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Woe from Wit

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So often referenced in literature and reproduced on stage many times is Alexander Griboyedov's Gore ot Uma (Woe from Wit).  Here is a subtitled scene from a 1998 production of the play, featuring Oleg Menshikov, and a clip from the 1952 movie, or you can view the 1998 production in its entirety in Russian.

Griboyedov, like Lermontov, had a hard time getting his plays past the censors in his time.  Written in 1823, it was not published in full until 1861, although many versions of the play appeared in the years in between.  A number of the catch phrases have since become part of the Russian language.

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