Fedor Chaliapin and Iola Tornaghi: love with an Italian accent

2024 Author: Richard Flannagan | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-15 23:55

Iola Lo-Presti was born in sunny Italy. The talented girl was noticed and given the opportunity to enroll in a ballet school at the famous Teatro alla Scala. She was sixteen years old when, under the surname of Tornaga's mother, she became the prima of the Venetian theater, and at twenty-two, together with the troupe, she signed a contract with Savva Mamontov and went on tour to cold Russia.

Love, Onegin and Tornagi

The Italian troupe was warmly greeted by Russian artists, among them was Chaliapin. The young performer, distinguished by his tall stature, immediately drew attention to the pretty Italian woman and her best friend and took patronage over them. He quickly resolved the housing problem and everyday difficulties, helped to get used to the country. Iola Tornaghi and her friend did not speak Russian, and Chaliapin did not understand a word of Italian. At first, communication took place in sign language.

It turned out to be difficult for young Italians even to pronounce the name of the singer, so among themselves they called him “Il-basso”. The troupe took part in the preparation of the opera "A Life for the Tsar", at first the Italian director worked with them, but after a series of failures, the prima Iola Tornaghi asked to replace him with a Russian choreographer. After the grand premiere, the girl became seriously ill.

Chaliapin immediately found the best doctor, and a couple of days later he came in person and brought a saucepan of chicken broth for the patient. By this time, the Italians and Fyodor Ivanovich had already learned to speak a mixture of the Italian-Russian language. And Chaliapin fell more and more in love with a pretty prima, but too persistently courted his passion.

Iola had a strong shock during the rehearsal of The Mermaid. Loud and intrusive Chaliapin completely reincarnated in the role of the Miller and performed the most difficult part with tremendous strength. The musically gifted dancer appreciated the depth of her talent and was imbued with respect and tenderness for a man. The second shock for the Italian prima was organized by Fyodor Ivanovich himself. In the theater, in the presence of the entire troupe of the theater and Savva Mamontov himself, the singer performed the aria "Love of all ages is submissive" from "Eugene Onegin". Suddenly, Iola Tornaghi, who still did not understand Russian very well, heard her pseudonym.

Everyone in the audience applauded and turned to the Italian. Savva Mamontov explained to the girl that Chaliapin publicly declared his love to her. It turned out that Chaliapin changed the line from the aria and sang: "Onegin, I swear on the sword, I love Tornagi madly!" At the end of the season, the Italian troupe went home, only Iola Tornaghi decided to stay in Moscow, having signed a new contract with Mamontov. But the philanthropist decided to lure Chaliapin to the capital. To do this, he sent Iola to St. Petersburg, who managed to find the singer's house and persuade him to contract at the Mariinsky Theater. For a long time, the singer and dancer worked side by side, met, spent time together. After graduating from the theatrical season, the actors left for the village of Putyatino.

Family life

There the wedding and the cheerful acting wedding of Fedor Chaliapin with the Italian citizen Iola Lo-Presti took place. A year later, a loving wife, forgetting about her career, left the stage and gave her husband her first child. In total, six incredibly talented and gifted children were born in a creative family. Fedor Chaliapin, in an effort to provide for his family and provide children with an appropriate education, toured the country a lot. From his trips, he wrote letters filled with tenderness and love to his Iolinushka. All the time he cared about the health of children, talked about his creative successes. He simply idolized sons and daughters, was an exemplary father and a loving husband. The death of the first child, Igor Chaliapin, was a real tragedy. With the birth of the twins, Chaliapin became cramped in the old house, and Fyodor Ivanovich acquired a mansion for the family.

Chilled lines of letters

The Chaliapin family lived in a new mansion without the head of the family. The singer spent more and more time on tour. Letters came less and less, the husband in them no longer called his wife his beloved Iolinushka. Iola understood from the “cool” letters that something was wrong with Fyodor Ivanovich. Indeed, the singer met the widow Maria Petzold and eventually made her his mistress. Iola found out about her rival when the youngest was not yet a year old. A conversation took place between the spouses. Chaliapin was not going to leave his wife, but he also could not refuse the second woman. For four years, the singer lived torn between two families with children. Loving Iola suffered, but held on for the sake of the children.

Iola kept the house in exemplary order and maintained respect for the father in the children. In fact, having lost her beloved husband, Iola Ignatievna found solace in art. She instilled in children a love of the theater, developed their talents, and arranged family performances at home. The children did not hear a word of reproach from her husband. Chaliapin appreciated the restraint of his lawful wife and willingly spent time with his family. The couple officially divorced only before the emigration of Chaliapin. The new wife and children followed the singer abroad. And the divorced Italian lived in Moscow until the fifties of the twentieth century. Then she moved to her son in Rome. The wise woman lived ninety-one years, having outlived Chaliapin, but retaining his family.

Bonus

In honor of Fyodor Ivanovich, a star was lit on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.

Sometimes feelings flare up between true opposites and they happily live together until their last days. And it happens that people turn out to be too similar to be together, like Frank Sinatra and Ava Gardner.