Stalin's grandson Alexander Burdonsky personal life children. The fate of Stalin's descendants: why Alexander Burdonsky abandoned his grandfather's surname. - You had a good relationship

Biographies of directors often look sketchy until the moment when the directors first appear on stage. In the case of Burdonsky, the situation is the opposite - he was the son of Vasily Stalin and Galina Burdonskaya and the grandson of Joseph Stalin.

As a child, he was Stalin until he was 13, when he changed his last name in 1954. Born in Kuibyshev (now Samara), in evacuation, when his parents were only 20 years old. Four years later they separated, Burdonskaya was not allowed to keep the child, and his father was in charge of raising him.

One of the director's memories of that time was that he beat him for various offenses. Alexander was assigned to the Kalinin Suvorov School, but then he turned off the path of a career military man (on which the names of his father and grandfather would probably have come back to haunt him) and entered the theater school at the Sovremennik Theater. And then he graduated from the directing department at GITIS.

It is interesting that the military and theatrical paths were still intertwined in his life.

In 1972, he received an invitation to stage the play “The One Who Gets a Slap” based on Leonid at the Soviet Army Theater. The production, in which Vladimir Zeldin played one of the roles, turns out to be successful, and Burdonsky is invited to stay at the theater - where he worked until his death.

As the director himself noted, fate saved him from the fate of the royal child - he had the opportunity to take his first steps in the profession at a time when his origin, to put it mildly, did not help him. But talent helped - this is evidenced by the fact that the young graduate of GITIS in 1971 (that is, a year before moving to the Army Theater) was invited to the Theater on Malaya Bronnaya to play the role of Shakespeare's Romeo.

However, the great director and teacher saw a director's streak in the young artist - and invited him to the very production of Andreev that would determine his life. And in which, by the way, he worked with another legend of the Army Theater - already quite deserved by the beginning of the 70s.

Based on Burdonsky's productions in his native theater, one can read a short course on the history of Russian and foreign drama. There are no hackneyed and polished works here, but there are real, weighty, tastefully chosen classics.

For example, “The Lady of the Camellias” by, “Invitation to the Castle” by Jean Anouilh, “Orpheus Descends into Hell” by Tennessee Williams, “Silver Bells” by Ibsen, “Elinor and Her Men”. Among the domestic ones - the spectacular “Vassa Zheleznova” by Gorky, a must for every director, “The Seagull” by Chekhov and his “Fatherlessness” (the play was called “That Madman Platonov”). He also had a flair for “instant” classics - he staged the play “With You and Without You” based on the famous poetic cycle.

In his mature years, Burdonsky returned to where he studied - to GITIS, where he taught artists and directors together with the actress.

Burdonsky’s theatrical merits are undeniable - in time, and not at all “through connections”, he became both an Honored Artist (in pre-perestroika 1985) and a People’s Artist (in the stormy year of 1996).

But, despite all his attempts to distance himself from his grandfather, he remained the grandson of Joseph Stalin - at least in the eyes of the public; Only theater professionals know that Burdonsky is a master director and an excellent teacher. He was often interviewed not about performances, but about his father and grandfather, and in reports of his death he is called exclusively “Stalin’s grandson.” But this is the fate of all descendants of famous people - in order to prove their separation from the clan and individual exclusivity, they have to spend a thousand times more effort than their colleagues who are not burdened with “origin.” Although it was Burdonsky who tried all his life.

Alexander Vasilievich Burdonsky direct grandson of I.V. Stalin, eldest son of Vasily Stalin.

He is the only one of Stalin's descendants to publish his DNA.

The grandson of Joseph Stalin, Alexander Burdonsky: “My grandfather was a real tyrant. I can’t see how someone is trying to invent angel wings for him, denying the crimes he committed.”

After the death of Vasily Iosifovich, seven children remained: four of his own and three adopted. Nowadays, only 75-year-old Alexander Burdonsky, the son of Vasily Stalin from his first wife Galina Burdonskaya, is alive among his own children. He is a director, People's Artist of Russia, lives in Moscow and heads the Central Academic Theater of the Russian Army.

Alexander Burdonsky met his grandfather the only time - at the funeral. And before that, I saw him, like other pioneers, only at demonstrations: on Victory Day and on the October anniversary. The always busy head of state did not express any desire to communicate more closely with his grandson. And the grandson wasn’t too keen. At the age of 13, he took his mother’s surname on principle (many of Galina Burdonskaya’s relatives died in Stalin’s camps).

