Why Galina Volchek is in a wheelchair: health problems and nervous work of the artistic director. Volchek in a wheelchair shocked with a painful look Former husband of Galina Volchek - Evgeny Evstigneev

Why Galina Volchek is in a wheelchair: health problems and nervous work of the artistic director.  Volchek in a wheelchair shocked with a painful look Former husband of Galina Volchek - Evgeny Evstigneev
Why Galina Volchek is in a wheelchair: health problems and nervous work of the artistic director. Volchek in a wheelchair shocked with a painful look Former husband of Galina Volchek - Evgeny Evstigneev

On December 19, Galina Borisovna Volchek, a wonderful actress and artistic director of the Sovremennik Theater, turned 85 years old. Pupils, friends, and colleagues came to congratulate the talented woman on this significant date.

A huge bouquet of flowers was presented to the birthday girl by the President of the Russian Federation Vladimir Putin. Alla Pugacheva did not miss the birthday of her close friend.

The celebration in honor of the birthday girl was held within the walls of her native Sovremennik Theater, which Volchek has been directing since 1972. Galina Borisovna was handed a telegram signed by the first person of the state.

“Belief in the high mission of art, a responsible attitude to one's vocation, love for the native theater and spectators - have fully embodied in your inspired work, in serving Russian culture, people, country, have earned you indisputable authority and great respect,” he quotes the message Russian President Kremlin Press Service.

Christina Orbakaite congratulated her director and teacher, who has recently played a major role in Galina Volchek's play “Two on a Swing”. And Alla Borisovna Pugacheva prepared a heartfelt speech for her dear friend. Legendary women have been in close contact for many years and often appear together at various events. Looking at the photo, many did not fail to note that at 85, Galina Volchek looks no worse than Alla Borisovna Pugacheva, who is preparing for her 70th birthday.

The director moves mainly in a wheelchair, but this does not prevent her from efficiently managing the theater.

Galina Volchek was one of the founders of the Sovremennik Theater. Together with a group of young artists led by Oleg Efremov, she created a troupe that brought a stream of fresh air into the musty theater world. Galina Borisovna staged her first performance when she was only 29 years old. It was her that the theater staff entrusted the leadership when Oleg Efremov was offered to head the Moscow Art Theater.

The first husband of Galina Volchek was the famous artist Evgeny Evstigneev. In this marriage, their common son Denis was born. The family union lasted only nine years. Evstigneev developed a romantic interest on the side, and Volchek herself packed a suitcase for him. Soon Galina Borisovna married Mark Abelev, Doctor of Technical Sciences. He was an intelligent and subtle man, but he was terribly jealous of his star wife. Nine years later, this marriage also fell apart.

Now Volchek relies on the help and support of his son in everything. Denis Evstigneev has made a successful film career as a director, cameraman and producer.

The state of health of eighty-three-year-old Galina Borisovna Volchek began to be discussed after she appeared in a wheelchair at the ceremony of awarding the Hero of Labor stars in the Kremlin on April 28, 2017. Among those who were awarded the award on the eve of the International Day of Workers' Solidarity was the artistic director of the Moscow Sovremennik Theater.

During the award ceremony, Galina Volchek did not get up from the wheelchair, which suggests that the condition of the musculoskeletal system of the actress and director requires a sparing regime. The reason lies in the displacement of the spinal discs.

It all started a few years ago with back pain. For consultation Galina Volchek turned to the Israeli clinic Ilya Pekarsky's Center for Spinal Surgery. At one time, many stars were treated there, including those with the consequences of sports injuries. There she was diagnosed and announced a possible surgical solution to the problem.

In the case of older patients, the accompanying problems are:

  1. degeneration of bone and connective tissue;
  2. weakening of muscle tissue;
  3. fragility of bones.

To avoid possible risks, the artistic director of "Sovremennik" moves with the help of a wheelchair. However, this does not prevent her from continuing her productive creative activity.

