Maria Zankovetska was a Ukrainian theater actress. There are some sources that date her birth to August 3, 1860.
Biography
Maria was born into a family of an impoverished landowner and nobleman Kostyantyn Kostyantynovych Adasovsky and a Chernihiv city resident Maria Vasylivna Nefedova in a village of Zanky, Nizhyn County, Chernigov Governorate. She had many siblings. Maria was a graduate of the Chernihiv City Female Gymnasium. In 1876 Maria came out on a stage of the Nizhyn theater. The city of Nizhyn became her native town where she kept her own building. Her professional career started on October 27, 1882 in the Yelizavetgrad City Theater under the management of Marko Kropyvnytsky. Her first role was Natalka from the Kotlyarevsky play "Natalka Poltavka". Later Maria participated among the most popular and professional Ukrainian troupes of Marko Kropyvnytsky, Mykhailo Starytsky, Mykola Sadovsky, Panas Saksahansky. Her stage nameZankovetska was derived from the name of the village where she was born. The professional career of Zankovetska's accounted for over 30 roles. Her characters were dramatic heroes. Maria sang in a mezzo-soprano voice. The actress created images that were penetrated with a real drama and a fiery comedy. She glorified with her play ordinary common people revealing the immensity of their souls. Having a charming voice, a dramatic soprano, she incomparably performed in plays the Ukrainian folk songs. Zankovetska demanded the opening in Nizhyn of a permanent state theater. In 1918 she organized a people's theater "Ukrainian troupe under direction of M. Zankovetska", where she played such actors as Borys Romanytsky, Andriy Rotmyrov and others. Several plays were set among which were "Natalka Poltavka", "Hetman Doroshenko", "Aza the Gypsy". Recognizing her stage merits, in June 1918 the Hetman of UkrainePavlo Skoropadsky approved the adoption by the Council of Ministers of a resolution on the appointment of a lifetime state pension for Zankovetska. In 1922 Ukraine triumphantly celebrated the 40th anniversary of Zankovetska's career. She was the first person in Ukraine whom the government awarded the high title of the People's Artist of the republic. Zankovetska died on October 4, 1934. She is buried at the Baikove Cemetery, in Kiev.