— Is it true that your father, a “man of crazy courage,” took your mother away from the famous former hockey player Vladimir Menshikov?

— Yes, they were 19 years old then. When my father was caring for my mother, he was like Paratov from Dowry. What were his flights on a small plane over the Kirovskaya metro station, near which she lived, worth... He knew how to show off! In 1940, the parents got married.
My mother was cheerful and loved the color red. I even made myself a red wedding dress. It turned out that this was a bad omen...

— In the book “Around Stalin” it is written that your grandfather did not come to this wedding. In a letter to his son, he sharply wrote: “If you got married, to hell with you. I feel sorry for her that she married such a fool.” But your parents looked like an ideal couple, they were even so similar in appearance that they were mistaken for brother and sister...

“It seems to me that my mother loved him until the end of her days, but they had to part... She was simply a rare person - she could not pretend to be someone and never lied (maybe this was her problem)...

— According to the official version, Galina Aleksandrovna left, unable to withstand the constant drinking, assault and betrayal. For example, the fleeting connection between Vasily Stalin and the wife of the famous cameraman Roman Carmen Nina...

“Apart from everything else, my mother didn’t know how to make friends in this circle.” The head of the security, Nikolai Vlasik (who raised Vasily after the death of his mother in 1932), an eternal intriguer, tried to use her: “Galochka, you have to tell me what Vasya’s friends are talking about.” His mother - swearing! He hissed, "You'll pay for this."

It is quite possible that the divorce from my father was the price to pay. In order for the leader’s son to take a wife from his circle, Vlasik started an intrigue and slipped him Katya Timoshenko, the daughter of Marshal Semyon Konstantinovich Timoshenko.

“Is it true that your stepmother, who grew up in an orphanage after her mother ran away from her husband, abused you and almost starved you to death?”

“Ekaterina Semyonovna was a powerful and cruel woman. We, other people's children, apparently irritated her. Perhaps that period of life was the most difficult. We lacked not only warmth, but also basic care. They forgot to feed us for three or four days, some were locked in the room. Our stepmother treated us terribly. She beat her sister Nadya most severely - her kidneys were broken off.

Before leaving for Germany, our family lived in the country in the winter. I remember how we, small children, sneaked into the cellar at night in the dark, stuffed beets and carrots into our pants, peeled unwashed vegetables with our teeth and gnawed on them. Just a scene from a horror movie. The cook Isaevna had a great time when she brought us something....

Catherine's life with her father is full of scandals. I think he didn't love her. Most likely, there were no special feelings on both sides. Very calculating, she, like everyone else in her life, simply calculated this marriage. We need to know what she was trying to achieve. If there is prosperity, then the goal can be said to have been achieved. Catherine brought a huge amount of junk from Germany. All this was stored in a barn at our dacha, where Nadya and I were starving... And when my father threw my stepmother out in 1949, she needed several cars to take out the trophy goods. Nadya and I heard a noise in the yard and rushed to the window. We see: Studebakers are coming in a chain...

— Stalin’s adopted son Artem Sergeev recalled that, seeing how your father poured himself another portion of alcohol, he told him: “Vasya, that’s enough.” He answered: “I have only two options: a bullet or a glass. After all, I’m alive while my father is alive. And as soon as he closes his eyes, Beria will tear me to pieces the next day, and Khrushchev and Malenkov will help him, and Bulganin will go there.” They won’t tolerate such a witness. Do you know what it’s like to live under an ax? So I’m leaving these thoughts.”

“I visited my father both in Vladimir prison and in Lefortovo. I saw a man driven into a corner who could not stand up for himself and justify himself. And his conversation was mainly, of course, about how to get free. He understood that neither I nor my sister could help with this (she died eight years ago). He was tormented by a sense of injustice of what had been done to him.

— You and your cousin Evgeniy Dzhugashvili are fantastically different people. You speak in a quiet voice and love poetry, he is a loud military man, regretting the good old days and wondering why the ashes of this Klaas do not knock on your heart...

“I don’t like fanatics, and Evgeny is a fanatic who lives in the name of Stalin. I can’t see how someone adores the leader and denies the crimes he committed.

