, give him a fishing rod.” But Igor hopes that maybe another miracle will happen, and the “Theater of the Simple-minded” will finally find its home.

Ira Dolinina

Theater of the Innocent

Theater is us. Let's get together - here's the theater. But we won’t get together, and there’s no theater

I have heard about the “Theater of the Simple-minded” more than once. For me, they were already undoubtedly stars: the actors were asked questions, after the performance the director was thanked by enthusiastic spectators, and he asked only for one thing - to come to their performances.

It turned out that the theater that needs support the most is not receiving it. The guys need to rehearse three times a week and perform at least several times a month to keep themselves in shape and not forget their roles. But they don’t have their own building; rehearsals are held wherever they can arrange it for free. I ask the director why the guys perform so rarely? “We have nowhere to perform. Theaters ask you to pay rent. Where can the Theater of the Innocent get funds? This is a non-profit project. Well, now is the time: demand rent from disabled people, you know? Now the directors are sitting in theaters, completely stupefied.”

“The theater is us. Let's get together - here's the theater. But we don’t get together, and there is no theater. We don't have a building. We just got together and we are a theater,” says the mother of one of the actors. The Theater of the Simple-minded performed in Paris. The guys were invited to the stage of the Royal Versailles Theater. In Russia the state does not provide them with support. Actor Anton’s mother says that the members of the theater troupe improve their speech and memory, because they have a greater responsibility to the audience. They really want to be understood. She says that after the performance, parents of children with similar problems often come up and thank her, because seeing the children perform on stage gives them hope.

Today the guys played “The Tale of Captain Kopeikin”. For the first half of the performance, I almost didn’t understand what they were saying, but I tried desperately. At first I was terribly ashamed of this, but then I relaxed and began to watch and listen with my heart. The smile never left my face throughout the entire performance. This sincere reaction was the most correct. As soon as I drove away all thoughts that I needed to understand what was happening between the characters on stage, I realized that the audience was here for something completely different. We were not invited so that we could once again learn about tragic fate Kopeikin - we were called into the world of absolute and pure emotions, the world of the naked soul. And if you let them into your heart and let them perform their performance there, you will definitely understand that this naive and simple thing lurks in each of us.

During the performance, I looked back and saw that all the spectators could be divided into two groups: those who had the most sincere and childish smile, and those who had an expression of slight bewilderment on their faces. There were more smiles. This is very important for actors, because, contrary to all the rules theatrical game, they looked into the hall - with excitement. But the simple-minded cannot be called unprofessionals. They not only got used to the characters and learned their lines, but each of the actors worked amazingly on the plasticity of their character. The movements of the simple-minded are reminiscent of piercing violin playing: they are expressive, expressive to the point of pain. This is emotion in its purest and most pure form. rare form. It took my breath away when they started dancing.

Anton has been with the theater from the very beginning. He's been here for fifteen years. He is now thirty-three years old. In the play “The Tale of Captain Kopeikin” he played the presenter. Anton had it at times more text than everyone else. He is famous for the fact that he learns his role the fastest, and then memorizes the texts of the others. During the performance, he repeatedly suggested lines to the guys when they forgot them.

– How do you feel after the performance?
– When we meet, it becomes good. Actually I'm now free time I’m spending—it’s summer now—at the dacha. I go for berries and mushrooms.

– Do you want to become an actor?
- Yes. Well, still. If my friends give me a tablet, I will look for a job.

– Who else do you want to work with?
- Like dad, in different cities ride. I want to find a job in St. Petersburg. My friends also live there, whom I love to watch: Dasha Baranova and Irina Petrovna (approx. - presenters of Channel Five). And on Sundays the program “The Main Thing” is broadcast on television.

– Do you want to work on television?
- No!

-Are you friends with anyone here?
– I’m friends with the girls: Vera and Vika. I helped her so that she would not go anywhere, I was a guardian. Her mother didn’t go, she didn’t have time, and I was responsible for the girl.

– Do you go to rehearsals alone?
- No, we are together with my mother.

