Group of hatters composition. From favorite films to children's nicknames: what you didn't know about The Hatters leader Yuri Muzychenko

Yuri Muzychenko lives a relaxed and cheerful life. Brave and unlike anyone else, he makes the same music - fresh, soulful, with a sparkle. Yuri is an actor by profession and is part of the troupe of the St. Petersburg theater “Litsedei”.

Yuri Muzychenko

Since his musical project gained popularity, Muzychenko has had to combine performances, tours and work on new songs and videos. Not to mention running a tattoo parlor, vlogging and being an exemplary father and husband.

Childhood and youth

Yura was born in 1987 in Gatchina, a suburb of St. Petersburg. The singer admits that since childhood he was uncontrollable and spoiled. He studied poorly at school, but attended a violin class in music school. At the age of 13, the guy came up with the idea to organize a musical group “Phobos”, to which he invited his friends. The first experiments were crazy and inept, but the children took them seriously.

The parents were afraid that with bad grades their son would not make it to the 11th grade, so after the 9th grade the boy decided to enter a music school. But the academic atmosphere of the institution seemed too boring to Yura, and he changed his mind. As a result, after graduating from Gatchina secondary school No. 9 in 2004, Muzychenko decided to go into acting.

“Well, they wouldn’t take me anywhere else,” the artist jokes in an interview, where he shares the details of his biography.

The guy easily entered the St. Petersburg Academy of Theater Arts. By the time of the third round of entrance examinations, when it was necessary to decide which teacher to go to, it turned out that Yuri passed to everyone. The musician says that he chose someone who seemed to him just a cool guy, arrogant and cool. So he blindly entered the workshop, where the main genre turned out to be clownery.

Music and creativity

In 2009, Muzychenko graduated from high school and got a job in the “Litsedeev” team. Yuri notes the family atmosphere of the theater, in which one wants to live and work. He considers his senior comrades from the troupe to be his main mentors. The actor's role is a dramatic clown.

While playing in plays, the guy did not give up his music studies. Since 2011, he founded the “BKMSB” team. It is useless to decipher the abbreviation, since the guys did not put any meaning into the name: only freedom without borders and creative chaos. They worked in the alternative rock space, striving to appear fresh and high quality, and paid a lot of attention to sound clarity and mixing.

The group joined the St. Petersburg creative community, participated in festivals, winning at Snickers Urbania in the Urban sound category.

Trying to reach a wider audience, Muzychenko and his fellow BKMSB member Alexander Anisimov are launching the Internet project “Downtrodden”. Initially, it was planned to film diaries about the life of the team, but gradually they transformed into a series dedicated to tattoos.

In 2015, during a period of conflict in the troupe, Yuri left the theater for a while. Just then the moment arose to take music seriously. The artist decides to form a new group. All participants in the new team were selected from “Litsedeev”. They went to their first performance wearing hats, and thus the name The Hatters (“hatters” translated into Russian) was born.

Muzychenko himself defines the style of the ensemble as follows:

“We have our own direction, one might say, a new one - Russian-Gypsy street alcohol-hardcore on soulful instruments.”

Yuri sings and plays the violin, Pavel Lichadeev – the accordion, Alexander Anisimov – the bass guitar, Vadim Rulev – the trombone, Dmitry Vecherinin – the drums. The wives of Yuri and Pavel perform backing vocals.

Since 2016, The Hatters have blown up the Internet with their first video, and after that they broke through to radio stations. They began to be invited to the main festivals of the country, including “Invasion” and “Wild Mint”. The pleasure of being unlike anyone else and doing what you love and know how to do - Yuri and his colleagues succeeded in this. They are full of energy and generously share it with the public, turning their performances into vibrant performances.

The team manages to combine recklessness and high professionalism; their music is both dashing and soulful. It is not easy for Western viewers to determine the nationality of the musicians, since they play melodies with a pronounced Balkan flavor and often sing in English. In 2017, the group was invited to perform on Channel One in the show “Evening Urgant”.

