Nazimova, Alla

Nazimova, Alla

(nəzĭ`məvə), 1879–1945, Russian-American actress. She turned from music to drama, studying with StanislavskyStanislavsky, Constantin
, 1863–1938, Russian theatrical director, teacher, and actor, whose original name was Constantin Sergeyevich Alekseyev. He was cofounder with Vladimir Nemirovich-Danchenko of the Moscow Art Theater in 1898, which he would remain associated with for
..... Click the link for more information.  and later appearing at the Moscow Art TheaterMoscow Art Theater,
Russian repertory company founded in 1897 by Constantin Stanislavsky and Vladimir Nemirovich-Danchenko. Its work created new concepts of theatrical production and marked the beginning of modern theater.
..... Click the link for more information. . In 1905 she emigrated to New York City and played Russian roles in her native tongue. She made her English-speaking debut (1906) in Ibsen's Hedda Gabler and thereafter became the foremost interpreter of Ibsen in the United States. In 1910 she took over the Thirty-Ninth Street Theatre, which was renamed the Nazimova. She gave memorable performances in Chekhov's Cherry Orchard (1928) and in O'Neill's Mourning Becomes Electra (1931). Her films include Camille (1921), A Doll's House (1922), and The Bridge of San Luis Rey (1944).

Bibliography

See biography by G. Lambert (1997).

Nazimova, Alla

(1879–1945) stage actress; born in Yalta, Russia. A leading performer with the Moscow Art Theatre, she debuted in New York in 1905 in a Russian play; within six months she learned enough English to play Hedda Gabler. Credited as one of the first to take a psychological approach to acting, she was best known for her Ibsen and Chekhov roles on stage but later she made a few movies.