Good evening, Irene! Tell us a little about the play “Bench” that has brought you to Cyprus. This is a great Soviet play, written according to the laws of the genre, with good language that is pure and honest and, thank God, is not disfigured by contemporary reality.

It is about what is interesting and always compelling about the relationship of man and woman. It is about what makes our lives. The play was created, in my opinion, in 1978. Over many years, it has put in an incredible amount of time, even in Japan in the Japanese language and in the period when perestroika was forgotten. I found it while looking for something interesting to me as a person, as a woman, about love and about the search for happiness. At first, I said that I was crazy; that it was not necessary to put on a Soviet drama. We were the first who had the courage to give it a second life.

Your daughter has received acting training. You are, in some way, involved in her formation as an actress?
Of course I am involved. Like any mother, as any parent who always tries to participate in the life of their child, I am involved.

In one of your interviews, you said that, against her will, there will occupy a niche bitchy vamp in film. What are the similarities between the screen and the way you are in real life? Do you consider yourself a strong woman?
With screen characters that I have played, I still obsess over them trying to justify them and try to build some of their inner life using life experiences. It’s the only thing we have in common. As for the question of whether I am strong or not, I believe that this question can best be responded to by many other people.

As a leader, are you hard or democratic?
I would say that I’m too soft.

What role do you think has not yet been played by you? For the sake of what role would you set aside all your affairs?
There are very many such roles. I am unlikely to be able to name just one of them because I’m an actress. There are not a lot of roles that I have played yet in my life.

You prefer black clothes, but experts say that it speaks of a need to feel secure and closed from the outside world that is characteristic of insecure people. Do you think this is true?
I am a supporter of the fact that it is very difficult to categorise people. We are all vulnerable, both men and women, and artists and locksmiths. Sometimes, we go strong, sometimes weak. It all depends on life; on the situation of the environment and what is happening to others and to you personally. As for the black, it is just like me. I also like bright white and bright red. The fact is that the camera does not always convey the correct colour, so I most often am in black.

Your passion for music, in recent times, is not accidental?
Or is it just a stage or fad?
My parents were musicians and my brother is also a musician. I grew up in music and always wanted to be an actress in musical theatre and operetta, but it did not work out and I became an actress in the drama theatre. Music has always been in my life. If we talk about my concert programme, I’m doing what I love madly. Honestly, I’m not interested in how people even appreciate it from the outside because I derive, from this experience, great pleasure.

You once said: “I live not because of, but in spite of, the circumstances — always somewhere knocking the wall, overcoming obstacles. Perhaps I have the karma”. Do you believe in fate and karma?
I absolutely believe in fate. I believe that everything is destined to happen, whether you like it or you do not. That is to say, life does not depend on us to create all paths.

Since I am still a Jew by birth, I very well know a lot of Jewish proverbs and wisdom in this regard. It seems to me, too, that a lot depends on us, if we can catch the chance, whether we will see and use opportunity. No need to sit and wait to see where you will end up because “a rolling stone gathers no moss.” Nevertheless, I am sure that everything that is done is predetermined by fate.

With your busy schedule, do you manage to set aside time to rest? Is there a favourite place?
Exactly 5 hours after our interview, I’m flying to the French Riviera. I will have three days to rest. Ahead, for the next half-year, I am working seven days a week.

In one of your many interviews, you said that you do not suffer from the absence of a husband and that you even welcome the opportunity to engage in solitude. What would you be willing to do for a loved one? Would you be able to drop everything?
For love, I can give up everything, but it should always be this way. I do not see, in my surroundings, a worthy person for whom I would do this, though.

How do you see yourself in 10 years?
God forbid, I do not even want to think about it.

Live for a day, here and now?
Yes, come what may…