— A year ago, another relative of yours on Eugene’s side, 33-year-old artist Yakov Dzhugashvili, turned to Russian President Vladimir Putin with a request to investigate the circumstances of the death of his great-grandfather Joseph Stalin. Your cousin claims in his letter that Stalin died a violent death and this “made it possible for Khrushchev to come to power, imagining himself as a statesman, whose so-called activities turned out to be nothing more than a betrayal of state interests.” Convinced that a coup d'état took place in March 1953, Yakov Dzhugashvili asks Vladimir Putin to “determine the degree of responsibility of all persons involved in the coup.”

- I do not support this idea. It seems to me that such things can only be done out of nothing to do...What happened, happened. People have already passed away, why bring up the past?

— According to legend, Stalin refused to exchange his eldest son Yakov for Field Marshal Paulus, saying: “I don’t exchange a soldier for a field marshal.” Relatively recently, the Pentagon handed over to Stalin’s granddaughter, Galina Yakovlevna Dzhugashvili, materials about the death of her father in fascist captivity...

“It’s never too late to take a noble step.” I would be lying if I said that I shuddered or my soul ached when these documents were handed over. All this is a thing of the distant past. And it is primarily important for Yasha’s daughter Galina, because she lives in the memory of her father, who loved her very much.

It is important to put an end to it, because the more time passes after all the events associated with the Stalin family, the more difficult it is to reach the truth...

— Is it true that Stalin was the son of Nikolai Przhevalsky? The famous traveler allegedly stayed in Gori in the house where Dzhugashvili’s mother, Ekaterina Geladze, worked as a maid. These rumors were fueled by the amazing resemblance between Przhevalsky and Stalin...

In the last year of his life, Vasily Stalin began his day with a glass of wine and a glass of vodka

- I don't think that's true. Rather, the matter is different. Stalin was keen on the teachings of the religious mystic Gurdjieff, and it suggests that a person should hide his real origin and even shroud his date of birth in a certain veil. The legend of Przhevalsky, of course, was grist for this mill. And the fact that they are similar in appearance, please, there are also rumors that Saddam Hussein was the son of Stalin...

— Alexander Vasilyevich, have you ever heard suggestions that you got your talent as a director from your grandfather?

— Yes, they sometimes told me: “It’s clear why Bourdonsky is a director. Stalin was also a director”... My grandfather was a tyrant. Even if someone really wants to attach angel wings to him, they won’t stay on him... When Stalin died, I was terribly ashamed that everyone around was crying, but I wasn’t. I sat near the coffin and saw crowds of sobbing people. I was rather frightened by this, even shocked. What good could I have for him? What to be grateful for? For the crippled childhood I had? I don’t wish this on anyone.... Being Stalin’s grandson is a heavy cross. I would never play Stalin in a movie for any money, although they promised huge profits.

— What do you think about Radzinsky’s sensational book “Stalin”?

“Radzinsky, apparently, wanted to find in me as a director some other key to Stalin’s character. He came supposedly to listen to me, but he talked for four hours. I sat and listened to his monologue with pleasure. But he didn’t understand the true Stalin, it seems to me...

— The artistic director of the Taganka Theater Yuri Lyubimov said that Joseph Vissarionovich ate and then wiped his hands on the starched tablecloth - he’s a dictator, why should he be ashamed? But your grandmother Nadezhda Alliluyeva, they say, was a very well-mannered and modest woman...

“Once in the 50s, my grandmother’s sister Anna Sergeevna Alliluyeva gave us a chest where Nadezhda Sergeevna’s things were kept. I was struck by the modesty of her dresses. An old jacket, mended under the arm, a worn skirt made of dark wool, and the inside is all patched. And this was worn by a young woman who was said to love beautiful clothes...

The famous director Alexander Burdonsky passed away the night before

Late the night before, in one of the Moscow clinics, Alexander Vasilyevich Burdonsky, director of the Russian Army Theater, son of Vasily Stalin, grandson of the “father of nations,” passed away. His whole life was a struggle to overcome the circumstances of his family. Read more in the material of Realnoe Vremya.

Black chick on the escalator

We met Alexander Vasilyevich in October 1989; in one of our first conversations, he talked about a documentary film that he had once seen at the Moscow Film Festival. It was a film by Hungarian filmmakers about a poultry farm. There, yellow chickens ran along a long ribbon, and when they reached the machine, he threw them into a basket.