Rumors about Galina Volchek's illness

Galina Borisovna herself prefers not to talk about problems. It does not have the image of a strong person who has no time to be ill. In part, this gives rise to a lot of speculation regarding her state of health.

In 2016, Galina Volchek was hospitalized due to complications from the flu. The doctors' diagnosis sounded like pneumonia. Nevertheless, before it was made public by Galina's relatives, the media spread a rumor about an oncological disease.


Age makes itself felt and this courageous woman. So she left the political field in 1999, as it became more and more difficult to cope with public and theatrical affairs.

Disease prognosis: Apparently, Galina Volchek is receiving therapy on an outpatient basis. At her age, surgery is very difficult to tolerate, therefore this method can only be used as a last resort. If experts give her a chance to solve the problem in a more gentle way, you need to use it. As for work and possible overload, it is difficult to define them as a disastrous factor. Very often a person gives up exactly when he is torn away from what he loves.

A huge bouquet of flowers was presented to the birthday girl by the President of the Russian Federation Vladimir Putin. Alla Pugacheva did not miss the birthday of her close friend.

The celebration in honor of the birthday girl was held within the walls of her native Sovremennik Theater, which Volchek has been directing since 1972. Galina Borisovna was handed a telegram signed by the first person of the state.

“Belief in the high mission of art, a responsible attitude to one's vocation, love for the native theater and spectators - have fully embodied in your inspired work, in serving Russian culture, people, country, have earned you indisputable authority and great respect,” he quotes the message Russian President Kremlin Press Service.

Christina Orbakaite congratulated her director and teacher, who has recently played a major role in Galina Volchek's play “Two on a Swing”. And Alla Borisovna Pugacheva prepared a heartfelt speech for her dear friend. Legendary women have been in close contact for many years and often appear together at various events. Looking at the photo, many did not fail to note that at 85, Galina Volchek looks no worse than Alla Borisovna Pugacheva, who is preparing for her 70th birthday.

The director moves mainly in a wheelchair, but this does not prevent her from efficiently managing the theater.

Galina Volchek was one of the founders of the Sovremennik Theater. Together with a group of young artists led by Oleg Efremov, she created a troupe that brought a stream of fresh air into the musty theater world. Galina Borisovna staged her first performance when she was only 29 years old. It was her that the theater staff entrusted the leadership when Oleg Efremov was offered to head the Moscow Art Theater.

The first husband of Galina Volchek was the famous artist Evgeny Evstigneev. In this marriage, their common son Denis was born. The family union lasted only nine years. Evstigneev developed a romantic interest on the side, and Volchek herself packed a suitcase for him. Soon Galina Borisovna married Mark Abelev, Doctor of Technical Sciences. He was an intelligent and subtle man, but he was terribly jealous of his star wife. Nine years later, this marriage also fell apart.

Now Volchek relies on the help and support of his son in everything. Denis Evstigneev has made a successful film career as a director, cameraman and producer.



December 19 marks the 85th anniversary of the People's Artist of the USSR, actress, director, teacher Galina Volchek. In theatrical circles, she is called the Iron Lady - in her work she is strict and demanding, but no one doubts her professionalism. She reached considerable heights in her business, however, for this she had to sacrifice personal happiness ...




Galina Volchek was born in 1933 in Moscow in the family of the famous director and cameraman Boris Volchek and screenwriter Vera Maimina, so her path was predetermined from childhood. Just a year after graduating from the Moscow Art Theater School, she, together with other actors - Evgeny Evstigneev, Oleg Efremov, Igor Kvasha, Oleg Tabakov and Lilia Tolmacheva - organized the "Studio of Young Actors",






Galina Volchek's acting career did not last long - in the late 1950s. she appeared on the theatrical stage as an actress, but from 1962 she took up directing, and since then gave all her strength only to her. She last starred in Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf in 1984, and that was the end of her acting career. But in the cinema Galina Volchek periodically appears. Her film debut took place in 1957, and since then she has often received offers from directors. True, as a rule, these were episodic roles. But she turned every episode into a masterpiece. What are her she-wolves in the fairy tale film "About Little Red Riding Hood" and her friend Buzykina in "Autumn Marathon"! True, she herself believed that she was offered very monotonous roles of "any half-monstrous", it is simply impossible to realize her creative potential in such conditions, so she decided to leave the cinema.






