Russian actress Varvara Shmykova has built a reputation on stage and screen for her singular quality: an openness that makes audiences feel she is speaking directly to them. Lara Palmer met her in Dubai after a performance of The Broken Hearts Club, a show Shmykova helped create with friends on almost no notice.
Lara Palmer: Tell me how The Broken Hearts Club came about.
Varvara Shmykova: Two wonderful friends of mine in Dubai — Philip and Lisa — set up a company called Arete to bring cultural events to the city. They wanted to start something simple. Via Zoom, we decided to build a show from scratch around St. Valentine’s Day. The whole thing was initially terrifying — completely unknown territory. But that is exactly what excited me about it. We focused on love and relationships: a mother, a daughter, first love, first heartbreak, teenage experiences, the dream of a long happy life. Little by little, real lines emerged, prompted by what we actually felt rather than what we thought a show should include. LP: Film or theatre? VS: Both, equally. Choosing between them is like deciding whom you love more — your mother or your father. I love them in different ways. Not everyone can work in both forms — it depends on something deep inside you, the specific nature of your talent. I am fortunate to feel at home in both. LP: What is the greatest thing about acting? VS: Living through other lives. For a month or more, you take apart a story, live inside it, let it become yours. Then, for another six months, you are immersed in this other world from head to toe. It is an extraordinarily effective form of psychotherapy. LP: What is the shortest way to self-acceptance? VS: You come to it every day, the same way you catch fleeting moments of happiness. It is not a destination. It took me twenty years to understand that what I had always thought of as my non-standard appearance was actually my greatest strength. Nobody else has my particular combination of humour, manner, body shape, and way of being. That is what makes me interesting. LP: What questions would you like to ask God? VS: I believe in justice. No matter what. There are questions we may only answer by living with our hearts full of love, whatever the trials. I am still working on those questions.