But then a black chicken got onto the tape, it also ran to the right place, and the photocell did not work: the chicken was a different color. It's hard to be a black chick, not like everyone else. Alexander Vasilyevich initially, by the fact of his birth, was “not like everyone else.” It is no coincidence that when he graduated from the directing department of GITIS, Yuri Zavadsky invited him to the theater. Mossovet for the role of Hamlet, the “black prince”. After much deliberation, Burdonsky refused.

In honor of Suvorov

He was born on October 14, 1941 in Samara, then Kuibyshev, where the Alliluyev-Stalin clan was sent for evacuation. His parents met shortly before the war, Vasily Iosifovich literally stole his fiancée, the charming blonde Galina Burdonskaya, from his hockey player friend. He looked after her beautifully, for example, he could fly up to her yard in a small plane and drop a bouquet of flowers.

The father, together with his pilot friend Stepan Mikoyan, flew to Samara a couple of days later - Vasily Iosifovich wanted to show off his son. He named him Alexander in honor of Suvorov and planned a military career for him.

Galina Burdonskaya and Vasily Stalin with little Sasha. Photo: bulvar.com.ua

The parents divorced almost immediately after the end of the war, and Vasily Iosifovich, in revenge on his ex-wife, did not give her the children and forbade her to even see them. One day, Alexander Vasilyevich broke the ban and saw his mother. When the father found out about this, punishment followed: he “exiled” his son to the Suvorov School in Tver.

Burdonsky never saw his grandfather, Stalin was not interested in his grandchildren. For him, his grandfather was a symbolic figure on the mausoleum, who could be seen at demonstrations. Galina Burdonskaya never saw her father-in-law in her life, although it is known that even after the divorce she did not fall under the hammer of repression thanks to Stalin’s protection. One day he called Beria and told him: “Don’t you dare touch Svetlana and Galina!”

When Stalin died, the grandson was brought to his grandfather's funeral, and he sat near the coffin, looking at the long procession of people walking. The death of Stalin did not evoke any emotions in him. Soon his father was arrested, and Alexander Vasilyevich and his sister Nadezhda were returned to their mother.

Vasily Iosifovich, an ambiguous and tragic figure, spent his last years in exile in Kazan. Here he died under mysterious circumstances. Burdonsky and his sister came to Kazan for his funeral. Alexander Vasilyevich later recalled that the death of Vasily Stalin was not officially announced, but the news of this spread throughout Kazan, and many people came to say goodbye to him. People walked and walked into his apartment on Gagarin Street, walking silently. Men in civilian clothes approached, opened the tails of their coats, and orders were visible under them. This is how the front-line soldiers said goodbye to the combat general - the brave pilot. Vasily Stalin really was an ace and did not hide during the war.

“He’s Stalin’s grandson”

Burdonsky never thought about a military career; from early childhood he thought only about the theater. Two of his childhood shocks were Galina Ulanova, seen at the Bolshoi Theater, and Vladimir Zeldin in the play “The Dance Teacher.”

Vasily Stalin at the farewell ceremony for his father. Moscow, Column Hall of the House of Unions, March 6, 1953. Photo: jenskiymir.com

He decided to enter GITIS, the directing department. The course was taught by the legendary student of Stanislavsky, Maria Knebel, whose family suffered from repression. She later told Alexander Vasilyevich: “Stalin’s grandson stood in front of me, and I understood that now I could decide his fate. It lasted a split second, and I said to myself: “God, what am I thinking about!.. He’s not to blame for anything.” Burdonsky later became her favorite student.

He graduated from GITIS, where he studied at the same time and was friends with the future chief director of the Kamalovsky Theater Marcel Salimzhanov, but could not find work in Moscow. Nobody wanted to hire Stalin's grandson. Maria Knebel helped, she took him as an assistant in her production of “The One Who Gets Slapped” at the Central Theater of the Soviet Army. And after a successful premiere, Alexander Vasilyevich was hired to work at this theater, which he did not change until the end of his life.

“Vzglyad” helped

Burdonsky never advertised his relationship with Stalin. His view of his grandfather was always balanced and objective. As a matter of principle, he never staged plays about Joseph Vissarionovich, although there were such proposals. And I have never been involved in politics.