– Who comes to your performances?
Mother: Different people, but mostly students come, of course. They are interested in something new. Parents also come with the same problems as ours. Because it’s scary - you were expecting a child, and suddenly your child is born... It’s very difficult.
Anton: Now my health is changing better side!

– What does theater mean to you?
- This is work. This is when you come to work, work, and they also give you flowers.

– Do you like working?
Anton: Yes, especially when everyone considers me a gentleman. I like it when beautiful girls fit. I also look at the covers, we subscribe to the magazine “Knitting is fashionable and simple” - there are girls there too. They are models.
Mother: I'll tell you from myself. For them it’s... Do you understand what our alternative is: sitting at home, watching TV? Wash dishes, peel potatoes and that’s it. And here we come and talk to guys who have the same problems. And we forget about our problems. We have common interests, that’s why they have at least some kind of team here.

Anton: This is good!
Mother: They know about each other. You see, there is no alternative anymore. This is in Soviet era there were factories, factories: these children were taken from school, then taught a profession. They were kept “in the flow.” Now it’s all broken, now there’s nothing. Everyone is abandoned: survive as you wish. What can you give your child? When I heard this... It's hard. You need to give up everything, you need to spend time. We go to rehearsals three times a week.
Anton: Monday, Wednesday, Friday!
Mother: You see, but to them, but he... To whom God gave as much reason as possible. But they're bored.
Anton: Yes..

- Do you get money for this?
Mother: Well, he starred in one episode of the program “Man and the Law.” He was then paid the money.
Anton: 30 thousand!

– And it turns out that you can’t make money at all from performances?
Anton: No. I play so that I feel good, and to show myself to others, to tell others what we are capable of. So that no one gets bored, and neither do I. And I'm at it. This is important.

"Theater of the Simple-minded" is called a sociocultural phenomenon modern Russia. This is a non-profit theater group, performing dramatic performances in the capital, on the periphery and abroad, in which there are no actors in the usual sense of the word. The entire main cast of the troupe are people with Down syndrome. This unique theater does not have own stage, that’s why “Simplicities” play in Moscow on different stages.
"Theater of the Innocent", created in 1999 by actor and director Igor Neupokoev, strives to be at the forefront theatrical process, recognized as a laureate All-Russian festival"Proteatre", Versailles European festival"Orpheus", International festival"Trust" in St. Petersburg ("Baltic House"), Moscow creativity festival "Ariadne's Thread", awarded with a prize"Action to support Russian theatrical initiatives" of the Council of the President of the Russian Federation for Culture and Art, a special prize from the Higher theater award Moscow "Crystal Turandot" - "For asceticism in art."
The temporary team has turned into a regularly operating creative workshop, where actors with health problems and their loved ones enthusiastically participate in common cause, despite financial difficulties, the lack of a rehearsal base and a permanent stage for performances. Another theater - special - is opposed to the trivial in art, the philistine view of the world, the mechanically vulgar reading of reality. The personalities of these performers - colorful, so out-of-date, even timeless - give their playing an exceptional artistic significance. The established acting ensemble has formed into a universal collective personality, where all participants perform in one role - “ingenue” (from the French ingenue - “naive”, “simpleton”, and in male version- "simpleton"). This theatrical experiment fuses together elements folk theater and individual creativity itself. These elements are combined and combined in semi-professional forms, because in a strictly professional sphere it cannot be realized creativity these performers. Experts attribute the “Theater of the Innocent” to the art brut movement (from the French art brut - “raw”, uncut art) - creativity in its purest manifestation, free from cultural influences; a spontaneous outburst from the depths of consciousness. Phenomena that are close in meaning; outsider creativity, folk art, intuitive creativity. In this bizarre fusion of an adult, meaningful understanding of existence and a childish naive perception life, a complete picture of the world opens up.
Press reports about the new theater began with favorable responses and reached enthusiastic responses. So the creative union from a variable magnitude became permanent, and the troupe of “Simplicities” turned into a real theater, which regularly gives performances in the capital and regions: in St. Petersburg, Voronezh, Yaroslavl, Yekaterinburg, and also toured in Paris and Kyiv. This theatrical innovation combines several trends, each of which is self-sufficient. The most important goal is integration into national culture special artists, creative rehabilitation and social advertising of their capabilities.
The concept of "Theater of the Innocent" includes adapted forms of folk theater, the art of symbolism and amateur creativity; this is already expressed in the very name of the theater. Genre forms here they have hardly changed, but their content and ideological component is changing.
All participants in the “Theater of the Simple-minded,” who only yesterday were recognized as outcasts from society, perceive their performances on stage as a missionary task and their calling. But a special theater, as a product of marginal art, while remaining in opposition to the dominant culture, at the same time strives to fit into it, to come out of the underground. In the process of adaptation of these performers, exceptional importance is attached to their performances in front of the general public. The development of this unique theater project will serve to overcome negative attitudes towards people with intellectual disabilities, to make society aware of responsibility for its “weak” members and, as a result, to establish in Russia “a society without unnecessary people.”