Over the course of a couple of years of existence, The Hatters released 5 albums and dozens of videos. The official video for the track “Winter” has received more than 3 million views on YouTube, and “Outside from the Inside” is approaching 1.5 million.

In January 2018, Yuri Muzychenko becomes the hero of a special edition of the show “vDud”. It is called “New Russia” and is dedicated to individuals who, from the point of view of a popular interviewer, are creating the cultural history of the country today.

Yuri tries himself as a blogger on YouTube. He often appears in “Zashkvarny Stories” on the humorous entertainment channel “Klikklak”, where he works with (aka Ilyich) from and.

Personal life

Yuri and his family live in St. Petersburg. An extraordinary personality is manifested in a bright image: the musician constantly experiments with hairstyle and tattoos. The man's height is 181 cm and his weight is 60 kg.

The guy met Anya, his future wife, during his student years. The guys studied at the same university. Anna Muzychenko (Nikitina) was born on March 15, 1987 in the northern city of Tynda. She came to St. Petersburg to become an actress. In 2009 she graduated from the acting and directing department of the St. Petersburg Academy of Theater Arts.

Their union is not only family, but also creative. The couple does a lot together: plays in the Lycedei theater, runs the Backstage tattoo studio, sings in The Hatters. And both consider themselves clowns and informals. Yura calls his wife in a special way - Anna Sergovna.

On November 26, 2010, the couple had a daughter, Lisa, who, according to her parents, will already give them a head start in artistry and charisma.

Yuri Muzychenko now

The Hatters are currently at the peak of their popularity. Yuri and his musicians give concerts all over Russia, and they turn into festivals of unbridled fun.

A major performance took place on December 15, 2018 in St. Petersburg, at the Yubileiny Sports Complex. After this, the band took a break from touring to focus on recording a new album.

The “Hatters” fulfilled their long-time dream: in January 2019, they left St. Petersburg and went as a group to a house located in the middle of a winter forest. There, with family and friends, they are writing music for a future record, which promises to be soulful.

The musicians are simultaneously filming documentaries about the creative process, and fans can follow the birth of fresh songs on Muzychenko’s YouTube channel and using the hashtag #thehattershome.

Who performs “Russian-gypsy alkohardcore on soulful instruments.” They travel to festivals and release videos with Little Big Production. Shlyapnikov frontman Yuri Muzychenko (Thomas) has prepared a list of valuable tips: how to promote a group in just a year.

Be sociable

I always wanted to be visible. Become the funniest in the class, the coolest in the yard. At the age of twelve I was already playing in the coolest rock band in Gatchina, and in the ninth grade I worked part-time at a local theater as a stage technician. I'm a guy who's always ready to fit in, and I still don't feel like an adult with a job. All the projects in which I participated - the Internet show "KlikKlak", the theater "Lycedei", the tattoo studio Backstage tattoo - have one thing in common: the opportunity to communicate. So, having traveled around the world, I realized that in a foreign country you may not know the language, but if you approach any person with tattoos, you will already have a topic for conversation. I want people around me to be able to meet people. Please note that all The Hatters songs are about love and alcohol, that is, also about communication.

Gather a gang

We all love to drink and chat, and we didn't have any business plan. While working at the Lycedei Theater, I met Pavel Lichadeev. He played the accordion, I played the violin, and in November 2015 we performed at the Post Bar for free drinks. Several more musicians joined us, we gave a concert in my tattoo studio, and with the money we earned we recorded a song and posted it on the Internet on February 23, 2016. For fun, they also invited a bass balalaika and decided to aim for Russian Style - that’s what they called the first composition. There are seven of us in the group: me and my wife Anna Sergovna, Pavel Lichadeev, Alexander Anisimov (Kikir), Dmitry Vecherinin, Vadim Rulev and Anna Smirnova. We all play instruments and sing. Most recently, we have acquired five more musicians for large solo concerts - we have added a horn, trumpet, double bass, violin, and viola. And now we are a real camp. But we basically don’t have a guitar.

