Ukraine He was born Aleksei Denisovich Dikiy on 24 February 1889 in
Ekaterinoslav, Russian Empire. At a young age he moved to
Kharkiv, where his sister,
Maria Sukhodolska-Dikova, was a popular actress, and she helped him to become an actor. Young Dikiy made his acting debut at the age of 6, on stage of the Kharkiv Drama under the directorship of
Oleksi Sukhodolskiy.
Moscow In 1909 he moved to
Moscow with the assistance of I. Uralov, actor of
Moscow Art Theatre. There Dikiy studied acting under S. Khalyutina and K. Mardzhanov. Then Dikiy studied under
Konstantin Stanislavski and
Vladimir Nemirovich-Danchenko, and was hired as an actor at the Moscow Art Theater in 1910. He admired the stage works of
Michael Chekhov and was his partner on stage. In 1922 Dikiy followed
Michael Chekhov in the formation of the second Moscow Art Theater, MKhAT-2. There his artistic rivalry with Michael Chekhov turned into a bitter dispute, and Dikiy left Moscow Art Theatre in 1928. At that time he also worked as director with the
Jewish Chamber Theatre in Moscow.
Tel Aviv In 1928 Aleksei Dikiy received an invitation to work in Tel Aviv as director with
Habima, the Jewish theatre troupe that had originated in Russia. Dikiy directed two successful Hebrew-language plays for Habima in the 1928–29 season. On 29 December 1928 he premiered
The Treasure, a translation of the Yiddish play
Der Oytser by
Sholem Aleichem, which became an artistic and financial success. On 23 May 1929 he premiered ''David's Crown
, an adaptation of The Hair of Absalom'' by
Calderón. With the success of Dikiy's directorship Habima became established as a national Jewish theatre, and Dikiy gained an international reputation as an innovative director.
Repressions In 1931, back in Moscow, Dikiy started his own theater-studio in Moscow and also taught an acting class. In 1934 Dikiy collaborated with
Dmitri Shostakovich on production of the opera
Katerina Izmailova (a.k.a. Lady Makbeth of Mtsensk District). Dikiy's production of
Katerina Izmailova had over 100 performances in
Leningrad and
Moscow, and was considered a highlight of his directing career. However, in 1936,
Joseph Stalin saw the opera and severely criticized the work of both Dmitri Shostakovich and Dikiy. After Stalin's criticisms both Shostakovich and Dikiy suffered from serious troubles in their lives and careers.
Leningrad In 1936, Dikiy was ordered out of Moscow, then he was appointed the director of the
Bolshoi Drama Theater (BDT) in
Leningrad. There he began his lifelong collaboration and friendship with actor
Boris Babochkin. At that time many Russian intellectuals were terrorized by purges and repressions, known as the "
Great Terror" under the dictatorship of Joseph Stalin. In 1937 Aleksei Dikiy was arrested on false accusations of anti-Soviet activity. Dikiy was designated
People's Artist of the USSR (1949). He was nominated for 'Best Actor' and received a special mention at the 1947
Venice Film Festival for the title role in
Admiral Nakhimov.
More repressions In 1953 Dikiy directed his last stage production, the play
Teni (Shadows), by Saltykov-Shchedrin. Under Dikiy's direction his friend and partner
Boris Babochkin played one of his best roles ever – Klaverov, a corrupt career politician, alluding to a typical Soviet bureaucrat. For that work Babochkin was viciously attacked in the official Soviet newspaper
Pravda by
Ekaterina Furtseva, who was then a Mayor of Moscow and later was made
Minister of Culture of the Soviet Union. Furtseva became enraged with Dikiy and Babochkin's satirical portrayal of the Soviet bureaucracy with allusions to the Soviet leadership. She banned the play, and censored both Babochkin and Dikiy from public performances and kept them virtually unemployed for three years until Babochkin was finally forced to repent to the Communist Party.
Death Dikiy suffered from many traumatic experiences in his life. The last blow was being a powerless witness of censorship and public humiliation of his friend Boris Babochkin. Official attacks by the Soviet Communist Party caused Dikiy a severe emotional trauma, which led to alcoholism, depression and other health problems. Aleksei Dikiy died of a heart failure on 1 October 1955 in Moscow and was laid to rest in
Novodevichy Monastery Cemetery in Moscow. ==Selected filmography==