People with Down syndrome live among us. They look into our eyes, we look at them. Do we see the image of God in them? Do they see Him in us?

Down syndrome is the most common genetic abnormality in the world.

According to statistics, 1 baby out of 600-800 is born with Down syndrome. This ratio is the same in different countries, climate zones, and social strata. It does not depend on the lifestyle of the parents, skin color, nationality. In our country, the life of people with Down syndrome is still surrounded by a lot of misconceptions and prejudices. They are considered deeply mentally retarded and unteachable. They often claim that they are incapable of experiencing real affection, that they are aggressive or, according to another version, on the contrary, they are always happy with everything. In any case, they are not considered as full-fledged individuals. Meanwhile, in all developed countries of the world these stereotypes were refuted 2-3 decades ago. In the US, such people are called alternatively gifted. And these words are not just a tribute to fashionable political correctness. The experience of the Moscow "Theater of the Innocent" confirms this.

Reference:Igor NEUPOKOEV was born in the city of Krasnokamsk in 1961. Graduated from VGIK. Worked for 12 years at the Belarusfilm film studio and at the Film Actor's Theater.

"Theater of the Simple-minded" was created in 1999 by theater and film artist Igor Neupokoev. Theater artists are people with Down syndrome.

“It all started completely by accident,” recalls Igor. “Once in a sanatorium I met a group of parents who had children with Down syndrome. They told me: “You’re an actor, give us some kind of fairy tale.” I went to library, found a fairy tale about Thumbelina, started rehearsing and was delighted with the organic nature and unusualness of these children. But then we played the play and went home - none of us thought about serious work then...

In 2000, I came to the Down Syndrome Association - we met its chairman in that very sanatorium - and said: “Seryozha, I want to make a play with your guys.” I took the association’s list and started calling everyone. For two weeks I called all day long and said: “Hello, I’m Igor Neupokoev, I want to do a play with your guys. Come.” And they came. Of course, not all. I didn't select anyone. At first, of course, the idea was to find more talented, more gifted people, but then I realized that I had to go a different route. We need those who want it to remain."

As a result, seven people remained, and with them Igor began rehearsing a play based on Gogol’s “The Tale of Captain Kopeikin.” The choice of the play was not accidental.

“I’ve been thinking about this for several years. There, the main character is disabled. Without an arm, without a leg. He is seeking a pension. That is, he is confronting the big state machine - officials, ministers, generals who persecute him and do not give him the money he deserves. I looked at my actors and understood: this is their theme, no one will play it better than them. This is the first thing.

“Once I was walking my dog in the Shabolovka area, I met a friend, and suddenly she said to me: well, what are you looking for, here’s a school. It was a special school for the disabled. The next day I went there, and in five minutes the issue was resolved “There was a physical therapy room there, with a mirrored wall, it was quite suitable for us. We were given strictly two hours twice a week, and we worked almost without breaks. Only five minutes to drink water, and then rehearsal.”