We all love to drink and chat, and we didn't have any business plan

Start a blog

We spent the whole of March touring Russia. A couple of weeks before the start of the tour, I started making a video blog “Music&Co” to show what was happening behind the scenes. Due to this, the audience, coming to the concert, are already the bearers of jokes between themselves. You know, when in a company of friends someone with a mysterious look says: “Well, do you remember... the window sill!” And everyone was like: “Yes, the windowsill!” And then we go on stage in an unfamiliar city, and the whole audience already knows about the window sill. Even before we started performing, we have already won the audience - now we don’t need to rock the audience with the first five songs.

Run a family business

Over the centuries, it has been proven that family contracting is the most workable structure. My wife Anya, whom I met at the age of sixteen, participates in the group. We do everything together, we pull several straps at once: she is involved in the Tatu Port studio and the Lycedei theater, and I am in charge of the group and Internet projects. When we move from one place of work to another, we give a quick briefing in the car about what needs to be done and where. Our daughter Lisa disconnects us from work worries. Pure mafia. The Hatters is also part of the Little Big Family. We are friends with Alina Pyazok, their producer, and Little Big frontman Ilya Prusikin. Ilyich and Alina, as more experienced guys, tell us what to do and what not to do. We don't agree on everything, but we listen to each other.

Set your priorities

Last summer we had a surge in popularity, offers began pouring in: concerts, contracts, producers. But we are mangy dogs, everything is interesting to us. The Little Big Family team has taken us under their wing and is protecting us from unnecessary offers. At first we thought maybe they were jealous - why are they depriving us of opportunities? But each time they sorted out what was what. Previously, we were throwing ourselves in different directions, but now the path of the “Hatters” is becoming clearer: I see where I’m going.

Make it your life's work

If you listen to me, you will get the impression that we did not put any effort into today's result. In fact, each of us has been involved in music and theater all our lives - this is the result.

We did everything ourselves, just good guys helped

Get drunk with the promoters

On the eve of summer, we wrote a press release saying that there are such fools with balalaikas, and sent it to festival organizers to go somewhere. The director of the folk festival “Wild Mint” listened to the band’s recording, came to our first concert in Moscow, we got to talking, ended up at his house and woke up only in the morning. In general, we just got drunk together, and that’s how our first major performance grew together. And then there were trips to “Invasion”, Stereoleto, “Dobrofest”. We played in St. Petersburg at the festival “Oh, yes! Food!”, where music is not a priority. But we are theatrical people - if we go on stage, everyone look at us. They lit it so well that general producer Artem Balaev liked it. He stopped by in the evening to get a tattoo at my salon, and we separated again only in the morning. He showed our music to his friends from the NCA company, and they offered to play as an opening act for Emir Kusturica. They say that the talented need to be helped, the mediocrity will get through anyway. But if you are nothing of yourself, then powerful corporations will not help. We did everything ourselves, just good guys helped.

Avoid platitudes

We have a “trick”: when we compose a melody, we first imagine it on the guitar - as if a groove metal band would play this part, and then we transfer it to our instruments. We do this to avoid trivial musical moves. Because of this, the music is punkish, and the combination of violin, accordion and trombone gives it a Balkan sound. But we don’t copy someone’s music, we take it as a reference. We have already tried our hand at the style of Metallica, Pantera, Nirvana. In new songs that have not yet been released, we try to convey the structure of electronic tracks. Moreover, we must take into account that we are not professional musicians. Yes, we once graduated from music schools, we still have our skills, and we continue to play. But first and foremost we are artists. And we perceive not the song structures themselves, but their internal image - in the theater this is called “grain”.

