She made a revolution in the TV genre, giving us a model of femininity and inner harmony – investigator Maria Shvetsova. And she was the first to show Bulgakov’s Margarita to moviegoers. Meeting with Anna Kovalchuk, who values female wisdom and dignity above acting.
She enters the studio easily and inaudibly – in soft ballet flats, jeans, a black T-shirt and a wide, benevolent smile: “I am Anya.” Warmth emanates from her, you feel it immediately. Perhaps this calm poise, rare in our time, is a special property of Petersburgers? Some bonus for the rejection of the capital’s fuss and pathos? One way or another, Anna Kovalchuk, who has been living in Leningrad-Petersburg since the age of four and considers it her own, coincides with her city even outwardly – with correct, slightly strict beauty, even manners. However, during the shooting, acting charm simply flourishes in her. She poses freely and uninhibitedly, and then drinks green tea, sitting on a high chair without a back, swinging her legs and laughing like a child. And later, while driving his jeep, he suddenly closes, withdraws into himself. We go to a cafe together and are silent, overcoming the awkwardness of being almost unfamiliar. Then Anya admits that she does not like interviews because they turn momentary emotions, sensations, thoughts into a frozen, unshakable form, but after a couple of hours she herself will be different and her feelings will be different! “However,” she immediately corrects herself, “every interview for me is a study.” How much more interesting is she than her ideal heroine from the famous series “Secrets of the Investigation” by Masha Shvetsova – more biased, more fun, more diverse. A successful actress, a “born” mother, and a diligent student easily coexist in it. And yet – a defenseless girl in some ways, who vitally needs strong rears: the love of her parents, a child, a husband, a “safe home” on wheels and her hometown. Only in this way, having outlined her personal, sacred space, can she, it seems, go out into the big world – a bright, happy, self-confident woman.
Psychologies: You had the opportunity to move to Moscow. Did you deliberately choose Petersburg?
Anna Kovalchuk: I would not want to live in Moscow – it is a huge metropolis in which you need to be torn apart, to be a very mobile and internally mobile person. However, I am also a mobile person, but in the rhythm of St. Petersburg.
Is it important for you that your internal rhythm coincides with the external one?
A.K.: Yes, I definitely follow my internal clock more. It is more important for a woman to have her own rhythm, and it seems to me that I am coming to it now. On the one hand, 30 years seems to be not old yet, but there is already stability. You get rid of complexes, and if you find your place in life, you really don’t want to change it.
The television announcement of the last season of “Secrets of the Investigation” sounded something like this: “Beloved Anna Kovalchuk in the new episodes …” Do you yourself feel loved?
A.K.: Yes, since childhood. This feeling was given to me by my father and mother. Well, mom – this is understandable: all mothers love their children. Earning a father’s love is not always easy. And my dad literally brought up in me “self-esteem” and the feeling that I am loved. It seems to me that all fathers should instill this in girls from early childhood. My dad named me after his mom, Baba Anya. He also says that he gave birth to me. My mother went into labor several times, but nothing happened. Finally, her father could not stand it and took her to the hospital: “Today you must give birth, as you want!” Then it turned out that if my mother had stayed another day, I would have suffocated. From the minute my father gave birth to me, he apparently loves me. Supports and accepts unconditionally. My father never judges me. Once I ran away from the pioneer camp, they were looking for me all night, and then my mother punished me, because she was terribly scared. Father, of course, was also frightened, but restrained himself and only said: “You must be tired, rest.” And put him to sleep. I know that he will perceive adequately any of my actions. But my mom is raising me. And I am grateful to her for this, because you can go far on daddy’s love …
Does this kind of upbringing with love still help you in your relationships with people today?
A.K.: Certainly. And also thanks to “Secrets of the Investigation” and their screenwriter Elena Topilskaya. The image that she created is impossible not to love, because Shvetsova is honest, loved by her colleagues and loves them herself, she puts her soul into her work, moreover, she is feminine and beautiful – of course, everyone likes this image. Many people admit to me: you are like a relative to us!
Do you enjoy it?
