Batalov, Nikolai

Batalov, Nikolai Petrovich 

Born Nov. 24 (Dec. 6), 1899; died Nov. 10, 1937. Soviet actor. Honored Artist of the RSFSR (1933).

In 1916, Batalov joined the troupe of the Moscow Art Theater. He played the role of Figaro (Mad Day, or the Marriage of Figaro of Beaumarchais) with comic brilliance, vigorous spirit, and unlimited charm. The role of Vas’ka Okorok in Vs. Ivanov’s play Armored Train 14–69 (1927) was a significant achievement for Batalov. He has acted in films. He played the role of Pavel Vlasov in the outstanding Soviet film Mother (after the novel by M. Gorky, 1926). The warmth, humanity, and life-asserting strength inherent in Batalov’s art distinguished the character of the head of the labor commune Sergeev in the first Soviet sound film A Start in Life (1931). He also played the role of the construction chief Latsis in the film Three Comrades (1935).

REFERENCE

Gorchakov N. “Nikolai Petrovich Batalov.” In Ezhegodnik Moskovskogo Khudozhestvennogo teatra, 1949–50 gg. Moscow, 1952.