Text: Natalya Nagovitsyna

Style: Anvar Zoirov

Makeup: Natalya Voskoboynik, Evgenia Somova

Hairstyles: Ivan Ivanov, Sergey Rodionov (PARK by OSIPCHuK)

We thank the Russian National Library for assistance in organizing the filming

Acoustic concert by THE HATTERS with the participation of the orchestra and actors of the Lycedei Theater.
THE HATTERS (Hatters) – Russian gypsy street alcohol-hardcore on soulful instruments are celebrating their debut birthday! The concert will take place in the place where it all began... on the stage of the LITSEEDI Theater.
In a two-hour program with an intermission, we will perform everything that was written this year. All songs will be performed with an orchestra, which will make the evening solemn and powerful. Theater actors will perform with us and it will become a legendary holiday.
There are only 404 seats in the cozy hall with soft armchairs, so hurry up to become dear guests of our FIRST BIRTHDAY!!!

The team was formed at the St. Petersburg Litsedei Theater, and conducts rehearsals in the backstage tattoo studio.
Hatters appeared in musical life not long ago, or rather burst into it! The team gathered in the cultural capital of Russia - St. Petersburg, and by chance they ended up in the same city, because each of them is from different parts of the vast country.
How are THE HATTERS different from all other bands? The band plays without a single guitar! Drums, bass balalaika, trombone, violin and accordion. Still want something else? Then THE HATTERS bring their own pinch of spice to the concept of “percussion” - this is not only a standard set (triangle, tambourine). Scotch? Kids toys? Chains? Washboard? All this sounds in THE HATTERS songs.
THE HATTERS concerts are unique every time. The group comes up with more and more new performances, constantly interacting with the audience, rocking everyone! Listeners of the group who come to live performances participate in mass dances, dance in circles, watch T-shirts being torn, stools being beaten, birdhouses being put on and much more!
When you want madness, get a buzz from it and laugh - these are THE HATTERS concerts! When you want to jump, rock, sing along from the first to the last note - these are THE HATTERS concerts!
The question may definitely arise: “Where does so much trash and recklessness come from in this team?” – the whole answer is hidden in the fact that these are guys from Russia! Russian style is what THE HATTERS were born with, began to create, go on stage and show what they can. Behind and in the hearts of the guys is RUSSIAN STYLE!
The group's birthday is February 23, 2016. During its short existence in the musical sphere, THE HATTERS visited many major festivals in the country: Wild Mint, Invasion, Stereoleto, Dobrofest, Inspiration. And that was just the beginning! Already in September, a video for the song I’m Not Easy Buddy (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oQOovI4K9bg), shot on a phone, was released, which gained almost 2 million views. In October, the group gives a concert in Moscow - 900 people, and the first big concert in St. Petersburg, where it attracts 1800 people. On November 7, THE HATTERS take the stage with the masters of the world music scene - Emir Kusturica and Goran Bregovic, with whom the musicians performed the song “Gas-Gas” together. A little later, the video “RUSSIAN STYLE” is released (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1phe0lvmgU0), which received a million views in the first five days. The group also gave two concerts in the capitals of Russia with the group Little Big, in addition to their songs, performing several covers with the members of the rave group themselves.
THE HATTERS is heard on more than one radio station in the country.
You can use a lot of cliches, find similarities between THE HATTERS and other groups in the world, but in terms of the composition of instruments, the variety of performances, interactions with
the audience, all the songs they listened to, and after seeing THE HATTERS live, it becomes clear why THE HATTERS calls its genre “Russian gypsy alcohol-hardcore on soulful instruments” - this has never happened before!

There are 9 people in the group, the main composition is 6 people!
Yuri Muzychenko (Gatchina) Frontman/vocalist/violinist, – Actor of the “Litsedei” theater, – Participant of popular Internet projects (CLICK-CLACK, Trash Lotto, Downtrodden, Commodity Expert, etc.), – Director of a tattoo studio.
Pavel Lichadeev (Alma-Ata) – Vocalist/accordionist, – Multi-instrumentalist, – Worked as a projectionist,
Alexander Anisimov (Gatchina) – Bass guitar, – Participant in popular Internet projects (slaughtered, ringer, problem, etc.), – Master of Science in Microelectronics Engineering and Technology,
Dmitry Vecherinin (Yaroslavl) – Drums,
Anna Nikitina (Tynda) Wife of vocalist Yura - – Backing vocals/show/sound effects/percussion, – Actress of the “Litsedei” theater, – Participant of popular Internet projects (merchandise specialist, etc.)
Anna Smirnova (St. Petersburg) Girlfriend of accordionist Pavel - – Backing vocals/show/sound effects/percussion, – Graduate of SPbGATI (St. Petersburg State Academy of Theater Arts),
Vadim Rulev (St. Petersburg) – Trombone, – Professional musician, works in the St. Petersburg Chapel,
Boris Morozov (St. Petersburg) – Plays the saw, – Is a professional tattoo artist, – Participant in popular Internet projects (Kolshchik Boris, Home Tattoo),
Pavel Kozlov is a cheerleader.