But there were not only organizational difficulties. Working with special artists required an unusual approach. True, this understanding did not come to Igor right away.

“My initial attitude was - no concessions, to work as with ordinary actors, as they taught at the institute, as it was in the theater! But as rehearsals progressed, it became clear that this is not possible here: if for an ordinary actor, so that he understands what is required of him , I had to say five times, then here I had to repeat it a hundred and five times. And I repeated, realizing that the most important thing is not to get excited, not to get irritated, but to do it with a smile, very kindly and tenderly, because these guys. very touchy. How did I manage it? I don’t know. It wasn’t difficult for me. Now we’re rehearsing a new performance, and I’m in a hurry, forcing things. But then we weren’t in a hurry.”

Friends and “colleagues in the shop” perceived Igor’s new hobby differently: some were perplexed - “why does he need this”, others remained indifferent, others openly condemned.

“At the beginning of my work, I heard a lot. They told me: why are you doing this, is it saving their souls, is there blasphemy in this? By the way, one Orthodox woman told me this. But I am Orthodox myself, and I don’t care about anything like that.” I didn’t see it. On the contrary, I wanted to lift these people onto the stage so that they would find themselves in a magical space, themselves becoming objects of art. And besides, I wanted to exacerbate the problem of people with Down syndrome often just sitting within four walls, outside the world, outside. society. I understood that the stage is a unique meeting place for these people and spectators. I wanted everyone to see them, not in illness, not in squalor, not in weakness, but transformed by the power of art, very beautiful in the space of the artistic image. That's how it all happened."

Indeed, everyone who has ever seen a play by the Theater of the Innocent agrees on one thing - a miracle happens on stage. At first there is a feeling of some strange circus, panopticon or booth, but literally after a few minutes, you see how real life begins on stage. People with Down syndrome are big children, vulnerable, pure and sincere in expressing their feelings. Everything they do is done seriously. They work 100% according to the Stanislavsky system. Many spectators cry when leaving the performance. Just because we touched something real.

However, there are also completely indifferent people.

“I come to visit and say: I brought a tape of our rehearsals, let’s watch. And to me, let’s do it later, let’s do it tomorrow. And I understood that many people simply don’t want to look at it. I even stopped communicating with someone.”

However, help and support also came. It seemed random, but always precisely in those moments when it was hardest.

“One day I went to the Sretensky Monastery and accidentally met the abbot of the monastery, Archimandrite Tikhon (Shevkunov). We know each other - we studied together at VGIK, he was in the screenwriting department, I was in the acting department, we went to churches near Moscow together. Back then, many did this , because they were afraid that someone in Moscow would see and report, and then they would kick me out of the institute or from work. Father Tikhon began to ask what I was doing. He listened to me with his mouth open. “This is something incredible, it’s so interesting. What are they like? I would like my monks to learn from them. Their innocence, their selflessness, their kindness." And this is really so - people with Down syndrome are deprived of the slightest aggression towards the outside world. They are defenseless. Then Father Tikhon always helped me. He was at our play and, it seems to me, he liked it. In general, I took our first conversation with him as his blessing, and maybe that’s why everything worked out for us. Another person who takes an active part in our destiny is People’s Artist of Russia Ekaterina Vasilyeva. When I first told her about our performance, she. “she was extremely interested and helped us a lot, sought support for the theater from high authorities, and if she was interviewed in connection with our performance, she said words that no one else would say.”

After two years of rehearsals, the premiere took place at Teatr.doc.

“I thought that this was all a big gamble, and it was unknown how it would end: the guys’ speech was poor, and in general they were not artists - how convincing would they be? But the performance took place before our eyes. And after that there were no rehearsals: only a run-through on the day of the performance and we play. It turned out that it was very well done. We have summer breaks for 3-4 months, then we get together, do only one run-through, and the guys play the play again.”

The birth of the “Theater of the Simple-minded” became a notable event not only in the theatrical environment. Much has changed in the lives of the children themselves and their parents. Sergei Makarov starred in Gennady Sidorov's film "Old Women" and received the Golden Rose prize at the Kinotavr festival. Elena Chumakova was invited to the radio series "House 7, entrance 4", and she played there for about a year along with professional actors. Articles and television programs began to appear about the theater, and work began on a new performance.