As a film director, Galina Volchek began with screen versions of her theatrical productions, and then filmed films based on original scripts - Echelon, Steep Route, etc. However, the first place for her was always the theater, to which she devoted her whole life. In 1972, she became the chief director of the Sovremennik Theater, and in the late 1980s, its artistic director. She was also called the first theater director to break the "cultural blockade" between the USSR and the United States - in the 1970s, at the height of the Cold War, she staged several performances based on Russian classics in American theaters, including on Broadway, and taught at New York University. Sovremennik became the first off-Broadway theater to receive the prestigious Drama Desk Award.






Galina Volchek had to sacrifice a lot to her beloved work. Including personal happiness. She was officially married twice. Her first husband was the famous actor Yevgeny Evstigneev - she lived with him for 9 years and gave birth to a son, Denis, who also became a director. Due to her husband's infidelity, this marriage fell apart. The second marriage with the scientist Mark Abelev also lasted about 9 years. Later, Galina Volchek admitted that her mother-in-law was absolutely right, reproaching her for the fact that nothing exists for her except the theater: “Alas, my absolute immersion in the theater greatly interfered with our life. Mark was jealous, worried. Yes, and the publicity of my profession added discomfort - it is very difficult for a self-sufficient man to constantly feel like on the sidelines ... In general, I did not give Markusha what was necessary in family life, the theater took me all, without a trace».






Galina Volchek prefers not to remember another relationship that stretched for 10 years and did not end in marriage. After that, she decided to devote herself entirely to work, having concluded that it is simply impossible to combine active theatrical activity and family concerns. Moreover, she was always fanatical about work - on the 17th day after the birth of her son, she had already returned to the theater. Later Galina Volchek admitted: “As a result of this experience, I finally realized that family life in its usual sense is excluded for me. My theater bulldozed along it ... Throughout my life I have brought myself to the point that a family has become impossible for me. This is the natural state of a person who is sold into slavery to the theater.».




Galina Volchek's first directorial work was the staging of William Gibson's play Two on a Swing. Subsequently, she did not leave the stage of "Contemporary" for more than 30 years and became a landmark for the director. She explained: “In order to tell from the stage about human relations, one must be able to analyze them, even dissect them. And the best subject for research is yourself. I once formulated my personal life as follows: I had two marriages, several novels and one delusion, and everything lasted a long time. But apart from love, my whole life, and now no less than in my youth, is also a kind of swing».






Unfortunately, all the outstanding actors with whom Volchek began working in Sovremennik are no longer alive - Oleg Efremov, Nina Doroshina, Evgeny Evstigneev, Oleg Tabakov. Galina Volchek is older than all the leading actors-old-timers of the theater - Valentin Gaft, Marina Neyelova, Liya Akhedzhakova. Over the years, it became more and more difficult for her to manage the theater and remain in the ranks.

This article will focus on the famous actress of Soviet and Russian cinema, director and teacher - Galina Volchyok. During her long life she was able to become "People's Artist of the USSR". She received the Order of Merit for the Fatherland for her work. She achieved everything in her life herself and is an example to follow. He has a son who admired his mother from an early age and decided to follow in the footsteps of Galina. The life of this wonderful woman is quite eventful, so let's move on to a detailed analysis of the biography.

Height, weight, age. How old is Galina Volchyok

Although the actress is already a rather elderly woman, everyone who is interested in her wants to know everything to the smallest detail, including height, weight, age. How old is Galina Volchyok, a question arises, because our heroine looks pretty good from the photographs. At the moment, the actress is 83 years old. The weight is 65 kilograms, and the height is 163 centimeters. Galina was born under the star of "Sagittarius" in the year of the "Rooster". Unfortunately, the woman is now sick and therefore her weight is rapidly decreasing. But fans and close people hope for the recovery of Volchek.