A.K.: Insanely nice! Only… I don’t really know who I really am. Probably, each person should educate himself, direct himself somewhere. And I try to be what a woman should be in my mind. They ask me: “Are you as uncompromising as Shvetsova?” No, not like that. She knows her enemies, she knows who she is fighting. And I don’t know who’s really right! And I never judge people, because even the blackest deed can be good for someone. I would rather step aside from that person whose logic of life is incomprehensible or unpleasant to me. I will not accept him … but I will never educate him.
When you were eight years old, you brought home a strange girl from the street and said that she would be your sister. Say that you always dreamed of a daughter. Where do these early fantasies come from?
A.K.: Once my brother and I (he is four years older than me) watched cartoons in the morning session. We sit, and I think: well, why didn’t my mother go with me? And then I suddenly realized that I really want a child. For some reason, the girl was the main goal.
Perhaps you wanted to rewrite the script of your relationship with your own mother in some way? Or to continue the best that was in them? Or in yourself?
A.K.: I thought about it – I read Psychologies! (Laughs.) Probably, there was a desire to correct something, to compensate for some childhood grievances (“You didn’t go to the cinema with me, but I will go with my child!”). But, if you think about it, these insults arose only from my boundless love. I adored my mother, she says: “You just tormented me with your love!” And now it is. We have a very close relationship. In a word, I want not only to erase the grievances, but also to continue the relationship with my mother. She has always been my best friend, with her I discuss things that I could not discuss with anyone. Another thing is that I already have my own point of view and my own logic, but I will always listen to my mother.
Were you jealous of her brother?
A.K.: A little. But still, my mother did not treat Pasha like a child, she looked after him as a future man and taught me to do this. And because it was I who tied my brother’s shoelaces, and not he me. But still, I grew up too … independent, or something, in relationships with men. I don’t really like this character trait. I think it’s easier for a woman to feel like a smaller part in a union. And I think I’m big! (Laughs.) I know more, I know more, and it’s hard to fight it. Maybe that’s why I wanted to give birth to a daughter – in order to instill in her the right attitude towards men. Learn how to be a woman.
What are you teaching Zlata?
A.K.: I’m trying to teach her wisdom. The fact that a woman has always been and will be the head of the family, but she must skillfully hide it. Even though I’m pretty bad at it! (Laughs.) I also constantly tell my daughter that we must be soft, restrained, I say that strength is in our weakness. But I myself, in my opinion, am too strong for a woman – I have some too much pressure in life. Maybe you need to be able to let go of the situation more often, not set yourself the task of doing everything yourself and at once.
Your Masha Shvetsova lives in a world of crime and murder. Are you, the mother of a seven-year-old daughter, not afraid in this world?
A.K.: I’m scared. And in this sense, I would wish Zlata inner peace. Because it’s hard to live in constant tension, to go to bed every night, waiting for the next terrorist attack or war. Still, I hope that as long as her mom and dad are alive, she will be fine. I tell her: “Stay with us! We will help you.” And I also think about something else: she will soon begin a transitional age, love … No matter how she is carried away somewhere – I am very afraid of this …
Well, you didn’t get carried away…
A.K.: How do you know? (Pause.) Probably every woman must be carried away, otherwise she … will not marry. (She is laughing.)
Do you always know exactly what you like and what you don’t?
A.K.: No, because tastes change, and that’s okay. Actually, I don’t like choice situations. It is better when fate (or intuition) itself leads you to a decision. And you need to be able to wait, look for some signs, listen to yourself … When I am put in front of a tough choice, I get lost and sometimes I just don’t know what to do. Everything is relative: new circumstances will arise and priorities will change. Or you “from above” will simply unfold the situation from some unexpected side …
You mean your first marriage, because then it seemed to you that this family was forever?
A.K.: In my opinion, any person entering into marriage thinks that it is for life. At least that’s how I was raised. And my parents were in love…
You call their marriage a happy one… Didn’t you have the feeling that you somehow let your parents down, didn’t justify their hopes then?
A.K.: They do not have an ideal marriage, each family has its own “rattles” … But I did not at all feel that I had let my parents down: they are entirely for my happiness. I couldn’t disappoint them.