“I realized that two years of rehearsals were a real school for the guys acting, and they are ready for more challenging work. The play is called "The Beast". The action takes place after a global catastrophe. This is a story about how a small family - father, mother and daughter - try to survive in this destroyed world. They themselves no longer remember who they are and where they come from. These are people outside of civilization and culture. I invited a costume designer, a plastic director, and a real dramatic actress, Olga Chudaykina. Although another actress was initially invited, it turned out that not everyone is able to join this ensemble. But Olga coincided with the guys. I’m also playing in a new play, and for me it’s much more interesting than working with professional artists. An actor, no matter how wonderful he is, plays, but the guys don’t act, they just live. When I look into the actor’s eyes, I understand that he is at work, and when I look at Lenochka Chumakova, for me she is like a landmark on the road that Stanislavsky sought with such difficulty. “Don’t lie” is very difficult. Our guys... they are outplaying Olga and me. In this performance, even their speech and plastic deficiencies play on them, and we have to constantly come up with something to be convincing."

“We have a very good group of parents. There are serious people there, doctors of science. They used to hide at work that they have such children, they refused interviews, filming, they asked not to mention their names. But now they freely give interviews and come on television. They stopped being afraid - that’s what’s important! Parents saw that this was some kind of chance for their children and helped as much as they could: they printed the first programs, sewed costumes, but now they’re a little tired, but I think it will pass.” .

Much has changed in Igor’s own worldview. He loved this job. And if at first he treated the “Theater of the Innocent” as a one-time project, now it has become his life’s work.

“We have such a wonderful team, we have all become like family. Unfortunately, organizational issues still remain unresolved. We are not registered, we have no status. But I would like it to be a paid job for the guys. Even if it’s at a minimum , but this would be a different structure of our entire organism."

Unfortunately, the main problem of the theater - the lack of official registration and its own roof over its head - threatens its existence. There is no place to play "Kopeikin" and rehearse a new performance. If earlier “Teatr.doc” provided its stage twice a month, now only once. There is no way to pay any salary to the director, lighting engineers, sound engineers and the artists themselves. One-time charitable contributions do not solve the problem. As they say, “don’t give a hungry man a fish, give him a fishing rod.” But Igor hopes that maybe another miracle will happen, and the “Theater of the Simple-minded” will finally find its home.

Seryozha has always loved cinema and theater. He liked to “depict” everything, and he was good at it. We came to the Theater of the Simple-minded a little later than others, about six months after rehearsals began. At first we didn’t like the choice of the play; it seemed that Gogol was very difficult, we needed something easier. There was a lot of excitement at the premiere. We invited acquaintances and friends. Everyone came with pleasure. We told them: “Don’t make allowances for the fact that we are friends, that this is Seryozha, that the artists are so specific.” And the effect was amazing. They were stunned that the guys were actually playing and playing well.

Often the audience stays after the performance. And what’s surprising is that they say that they don’t feel sorry for our children at all, that they are simply shocked that they turn out to be such talented guys.

At first we thought it would be something of an amateur theater studio, but Igor is a professional and worked with the guys as with professional artists. And the result also turned out to be quite professional.

Moreover, real artists who have seen the performance rate it even more highly than ordinary spectators. They say: “You can’t play this! A professionally trained person cannot play like that.” But the guys don't play, they live.

They love their theater so much, every time they are very worried about whether the audience will come and how everything will go. For them it's most their lives. This is a window to the world, because it is difficult for them to come up with other ways to communicate with others. After all, despite the fact that they live in families, they are mostly isolated from society. The world around us in a hurry, in a hurry. He pushes away not only such weak and defenseless people, but also stronger people...

