Ksenia Kutepova

Ksenia Kutepova is an actress and one of the founding members of the Pyotr Fomenko Workshop Theatre. Her distinctive stage presence is marked by quicksilver energy, sharp reactions, a mischievous sense of humour, and an ability to move effortlessly from playful flirtation to moments of complete seriousness.

Ksenia's acting career began long before she met Pyotr Fomenko. Together with her twin sister Polina, she took part in theatre activities and appeared in films from an early age. Their striking resemblance caught the attention of filmmakers: the sisters appeared in Georgy Yungvald-Khilkevich's musical comedy “Where Will He Go?“ and the popular children's fairy-tale film „Redhead, Honest, in Love”. Yet behind their identical appearance, two very different acting personalities were gradually emerging.

In 1988, both sisters entered GITIS, the Russian Academy of Theatre Arts, to study under Pyotr Fomenko. It was from this class that the Pyotr Fomenko Workshop would eventually emerge, with its graduates forming the core of the theatre's original company.

In 1990, Yevgeny Kamenkovich directed Shakespeare's “Twelfth Night” with the students — the first production of what would become the Workshop. Ksenia played Sebastian, while Polina played Viola. The sisters' resemblance became an integral part of the director's concept: the story of twins separated and repeatedly mistaken for one another acquired an unusual degree of theatrical authenticity.

In 1992, Ksenia played Candace Compson, known as Caddy, in Sergei Zhenovach's production of “The Sound and the Fury”, based on William Faulkner's novel, while Polina played her daughter Quentin. After their early student productions, full of exuberance and theatrical mischief, both actresses unexpectedly took on tragic roles. It marked an important turning point in their careers: performers whom audiences had come to associate with an entirely different theatrical world proved equally at home in Faulkner's unforgiving universe.

In 1993, the sisters appeared in Jean-Luc Godard's film “The Kids Play Russian“. Working with one of the most celebrated directors in world cinema was another remarkable episode in their early careers. In a film exploring Russian literature and its imagery, Ksenia and Polina once again found themselves together before the camera — this time in a cinematic world entirely unlike that of their childhood films.

A special place in Ksenia Kutepova's theatrical career belongs to “Family Happiness“, based on Leo Tolstoy's novella. Pyotr Fomenko created the production specifically for her. In essence, it is almost a one-woman show: over the course of the evening, the actress lives through an entire love story with her character, Masha — from the first exhilaration and hopes of love to disappointment, maturity, and a new understanding of happiness.

The production demands exceptional precision from its leading actress: changes in the characters' relationship are often almost imperceptible, and it is Ksenia who makes them visible to the audience. Her Masha combines spontaneity, impatience, a longing to be loved, and a gradually developing ability to see herself from a distance. Fomenko built the production around the actress, entrusting her with carrying the story from beginning to end. “Family Happiness“ became one of Ksenia's defining performances at the theatre.

In “War and Peace. The Beginning of the Novel“, Ksenia performed several roles, most notably Sonya. Unlike the more prominent heroines of Tolstoy's novel, Sonya rarely takes centre stage, but in Kutepova's performance her story acquired a weight and significance of its own. In Pyotr Fomenko's “Three Sisters“, she played Irina, the youngest sister, who longs so passionately for the future and finds it so difficult to come to terms with the present.

Another significant production in Ksenia's career is “The Most Important Thing“, based on a novel by Mikhail Shishkin. The play's intricate structure, weaving together different periods, lives, and narrative perspectives, demanded particular freedom and versatility from the actors in their approach to the literary material.

Ksenia has also performed at the Chekhov Moscow Art Theatre, appearing in “The White Guard“ and “The Kreutzer Sonata”.

An unexpected chapter in the sisters' careers was their participation in Oleg Glushkov's dance-theatre production „Sailors and Whores”. By then, Ksenia and Polina were already well-established dramatic actresses, yet they embraced an experiment in which movement and dance, rather than words, became the primary means of expression. They had to explore a different way of being on stage, discovering new possibilities in their own physical expression. To date, „Sailors and Whores” remains the most recent stage production in which the sisters have appeared together.

Film and television occupy an important place in Ksenia Kutepova's career. One of her most significant screen performances is the leading role in Vera Storozheva's „Travelling with Pets”, the story of a woman who, after many years without freedom, suddenly finds herself having to build a life of her own. Her filmography, however, extends far beyond arthouse cinema: she has appeared in a new screen adaptation of „The Three Musketeers” and in numerous television productions. One of her more recent major roles was in the television series „Merchants and Children”.

In the television series „Dead Lake”, Ksenia and Polina appeared together once again, this time as two eccentric librarians, almost like conjoined twins. The sisters clearly relished playing on their own resemblance, creating one of the strangest and most amusing pairs of characters in this dark story.

• Awards and Honours
• Special Jury Prize at the Golden Mask Festival for the ensemble of actresses in „The Most Important Thing”, Pyotr Fomenko Workshop Theatre, 2008
• Golden Mask Award nomination for Best Actress in a Drama for the roles of Galpetra, Frau P., and Tala in “The Most Important Thing”, Pyotr Fomenko Workshop Theatre, 2008
• Vladimir Vysotsky Prize for the role of Caddy in “The Sound and the Fury”, 1993
• Special Prize for Best Young Actress at the Kontakt-96 International Theatre Festival in Poland for “Tanya-Tanya”
• Komsomolskaya Pravda newspaper's Actress of the Year Award, 1995 and 1996
• Chaika (Seagull) Theatre Award in the “Some Like It Hot“ category for her stage partnership with Ilya Lyubimov in „Family Happiness”, 2000
• Konstantin Stanislavsky Prize for Best Actress for “Family Happiness”, 2001
• State Prize of the Russian Federation for “War and Peace“ and „Family Happiness”, 2002
• Chaika (Seagull) Theatre Award in the “Synchronised Swimming“ category for the acting ensemble of „Three Sisters”, 2004
• Crystal Turandot Award for Best Actress for “Three Sisters”, 2005
• Moscow Prize for Literature and the Arts, Theatre category, for one of the leading roles in “Three Sisters”, 2007
• Moskovsky Komsomolets newspaper's Theatre Award for Best Supporting Actress, “Established Artists“ category, for the role of Galpetra in „The Most Important Thing”, 2006–2007 season, awarded in 2007
• Outstanding Artistic Achievement Award at the Cottbus International Film Festival, Germany, for “Travelling with Pets”, 2007
• Most Feminine Screen Image Award at the 9th East-West International Film Festival in Baku for “Travelling with Pets”, 2007
• Best Actress Award at the Second Valentina Leontyeva “From the Heart“ Film and Television Festival for Family Audiences, for the role of Sister Ekaterina in „Spring Is Coming Soon”, 2010
• Commemorative Medal of the Chekhov Moscow Art Theatre marking the 150th anniversary of Anton Chekhov's birth, in recognition of outstanding achievements and personal contribution to the arts, 2010
• Best Actress Award at the Literature and Cinema Russian Film Festival in Gatchina, as part of the female ensemble cast of “Delhi Dance”, 2013