The Hatters group already at the very beginning of their career had a large audience thanks to the popularity of the group leader Yuri Muzychenko on Youtube. The old-timers of the rock scene could only dream of such growth rates as theirs. We talked to Yuri about how supernovas are born, working four jobs, and how to write songs during sound checks before concerts.

I recently thought that The Hatters are only a little over two years old, but it feels like you’ve been on stage for at least five years. Before launching the project, how seriously was the development strategy thought through?

All this happened completely by accident. It’s just that we’ve each been doing our own thing for a long time, and when the team formed, we were already quite professional people as musicians and as artists. Plus, there were many friends nearby who also achieved something. This is how the factors came together.

- How much do you think your media popularity influenced your successful start?

That's how it all went from there. Only due to the fact that I was already quite famous on Youtube. That's why we paid attention. Here's something new from Yurts. So far, Youtube still gives more than The Hatters.

- So initially it was the YouTube audience?

Certainly. Naturally, new listeners have now begun to appear. But the main part is from there.

With this approach, where personality comes first and creativity comes second, were you not afraid that the music itself would go unnoticed?

Of course not. Why should I be afraid of this? This is a conversation about me.

- People will say “Yura Muzychenko’s group” and it doesn’t matter what this group plays.

This will not happen. I am, of course, the frontman. But both the listeners and we ourselves realize that without all these people in the group there will be no The Hatters. Nothing will work out. I can’t race alone with a violin. These are special people. Today we were on the radio and accidentally came to the conclusion that there is not a single person in the group who would not want to study the instrument he is currently playing as a child. And it all coincided that we met.

- This is really rare. Often music school forever discourages people from learning music.

Often. Maybe it's for the better. We have more space.

- How do you feel about the fact that bloggers have taken to music en masse? Those who can't sing rap.

Completely normal. All bloggers are very brave, creative people. No matter how much they are scolded. Yes, not everyone is good. But there are very talented guys. Anyone can take a camera and walk around and film themselves. But not any of these people will win such an audience. And he will hold her. And if a person has achieved this through charisma and talent, then he is no longer mediocre and has the right to self-expression. That's the beauty of the Internet. Anyone can do anything. Therefore, all these statements like Youtube is interfering with rap, and rap is interfering with Youtube - this is complete nonsense. Rap is for everyone, music is for everyone, the Internet is for everyone. That's the point. But who turns out to be worthy is a matter of taste. It's like discussing humor.

- How closely are you currently involved in the productions of the Lycedei Theater?

Now there are fewer, but the plays in which I played are now being performed in the theater. And when I have the opportunity, I participate in them.

- Doesn’t this interfere with group work?

No, it doesn't interfere. Just less time to rest.

- And if it turns out that there is not enough time, then what direction could you put aside?

If we talk about theater, now the group is more important. Well, you can’t throw “Klik-Klak” anymore. Everything has gone too far. We all understand why this is all being done.

- For the sake of the audience?

Certainly. You can make very cool songs, but there will be no one to listen to them.

- But will it be possible to give up the theater?

For a while, yes. Still, this is a more elitist art.

- How do they manage without you in productions? There aren't many people there either.

- “Litsedei” is not the kind of theater where you play a play that someone wrote. In this theater we cook it ourselves, we spread it ourselves. What you come up with is what you do.

