Artistic director of Saint-Petersburg State Youth Theatre on Fontanka, honoured man of art of Russia, laureate of Russian State Award.
   Was born on July, 14, 1950 in Chernovtsy, Ukraine. Graduated from the Leningrad State Engineering and Economical Institute in 1972 and the Leningrad State Institute of Theatre, Music and Cinema in 1979.
   1980-1984 - a director in the Leningrad Theatre named after Lenin's Komsomol.
   1984-1986 - a director in the Leningrad Academic Theatre.
   1986-1989 - a head of drama ensemble "Young theatre" attached to Lenconcert. His first work there was called "A Pylon". But it was the play "Tango", that brought him a success. The play was called the best premiere of a season (1988-1989) and won the Award of the Polish Drama Festival in the USSR.
   In 1989 he was invited to be a head of the Youth Theatre. His first play "A Parvenu" (Moljer) was highly appreciated by critics. In 1996 Semjon Spivak got Grand Prix of the French Drama Festival in Petersburg. The next play "The death of Van Khalen" revealed the name of a young dramatist Alexey Shipenko. The staging of Ostrovsky's "Thunderstorm", so unexpected, so lyrical and musical, was a real triumth of Spivak.
   In 1998 Semjon Spivak was called one of the 16 best Petersburg citizens, he got the annual award "People of Our City" in the nomination "The best director".
   "Marquise de Sad" (Y. Misima), "A Killer Whale" (A.N. Tolstoi), "The Turbins' Days" (M. Bulgakov) are among his plays.
   Teaches in the Saint-Petersburg Theatre Art Academy.
   Married, with daughter.

go back go top go home russian version