Biography and personal life of Galina Volchek

Biography and personal life of Galina Volchek, the most interesting point in the life of an actress. She was born in winter, December 19, 1933 in the capital of Russia. In a family of screenwriters and directors. Therefore, the future star could not go to study in another profession.

She spent her childhood reading books, and from an early age it was a pleasure for Galina to sit all day and penetrate the lives of book heroes.

In 1955 she graduated from the Moscow Art Theater School, after which she went to work in the theater. She and her colleagues in the workshop, such as: Oleg Efremov, Evgeny Evstigneev and others, create the Studio of Young Actors, after a while this project will turn into the famous Sovremennik Theater.

Filmography: films starring Galina Volchek

In 1962, our heroine decides to try herself as a director and she does it pretty well. She received her main success from the play "Two on a Swing", which she performed on the stage of the theater more than 30 times. Other works, such as "Three Comrades" and "An Ordinary History", also brought considerable success to Galina. She also conquered the United States with her performances, for which she was awarded the Drama Desk Prize.

In addition to the theater, the actress also starred in films on her account of a rather extensive filmography. Here are a few of the films where she played not mediocre roles: Don Quixote (1957), Autumn Marathon, The Tale of the Little Red Riding Hood and others. As a film director, she also managed to try herself, which turned out pretty well.

In just her life, Volchek was betrothed twice. The first marriage was with work partner Evgeny Evstigneev, to whom she gave birth to a son. The second marriage was with a scientist - Mark Abeleyev, but they also had to part.

Family and children of Galina Volchek

The family and children of Galina Volchyok is an accessible topic for everyone to read. If you do not yet know in what family our heroine was born, then we will tell you. The girl's father was a certain Boris Volchek, he was at that time a famous director, as well as an operator. Mother, Vera Maimina, was a screenwriter. And as you might guess, Galina had no choice, she would have to follow in the footsteps of her parents anyway. Most importantly, even my grandfather was closely associated with cinema.

Children for Volchek are flowers of life. She loves her son Denis very much. He, like his mother, became a famous person. Works as a film director, producer. Lives with his beloved Catherine.

Son of Galina Volchek - Denis

The son of Galina Volchek - Denis, like his mother, followed in the footsteps of his parents. A young man was born on October 29, 1961. From an early age he dreamed of becoming famous as a mother. And so in 1983, he graduated from an educational institution, as an operator. Immediately after that, he takes part in the filming of the film. After a short period of time, he was awarded the USSR State Prize. Throughout his career, he took part in many projects, including managed to appear in some films. Was betrothed twice. Now she often visits her mother, due to her deteriorating health.

Former husband of Galina Volchek - Evgeny Evstigneev

The ex-husband of Galina Volchyok, Evgeny Evstigneev, is the People's Artist of the USSR. Born in 1926 on an autumn day. Parents were not connected with the stage. Initially, dreams of a theater did not visit little Zhenya, he had to work at a factory. But the only difference from his peers was that he could play many musical instruments. In 1946, he went to study at the theater school.

He met our heroine on stage, after which he offered her a "hand and heart". After the wedding, the actress gave birth to his son. But the marriage broke up after 9 years. Unfortunately, the man died in 1992.

Former husband of Galina Volchek - Mark Abeleev

The ex-husband of Galina Volchyok is Mark Abeleev, a successful Soviet professor. Born on February 26, 1935. Since his father was a famous scientist, the boy wanted to follow in the footsteps of his parents since childhood. During his life he worked on many monographs. Received, in 1966 - the USSR State Prize. Now he works as a director at the Center for Innovative Sciences.

The marriage between Galina and Mark did not last long, they soon parted. The couple never had children. And now Mark has no relationship with anyone.