Rybakov

a family of Russian actors.

Nikolai Khrisanfovich Rybakov. Born May 7 (19), 1811, in Kursk; died Nov. 15 (27), 1876, in Tambov.

Rybakov made his debut in the Kursk Theater with the troupe of I. F. Shtein in 1826. From the 1833–34 season until 1841 he performed with L. Iu. Mlotkovskii’s troupe in Kharkov and elsewhere. Later he performed in various theaters of southern Russian and the Volga Region, and in 1872 he appeared with the People’s Theater at the Polytechnical Exhibition in Moscow.

Rybakov’s acting was greatly influenced by P. S. Mochalov and M. S. Shchepkin, in whose productions he appeared on tour. He frequently appeared in melodramas, striving to invest them with truth and a spirit of rebellion, for example, in the role of Nino in Polevoi’s Ugolino. One of his best early roles was the title role in Shakespeare’s Hamlet. Later, he appeared primarily in Russian plays. Rybakov was a renowned interpreter of the role of Neschastlivtsev in Ostrovskii’s The Forest. His other roles included Bruskov and Kuroslepov in Ostrovskii’s A Hangover at Someone Else’s Feast and Fiery Heart, Prostakov and Skotinin in Fonvizin’s The Minor, Skalozub in Griboedov’s Woe From Wit, and Zemlianika in Gogol’s The Inspector-General. One of the reformers of the Russian provincial stage, he was a representative of democratic trends in the Russian theater and shared the artistic ideas of P. M. Sadovskii, A. E. Mar-tynov, and P. V. Vasil’ev.

Konstantin Nikolaevich Rybakov. Born 1856; died 1916. Son of N. Kh. Rybakov.

Rybakov began his stage career in 1871 in Vladikavkaz. He performed in many cities with his father. From 1881 until the end of his life he was an actor with the Malyi Theater in Moscow. He appeared in romantic-heroic roles until the 1880’s, when he turned to character roles in the Russian repertoire. His talent for realistic acting developed under the influence of his father, of A. N. Ostrovskii, and of the actress G. N. Fedotova, his acting partner and friend. Rybakov’s acting was distinguished by simplicity and naturalness. His roles included Kudriash, Neznamov, Neschastlivtsev, and Iusov in Ostrovskii’s The Thunderstorm, Guilty Though Guiltless, The Forest, and A Profitable Post, Famusov in Griboedov’s Woe From Wit, and the Mayor in Gogol’s The Inspector-General.

Rybakov’s wife, Paulina Gerasimovna Rybakova (born between 1810 and 1820; died 1880’s), and daughter, Ol’ga Niko-laevna Rybakova (born c. 1845; died 1870), were also actresses.