Maria Litvinenko was born in
Kiev, then part of the
Russian Empire, on 13 February 1892, in the family of a worker of the
Arsenal Factory. From the age of seven she sang in the church choir, where she learnt
solfeggio. In 1912, she graduated from the Kiev School of Music of the
Russian Musical Society (vocal class of M. Alekseeva-Yunevich). In 1912–1914, she performed at the
M. Sadovsky Theater in Kiev. In 1914–1916, she performed at the in
Petrograd (present-day Saint Petersburg). In 1919, she was part of the first opera theater in Kiev, the , with
Les Kurbas and
Anatol Petrytsky. In 1920-1922 she was a soloist of a troupe organized by her, the "First Labor Cooperative of Ukrainian Artists" in
Vinnytsia. In 1923–1935, she was a soloist of the Ukrainian State Capital Opera (now the
Kharkiv State Academic Opera and Ballet Theatre named after Mykola Lysenko). In 1935-1953 she was a soloist of the
National Opera of Ukraine. During the
World War II they were evacuated to
Ufa (1941-1942) and then to
Irkutsk (1942-1944). During this period, she performed for the
Red Army. In 1944-1964 she taught at the
Kiev Conservatory. Maria Ivanovna Litvinenko-Volgemut died on 3 April 1966 in Kiev and buried in the
Baikove Cemetery. == Awards ==