And the theater provides an opportunity for at least this small group (currently there are only seven actors) to somehow integrate into our difficult life. Well, if we had our own platform, then it would be possible to expand the troupe, recruit young actors, and make a backup cast. After all, the guys’ health is not very good, and if someone gets sick, the performance has to be cancelled. At one time there was an idea to make a small cafe at the theater. Those who don't play on stage could make money there. They are all adults, and their parents, for the most part, are no longer young. And most importantly, it would be possible to make not seven people happy, but twenty-seven, and maybe more.

But time goes by, the second performance, due to all these problems, has been impossible to rehearse normally for a year. Unfortunately, the situation is almost hopeless. For everything to happen, a miracle is needed. And we believe in him.

In 2002, our radio series "House 7, entrance 4" received a grant to cover the problems of adaptation of people with Down syndrome to real life.

I must say that initially our goal is to artistic form popularize knowledge in the field of law, public life, education, entrepreneurial activity and so on. New topic She didn’t scare us, although she was certainly very delicate. Main idea What we wanted to convey to the listener was determined at the very first meeting with partners from Downside Up - the development of a child with Down syndrome must begin as early as possible, only then is successful adaptation to the realities of life possible.

That's when we came up with the idea to main role performed by an artist with Down syndrome. To be honest, this literally threw many of our colleagues into panic. And I understood their fears - I myself had never communicated with such people before, I only saw them on the street and heard them talk there. But we have a radio series, which means a complete absence of video and high quality sound. For radio, slips of the tongue, incorrect accents, speech defects are a defect. But on the other hand, we understood that anyone professional actor is unlikely to be able to play this role reliably, while maintaining a sense of tact and taste.

And we started looking. Very quickly we found the “Theater of the Simple-minded,” met its director Igor Neupokoev and received an invitation to the play.
I can only say about myself - I was terribly worried, afraid of my own reaction.

But amazingly, the very first meeting with the troupe dispelled all my fears. I have never met a more open and affectionate reception. Absolutely clean bright people, sincerely enjoying their new acquaintance. I was shocked by the performance, shocked by the work of the director, and the acting. That same evening we agreed to audition.

The artists most suitable for radio were invited.

Elena Chumakova passed the casting, and most importantly actor The girl Alenka appeared in the radio play "House 7, Entrance 4".

Lena Chumakova worked with us for a whole year. I think during this time she acquired a second specialty - radio actresses. Funny coincidence, Lena was born on May 7, Radio Day. And it was radio that became her first place of work.

Lena surprised everyone. She took the text home in advance, read it, learned her role, spent almost the entire work shift recording, and we never heard from her any complaints or requests for any special schedule. You can't find such a responsible employee yet! And as an actress, she coped with the tasks set by the director with an “A”.

Now it’s funny to remember how careful we were at first: we wrote short, monosyllabic phrases for her heroine, the actors took huge pauses before her lines, and went to the studio with Lena for a long time Igor Neupokoev came. But already from the middle of the second recording, the attitude towards Lena changed greatly - she worked on an equal basis with professional artists, without concessions. The content of her role also changed - a greater emotional load was placed on her, the lines became longer. Lena easily joined our established team. Contact, kind person: she could come up to me during a break between scenes, hug me and suddenly say: “You’re tired, poor thing, take care of yourself...”

Our artists, I think, also became attached to Lena, invited her and her mother to their performances, and constantly gave her some gifts. There is a wonderful phrase: we are the same as everyone else, but only different... It seems to me that communication with Lena helped us understand what this means.

We definitely need to say about Lena’s mother, Lidia Alekseevna Chumakova, who recently left us...

What amazed us all so much about Lena was the result of her tremendous efforts, her will and desire to help her child adapt to real life at all costs. Lidia Alekseevna worked with Lena constantly, daily, hourly, from infancy until last day of your life. To at least roughly imagine what it cost her, it is enough to know that to memorize a new word, a child without pathology only needs to repeat it twenty times, and a child with Down syndrome - two hundred... Moreover, any break in classes often means a return to the original positions. So Lena’s mother, like all the mothers and fathers of the “Theater of the Innocent” artists, are real heroes and titans.