- But if you participated in the development of the production, then it couldn’t be done without you?

Either this can be safely removed from the plot, or someone else can play this role.

You have a tattoo studio, you do the show “Klik-Klak”, you play in Hatters and in “Litsedei”. Usually four jobs are worked by people who really need money. Do you have a different case?

No. Am I a fool to do this just like that?

- But the first motivation is not about money?

I was chasing everything just to make money somewhere. And for some reason it went everywhere.

- Do you have moments in communication with people for which you were ashamed?

Certainly.

- Can you give an example?

I wouldn't like examples. Then you'll have to get personal. But in general, this is normal practice. We are all human.

- The fuck did you send someone?

Certainly. And this happened.

This is what I mean. Now YouTube stars are more popular than television stars. For young people, at least. Do you have your own recipe for how to preserve a person within yourself when you are so recognizable that you can’t calmly walk down the street without someone taking a selfie on you?

I don't have such a recipe. Because it's just begun. So it became difficult to walk down the street. As long as I have enough patience.

- Do you have enough patience for selfies and sweet smiles?

Yes.

-Are you generally a closed person?

I’m not reserved, but I won’t be particularly frank with strangers. Why is this necessary? It’s like in the movie “Brother 2”: “Why do they all ask how I’m doing. Are they really interested?” I try to avoid common courtesy. Just good manners is enough. There is absolutely no need to be with all your friends.

Here the question immediately arises about communication with the press. Many new modern stars refuse to communicate with the press. Starting from “Vulgar Molly” and ending with Oksimiron.

This is a fairly popular strategy.

- Don’t you get tired of the media yourself? The questions are still the same.

So now I try to communicate less. When a journalist asks why the group is called that, I immediately tune out. I just answer yes or no. It is immediately clear that the conversation is pointless.

In one of the interviews, you said that you were wildly compared to the group Gogol Bordello, and in order not to be like them, you deliberately refused to play guitar in the group. Two points arise here. Firstly, they still compare with them. And secondly, is this really so important that you limit yourself in creativity because of this?

So this was done on purpose. This is our specialty. It’s just that people are already accustomed to guitar riffs, some moves that have developed in their minds due to the “golden hits” of the mastodons of rock, metal and blues. The very principle of how a work is constructed. And we started playing it on other instruments. We learned how to use the trombone and accordion to make it sound heavy.

- Is it important to you what style the Hatters’ music belongs to?

It doesn't matter at all.

- But the main thing is not Gogol Bordello.

It is unpleasant. I only like one song from them. This is a shame. When compared to Leningrad, it’s not offensive. I love them very much. I’m surprised why no one compares us to “Brigade S”? We are certainly more like them. To group "Zero". Probably no one remembers them anymore.

- Is your mustache part of the gypsy style of the group?

Without them, my muzzle immediately becomes round.

- But nevertheless, you sometimes have them, sometimes you don’t. What determines their presence and fluffiness?

From how long ago I played a child in the theater. There is no way to cover it up. They're too thick, bitch. That's why sometimes you have to shave it off.

- Little Big Family. As I understand it, this is just a get-together of friends who are not united by any stylistic boundaries.

That's right.

- And to get into the Little Big Family you must first be a friend or are there other ways?

That's the only way for now. You need to be a friend. If this topic grows and everything becomes more official and correct, then maybe this will change.

- Will it become a label?

No, it’s unlikely to become a label. We are not the right people to do this. There just won't be enough time. We are taking care of ourselves. And to engage with other people means to rob yourself. Therefore, we can only exist due to the fact that we help each other. It's just mafia.

- How then to get out of the mafia?

There is no way out of the mafia. But they will look after my family if anything happens.

- As I understand it, mom and dad are always at work instead. (Anna Muzychenko, Yuri’s wife, is a backing vocalist for The Hatters. Ed.)

And at all four jobs. But I have fun with her.

- And your daughter?

It helps that my mother lives nearby.