During the years of perestroika, he rehearsed a play based on Erdman’s comedy “The Mandate,” and they tried to close the play, which was daring at that time. Alexander Lyubimov helped, inviting the director to the then super-popular program “Vzglyad”, then many learned that Alexander Burdonsky was the eldest grandson of Joseph Stalin.

Alexander Vasilyevich was one of the brightest representatives of romanticism in the Russian theater. The theater was the greatest love in his life. He worked in line with the Russian psychological theater, without betraying it even once. And this now requires great courage. His "Broadway Charades" or "Invitation to the Castle" were impeccably stylish. “The Lady with Camellias” is nostalgically beautiful. The productions of Chekhov's plays are like gentle nocturnes.

The theater was the greatest love in his life. He worked in line with the Russian psychological theater, without betraying it even once. Photo molnet.ru

Several years ago, Alexander Burdonsky came on tour to Kazan, his performances were sold out. He could no longer visit his father’s grave - incomprehensible “relatives” had already reburied the ashes of General Vasily Stalin in Moscow by this time.

It's hard to be a black chick. It is difficult not to fall into temptation, feeling your “specialness” due to the star relationship, just as it was not easy to withstand the years of Stalin’s overthrow and the dislike that stupid people projected onto his relatives. He passed all the tests with dignity.

Tatyana Mamaeva

Theater director.

Honored Artist of the RSFSR (07/29/1985).
People's Artist of Russia (02/21/1996).

Direct grandson of I.V. Stalin, eldest son of Vasily Iosifovich Stalin (1921-1962) from his first wife Galina Burdonskaya (1921-1990).
He recalled: “The parents’ life together did not work out. I was four years old when my mother left my father. She was not allowed to take her children with her. We were separated for eight years."
In 1951-1953 he studied at the Kalinin Suvorov Military School.
Later he entered the acting course at the studio at the Sovremennik Theater with Oleg Nikolaevich Efremov. In 1966, he entered GITIS (now RATI) in the directing department of Maria Osipovna Knebel's course, while simultaneously graduating from school as an external student and receiving a matriculation certificate.
After graduating from GITIS in 1971, he was invited to play Shakespeare's Romeo by Anatoly Efros at the theater on Malaya Bronnaya. Three months later, Maria Knebel invites her student to the Army Theater to stage the play “The One Who Gets Slaps” by Leonid Andreev, in which Andrei Popov and Vladimir Zeldin played. After the implementation of this production, in 1972, the chief director of the CTSA, Andrei Alekseevich Popov, proposed to A.V. Burdonsky to stay at the Army Theater.

Director of the Central Academic Theater of the Soviet (Russian) Army.
Staged two performances at the Maly Theater and in Japan. The Land of the Rising Sun saw "The Seagull" by A. Chekhov, "Vassa Zheleznova" by M. Gorky and "Orpheus Descends to Hell" by T. Williams.

He taught at GITIS (RATI).

He was married to his classmate Dala Tamulevichiute (1940-2006), director of the State Youth Theater of Lithuania.

theatrical works

Performances staged at CATRA:
“The one who gets slapped” by L. Andreev
“Lady with Camellias” by A. Dumas the Son
“The snows have fallen” by R. Fedenev
“The Garden” by V. Arro
"Orpheus Descends into Hell" by T. Williams
“Vassa to Zheleznov” by M. Gorky
“Your sister and captive” by L. Razumovskaya
“Mandate” by N. Erdman
“The Lady Dictates the Terms” by E. Alice and R. Reese
“The Last Passionate Lover” by N. Simon
"Britannicus" by J. Racine
“Trees Die Standing” by A. Kasona
“Duet for Soloist” by T. Kempinski
"Broadway Charades" by M. Orr and R. Denham
“Harp of greeting” by M. Bogomolny
“Invitation to the Castle” by J. Anouilh
“The Queen’s Duel with Death” based on the play “The Laughter of the Lobster” by D. Murrell
“She who is not expected...” based on the play “The Morning Fairy” by A. Kasona
“The Seagull” by A.P. Chekhov
"Elinor and Her Men" by J. Goldman

MOSCOW, May 24 – RIA Novosti. Theater director, People's Artist of Russia and grandson of Joseph Stalin Alexander Burdonsky died in Moscow. He was 75 years old.