But for you, the divorce turned out to be the most severe trauma …
A.K.: I don’t want to talk about divorce anymore.
Sorry. But perhaps you have a few words for readers familiar with this pain. You managed to overcome the crisis, start a new, different life…
A.K.: I was lucky that I was financially independent, because many women simply have nowhere to go at such a moment. I also think it is important to come to this conclusion internally. Accept the situation for yourself and understand that it will be better this way. And besides, I am a very active person, I can’t even rest passively. If suddenly there are empty days, there is a risk of immediately starting to think that everything is finite, that everything is hopeless – and this is scary. The main thing at this moment is to fill the void inside yourself. Stand in front of the locomotive and run without much thought. Well, if you have a child, you are definitely not alone.
Now you have a lull in your work – you broke up with Masha Shvetsova, your companion for the last eight years. With what feelings?
A.K.: I feel sad, as when parting with a loved one, and at the same time I do not feel the heaviness of the fact that the separation somehow happened wrong. No, it’s just time…
What has changed over the years?
A.K.: It seems to me that Masha herself has changed: at first, everything was torn somewhere in terms of work, career, she tried to secure the whole world. Now her maximalism has diminished. Perhaps this is a loss for the series, but Shvetsova has become more like me, more calm, less categorical, or something.
Are you satisfied with the way her fate turned out?
A.K.: Yes, it is quite. Elena Topilskaya and I discussed the script more than once. I told her directly: “Lena, no more marriages. Shvetsov’s heroine is positive: she has found an ideal for herself, and that’s enough!
Are you satisfied with the scenario of your own life?
A.K.: I am satisfied with what is happening to me. I don’t want stars from the sky, no more money, no more love… and nothing less! (Laughs.) Everything suits me. Although life is so unpredictable: a moment – and you already look at the world with completely different eyes. Now I’m going home and I’ll worry: I’ve said so much, but is it so or not? And I will suffer: here it was necessary to say differently …
And so do I – so many people do!
A.K.: Truth? Well, that means I’m not alone…
Private bussiness
- 1977: June 15 was born in the city of Neustrelitz (GDR), her father, Leonid Ivanovich, was a soldier, her mother, Natalya Fedorovna, was the head of a kindergarten. Brother Pavel was born four years earlier. The family lived in Yerevan, Moscow, and since 1981 – in Leningrad.
- 1998: After graduating from the St. Petersburg Academy of Theater Arts, class of Professor A. A. Shvedersky, he enters the troupe of the Lensoviet Theater. She makes her debut in the role of Angelica in Gennady Trostyanetsky’s performance “Imaginary Sick”. Now she is the leading actress of this theater.
- 1999: Debuts in the comedy “Love is Evil” by Vladimir Zaikin, marries his former classmate, actor Anatoly Ilchenko.
- 2000: on October 26 she gave birth to a daughter, Zlata; the scene of childbirth and breastfeeding was included in one of the series of the first “Secrets of the Investigation”.
- 2001: Debuts in the role of Maria Shvetsova in the series “Secrets of the Investigation” (TV channel “Russia”). Over the next eight years, he starred in six more seasons of this series.
- 2002: Received a prize for the embodiment of the image of a “positive hero” at the international legal film festival “Law and Society”.
- 2003: She broke up with Anatoly Ilchenko, a year later they were divorced.
- 2005: The role of Margarita in the television series by Vladimir Bortko “The Master and Margarita”. He meets Oleg Kapustin, two years later they register a marriage. Introduced for the role of Anna Karenina in the play by Gennady Trostyanetsky “Karenin. Anna. Vronsky”, this is one of her best works in the theater.
- 2006: Role in the film “Rush Hour” by Oleg Fesenko.
- 2007: Filmed in Andrei Kravchuk’s film about Admiral Kolchak (the premiere is scheduled for autumn 2008) and in the Belarusian melodrama “Rhymes with Love” by Alexander Efremov.
- 2008, March: Channel “Russia” shows “Secrets of investigation – 7”, the last (so far) season of this series.