- Is it only during rehearsals that you can go separately?

Yes, Anya only comes to the final rehearsals.

- How do you compose new songs?

We start together with Pasha, the accordionist. Let's sit, jam, something is born. Then we send the results to the chat. We rehearse in a tattoo studio without drums, in acoustics. And once every one or two months we do one large rehearsal in full force at the rehearsal point. In fact, we only need such a rehearsal to check how everything sounds with the drums. And when we’re on tour, we do new songs at sound checks.

- Original.

It's comfortable. It's enough to play the same thing. We first play one proven composition so that the sound engineer understands the sound production, and then we play whatever comes to mind.

So you come up with the outline of a song with an accordion, then you and the guys put together an arrangement. At what stage do words appear?

Differently. There are no rules. It happens that when composing you hum a fish, and then select the text for it. For example, the song “Strong Woman”. There was no plan to make a track about a strong woman. These syllables just lay on this reef, and then the whole train began to cling. And sometimes you play music and images immediately appear.

Do you have an inner feeling from the lyrics about what should be in The Hatters and what should not? Topics that you definitely won’t touch.

There will never be any politics.

- What about domestic protest?

Cheap. For our music, certainly. The only such song is Stay True, and even then it is more diffuse. Well, Fuck You. But this is also more of a joke. Basically, everything we have is more generalized. Or vice versa, too personal stories.

- Is there something that makes you cry?

At almost every concert from the song “Winter”. It so happened that while writing the song, my father died. Always associated. There is also a song “Mom”, which is also purely personal. Well, I really don't have time to call. Although it exists, of course. At least pick up the phone and dial now. But no.

The morning in a clown family begins with children's laughter. Small Lisa wakes up first and wakes up mom and dad. The girl can compete with her parents in acting skills - she loves to make faces, dance and tumble to the music. When asked what their parents do, he smartly answers: “Dad is a clown, mom is a fox,” and adds, after thinking a little, “and I’m a squirrel!” Lisa remembered this image from a children’s matinee in which Anya, her mother, played a fox. The girl doesn’t want to have breakfast; instead, she heads to the mirror. She likes to make up like her parents. Anya gives her a brush without makeup and hygienic lipstick. Lisa puffs with a very serious look and moves her brush over her face.

When your makeup is finished, you can have breakfast. At the table, the whole family loves to look at old photo albums. Lisa knows all her relatives by name. The girl has memorized the entire book of poems and tells them to her parents while looking at the photos. It’s time for Anya and Yura to go to the theater. Today they have a performance, and before it they need to rehearse some moments and have time to put on makeup. They leave the girl with her grandmother - Anya's mother - and leave the house.

“My daughter loves to put on makeup”

Anna Nikitina came to St. Petersburg several years ago from the northern city of Tynda. The girl entered a theater university, where she met her future husband, Yuri. Young people dared to choose the profession of a clown. “Not everyone can make another person laugh,” admits Yuri, “but when the whole audience laughs, we are inspired and begin to try even harder.” The newlyweds began to live with Yura's parents in the suburbs of St. Petersburg. They had a daughter, Lisa. This winter the family moved into their own apartment. In the next 14 years they will have to pay off the mortgage, but this does not upset the young people. The main thing is that now they have their own nest almost in the very center of the city.

Yura and Anya always play in the same play. Sometimes they take their daughter with them to the theater. “Lisa loves going to the theater,” Anya smiles, “everything is interesting to her here!” She loves to go everywhere and look at costumes and props. Lisa recognizes us in makeup and loves to put on makeup herself. We sometimes paint her cheeks and nose. Lisa sometimes gives us such performances that we are still far from her!” Anya sewed a small school uniform for her daughter and made a backpack out of an old bag. Lisa likes to imagine herself as a schoolgirl, but the lush white bows do not yet stay on the girl’s head. Anya found a way out: she attached them to the headband.

