Olga Lomonosova: Embracing Authenticity in Life and Art

Olga Lomonosova, often hailed as the ‘goddess of prime time,’ approaches her serial popularity with a healthy dose of humor, understanding that it’s not something to be overly proud of. However, when it comes to her theatrical roles, performances, partners, and collaborative work with her director and husband, Pavel Safonov, she can talk for hours. Her eyes sparkle with genuine emotion, and her love for her craft is not just endearing but disarming.

On Cultivating Taste and the Weaknesses of Geniuses

Olga, you are a rare guest in Belarus, much to the chagrin of your Belarusian fans…

I would love to visit more often. So far, we have brought performances like ‘Pygmalion,’ ‘The Eldest Son,’ and ‘Tartuffe’ to your country. On April 27th, Grisha Antipenko and I will be in Gomel, and on the 29th and 30th, we will be in Minsk with the play ‘Cyrano de Bergerac,’ directed by Pavel Safonov. I haven’t had any film shoots in Belarus yet, but I always feel comfortable here. I especially love Gomel, as it reminds me of my native Donetsk in its original form, from my childhood. It’s just as clean and sparsely populated. So, Belarus is associated with my childhood.

On the Love for Theater

What does theater mean to you?

It’s an incredible allure. I can’t live without it. When I’m filming, I miss it terribly and long to rehearse. I’m a hostage to theater; I can’t imagine my life without it.

On Free Time and Family

How do you like to spend your free time between shoots and performances?

In various ways. We might have a family dinner at home. Usually, the children initiate these family gatherings. Like many women, my elder daughter Varya (who will be 9 years old) and I enjoy shopping and buying beautiful things. She used to wear what I bought for her, but now she likes to choose, try on, and evaluate things herself. This is probably how a child’s taste is cultivated. She consults with me and expresses her opinion about my outfits, and we make decisions together. I’m glad that Varya is growing up and no longer dresses according to my taste but determines for herself what suits her.

It’s incredibly difficult to please four-year-old Sasha with clothes. She doesn’t wear any pants; her wardrobe consists exclusively of dresses and skirts. I feel that I will have to give away most of Varya’s clothes. For some reason, Sasha doesn’t wear shirts, jeans, long-sleeved T-shirts, or pajamas; she only recognizes nightgowns. I didn’t have such problems with Varya. It’s harder to please the younger one, so I feel genuine happiness when she accepts what I give her.

On Discipline and Education

What might you punish your children for or deprive them of certain pleasures?

I don’t even know. I don’t scold Varya for not doing her homework. I try to explain that she will be punished by getting a bad grade. Regarding school, my daughter understands that she is responsible for her actions. Unfortunately, schools nowadays shift too much responsibility onto parents. This wasn’t the case in our time. I studied independently; no one controlled me or did my homework with me. Now, take English, for example; Varya can’t do it without me. This means the volume and complexity of the assignments are such that she can’t handle them alone. In my opinion, this is wrong. Parents shouldn’t have to do homework with their children, and children shouldn’t study under duress. Varya tries to do everything herself, but sometimes she needs my help. However, I’m not always helpful because we didn’t study many of the things they learn now. For example, I’m not good at math; I don’t remember numbers at all. Interestingly, I recently heard on the radio in the car that Richter also had no memory for numbers. So, even geniuses have their weaknesses (smiles).

On Cooking and Unexpected Guests

In the movie ‘Sex and the City,’ one of the characters admitted: ‘The only thing I’ve managed to do in the kitchen is make a mess and a few small fires.’ What are your relationships with the kitchen like?

I can cook, but I don’t particularly enjoy it. My repertoire of dishes is not as extensive as I’d like, and they are all quite simple. I can feed my children and husband, but I don’t do it often because we now have a nanny who cooks not only for the kids but also for Pavel and me. Sometimes I enjoy baking chicken or fish or making a cottage cheese casserole. But I don’t like cooking for long, especially complicated dishes.

What if unexpected guests arrive? How would you handle the situation?

We would drink tea, and there would always be something to go with it. Although I know wonderful families where you can drop in at any moment, and the table will be set immediately. Unfortunately, I’m not one of them.

On Forgiveness and Relationships

What are you more likely to forgive: a significant wrong or minor mischiefs?

It’s difficult to answer such a question outside of a life situation. Probably, when there are many minor mischiefs, it already grows into a significant wrong. Evil also comes in different forms…

When does the point of no return arise in relationships for you?

I know how to forgive. Or rather, it’s not even forgiveness but the ability to forget what happened. But negativity inside begins to accumulate on its own. Each of us has our own basket where we put all the negativity. At some point, it overflows, and you don’t specifically push that person away; they distance themselves. I don’t set a barrier and say, ‘I will never communicate with you again.’ Fortunately, there is no such person in my life whom I would be boiling with anger or hatred and couldn’t forgive anything. It just happens that a person becomes a stranger to me, and there is no trust. I can communicate with them, but they are no longer my person. They are outside my personal circle, so I won’t call them and ask how they are doing. I’m not interested in it at all. I don’t want to spend my energy on them because I ‘recharge’ from people or live through an equal exchange of energies with them. If this is not the case, then the person dissolves somewhere out there. They don’t cease to exist, but not in my life.

On Reviving Feelings and Virtual Love

Can one ‘step into the same river twice’ in family relationships and revive dead feelings? The characters in the movie of the same name, where you played the lead role, managed to do this. Do you think that internet correspondence and virtual infatuation are effective ways to overcome a family crisis?

Firstly, in the film, there is a family with two children. For their sake, it’s worth using different methods and ways. Children feel everything subtly. I remember myself as a child when my parents were going through a difficult period. You can’t take anyone’s side; for you, there are no right or wrong parties; there is only one position – together. Therefore, children don’t understand adult explanations: ‘you’ll grow up, we’ll talk, you’ll understand everything.’ For a child, both dad and mom are equally important. Of course, if someone has fallen in love, the feelings have died, and only irritation remains, it’s not worth enduring. Especially if there is violence or humiliation, it’s not worth enduring. In other cases, you should try as much as possible to look at each other and try to reconnect the broken threads of the relationship. In the film, everything ends well: the husband and wife fall in love with each other again. But even if the husband had fallen in love with another woman, who knows, maybe he would have gone to her and realized that his wife is the best. That he has a family worth cherishing.

According to Henryk Sienkiewicz: ‘If a woman nags her husband, she wants to make him a perfect half.’ Have you succeeded greatly in this kind of creativity?

I can’t say that I ‘nag.’ Although every woman occasionally faces the situation where she starts to whine: ‘is it really that hard to do this.’ But a man…