There are some film stars who will do just about anything to earn the public's adoration. And Oleg Menshikov, the idol of the Russian screen, is one of them. The dashing actor, best known in the West for his role in Nikita Mikhalkov's Oscar-winning "Burnt by the Sun," came to the attention of Russian audiences in the early 1980s. At that time, he debuted in Mikhalkov's "Rodnya" (Relatives), after which he went on to a stellar performance in director Mikhail Kozakov's melodrama, "Pokrovskiye Vorota" (Pokrovskiye Gates). More recently, Menshikov has graced the screen again in "East-West," a film by French director Regis Varnier, in which he stars with the legendary Catherine Deneuve. But Menshikov's recent moment in the spotlight had nothing to do with his film career but as a star of the stage. His fans flocked to the final performance of "Gore ot Uma" (Woe From Wit), a 19th-century classic written by Alexander Griboyedov, which Menshikov starred in and directed. After the play's two-year run, the fledgling director decided to close the show with a bash before moving on to new staging projects.
The final performance drew quite a crowd. Included among the more prominent guests were pop diva Alla Pugachyova and her flamboyant husband, singer Filipp Kirkorov. Tycoon Boris Berezovsky was also there with his wife, Yelena. Actor Anatoly Kuznetsov was also accompanied by his wife, Alexandra Pugachyova, who posed for photographers wearing the paper mask that was sent as an invitation to the event.
After the final performance, the privileged public (i.e., those who made the paper mask list) were invited to drink champagne and enjoy fireworks on the veranda. Costume designer Igor Chapurin drank a good bit of bubbly with his friend Menshikov and the pair was quite a target for local paparazzi hungry for details about the star's private life.
Menshikov may be very quiet about his life outside the spotlight, but as a public figure he is a skilled self-promoter. Indeed, he decided to immortalize his directing debut by preparing a stone plaque commemorating the play's two -year run. But when Menshikov stepped out in the public eye to admire his own contribution, his female fans went wild. They broke through the bodyguards to surround the star of stage and screen and press him for his autograph. He obliged and was not released by his fans until each and everyone received his signature.
Does Menshikov consider these scenes a nuisance? Perhaps, but popularity has its price.

Submitted by Sanochki