“As a child I dreamed of becoming Uncle Styopa”

The costume room is hung with outfits, like a film studio. There's everything here: from military uniforms to a giant slingshot. Basically, the artists sew all the costumes for performances themselves. Of her outfits, Anya is especially proud of her pink gypsy-style dress. At the end of the costume room there is a table with a sewing machine. At this table the clowns make props and clothes. A necklace of multi-colored foam noses hangs above the table. Anya finishes working on a bucket of popcorn: she cuts out the letter “n” from paper. The girl dreamed of being an actress since childhood. “I have an uncle, he is very tall,” says Anya, “I called him Uncle Styopa. I loved him very much, and when they asked me what I wanted to become when I grew up, I answered: “Uncle Stepa”!”

When looking at Yura in casual clothes and without makeup, it is impossible to guess that he is a clown. A side-shaved head, tattoos and skinny jeans are the hallmarks of a punk band lead singer rather than a clown. However, in his free time from rehearsals and performances, Yura plays in a music group and makes entertaining videos for the Internet with friends. Anya teaches acting skills to children. “The fact that both are artists, clowns, brings us closer together,” the girl believes, “we are together both at work and at home, but we don’t get tired of each other at all. It just happens that we are sitting at home, drinking tea, and one of us suddenly starts talking about how best to do something in the play, what kind of props to come up with. Our profession does not allow us to forget about it even at home. We are proud to be a clown and to work in such a theater.”

Clowns love hard rock

Rehearsal begins three hours before the performance. The actors do not perform the entire performance, but only some moments. Yura plays the violin, and Anya and her fellow clown walk around the fruit stand - they just can’t get in time with the music. Finally, everything worked out. Now the clowns have free time before the performance to have a snack and put on makeup. Yura and Anya have a common dressing room, one for two. In addition to powder, blush and brushes, the dressing room is full of various curious things and trinkets. On the shelves there are photographs from the artists' portfolios and children's photos, coasters, and figurines. “I even have a rare real order here with the inscription “Janitor 31,” boasts Anya, “but I don’t remember where I got it from. There are so many different things here - shackles, a broken tumbler, Lisa’s toys: we try not to clutter our house so much.” Anya and Yura hung the painting of a monkey playing with a spinning top for practical reasons. Their neighbor in the dressing room was doing renovations and drilled a through hole in the wall. To make amends, he gave the guys a painting.

The actors begin to put on makeup. Clowns come up with their own image. “Today I will perform in the image of Anna Sergovna,” explains Anya, “I came up with the image of a proper Soviet female teacher for my performances. Within this image, I cannot change the makeup. For another character I will do my makeup in a new way.” Yura turns on the music and sits on a chair in front of the mirror. Heavy rock music comes from the speakers. A young man with a stern face begins to apply makeup. “For some reason, many people think that clowns in life should always be silly, walk around and laugh,” says Yura, “many, when they find out that I’m a clown, they ask me to portray or tell something funny. In real life, clowns are just like ordinary people. It would be strange if we walked through the streets, skipping and mouth to ear.”

A jar lid for a suit

Artists whiten their faces, line their eyes and paint their lips. Yura puts his hair in a crew cut and puts on a clown nose, and Anya has artificial gray hair. After this, the clowns dress in their outfits. “Often, ordinary clothes and improvised materials are suitable for costumes,” shares Anya, “for example, I took an old woolen suit, attached old badges and a lid from a can of Smeshariki baby food to it.” The image of the Soviet teacher is ready.” Yura puts on a green suit and twirls in front of the mirror. In the play he will play an unlucky schoolboy.

The first bell rings: the performance will begin in a few minutes. The audience is drawn into the auditorium with colorful chairs. The artists, including Yura and Anya, take the stage. It is impossible to recognize the two eccentric clowns as the married couple who rehearsed on the same stage a few hours ago. Not only the makeup of the artists’ faces changed, but also their facial expressions, gestures, and voices. After the performance on the hay, a real sell-out begins: clowns sign autographs and take pictures with the audience, and children ride down the slide - a stage prop. Only closer to midnight will Yura and Anya meet their main viewer - daughter Lisa.