As RIA Novosti was told at the Central Academic Theater of the Russian Army, where Burdonsky worked for several decades, the director died after a serious illness.

The theater clarified that the civil memorial service and farewell to Burdonsky will begin at 11:00 on Friday, May 26.

“Everything will take place in his native theater, where he worked since 1972. Then the funeral service and cremation will take place at the Nikolo-Arkhangelsk cemetery,” said a representative of the Central Academic Theater of the Russian Army.

"A real workaholic"

Actress Lyudmila Chursina called Burdonsky's death a huge loss for the theater.

“A man who knew everything about the theater has left. Alexander Vasilyevich was a real workaholic. His rehearsals were not just professional activities, but also life reflections. He taught a lot to young actors who adored him,” Chursina told RIA Novosti.

“For me, this is a personal grief. When parents die, orphanhood sets in, and with the departure of Alexander Vasilyevich, acting orphanhood set in,” added the actress.

Chursina worked a lot with Burdonsky. In particular, she played in the plays “Duet for a Soloist”, “Elinor and Her Men” and “Playing on the Keys of the Soul”, which were staged by the director.

“We had six joint performances, and we had already started working on the seventh. But an illness occurred, and it burned down in four to five months,” said the actress.

People's Artist of the USSR Elina Bystritskaya called Burdonsky a man of unique talent and iron will.

“This is a wonderful teacher, with whom I happened to teach for ten years at GITIS, and a very talented director. His departure is a great loss for the theater,” she said.

"Knight of the Theater"

Theater and film actress Anastasia Busygina called Alexander Burdonsky “a real knight of the theater.”

“With him we had a real theatrical life in its best manifestations,” the 360 TV channel quotes Busygina as saying.

According to her, Burdonsky was not only a magnificent person, but also “a true servant of the theater.”

Busygina first encountered Burdonsky during the production of Chekhov's The Seagull. She noted that the director was sometimes despotic in his work, but his “love united the actors into one team.”

How Stalin's grandson became a director

Alexander Burdonsky was born on October 14, 1941 in Kuibyshev. His father was Vasily Stalin, and his mother was Galina Burdonskaya.

The family of the leader's son broke up in 1944, but Burdonsky's parents never filed for divorce. In addition to the future director, they had a common daughter, Nadezhda Stalin.

From birth, Burdonsky bore the surname Stalin, but in 1954, after the death of his grandfather, he took his mother’s surname, which he kept until the end of his life.

In one of his interviews, he admitted that he saw Joseph Stalin only from afar - on the podium and only once in person - at a funeral in March 1953.

Alexander Burdonsky graduated from the Kalinin Suvorov School, after which he entered the directing department of GITIS. In addition, he studied at the acting studio at the Sovremennik Theater with Oleg Efremov.

In 1971, the director was invited to the Central Theater of the Soviet Army, where he staged the play “The One Who Gets a Slap.” After success, he was offered to stay in the theater.

During his work, Alexander Burdonsky staged on the stage of the Russian Army Theater the plays “The Lady with the Camellias” by Alexander Dumas the Son, “The Snows Have Fallen” by Rodion Fedenev, “The Garden” by Vladimir Arro, “Orpheus Descends into Hell” by Tennessee Williams, “Vassa Zheleznov” by Maxim Gorky , “Your Sister and Captive” by Lyudmila Razumovskaya, “The Mandate” by Nikolai Erdman, “The Last Passionate Lover” by Neil Simon, “Britanique” by Jean Racine, “Trees Die Standing” and “She Who is Not Waited for...” by Alejandro Casona, “Harp of Greetings” "Mikhail Bogomolny, "Invitation to the Castle" by Jean Anouilh, "The Queen's Duel" by John Murrell, "Silver Bells" by Henrik Ibsen and many others.

In addition, the director staged several performances in Japan. Residents of the Land of the Rising Sun were able to see “The Seagull” by Anton Chekhov, “Vassa Zheleznova” by Maxim Gorky and “Orpheus Descending to Hell” by Tennessee Williams.

In 1985, Burdonsky received the title of Honored Artist of the RSFSR, and in 1996 - People's Artist of Russia.

The director also actively participated in the theatrical life of the country. In 2012, he took part in a rally against the closure of the Moscow Gogol Drama Theater, which was reformatted into the Gogol Center.