Olga Borodina, Anton Yelin

Today, the poetry does not attract thousands of people, and the poet is not so popular as he used to be in 1960's. But this does not mean that Russia has become short of talented people. In September, Moscow will welcome the First International Festival of Poets. The program includes poetic conversaziones, concerts and seminars. The famous Russian poets and young authors from different Russian regions, CIS countries and other foreign countries have been invited to take part in it.

We got acquainted with one of the Festival's participants. Her name is Angelina Polonskaya. Since 1997, she has become very popular among poetic people.

Angelina Polonskaya doubts the existence of a human soul and a talent to be given by God. Sex means nothing for true poetry. She also denies the existence of pure "female" poesy. Despite the established spiritual tradition, she considers the talent to be just a combination of genes, which the person inherits from his or her ancestors.

Angelina is a cousin-grand-grandchild of Veronika Polonskaya - a girl friend of Vladimir Mayakovsky. Her main occupation is an ice-show actress. She worked for six years with the "Russian Circus" ballet. She wrote her first poem at the age of seven. She was eighteen when she started writing her poems thoughtfully. In 1993, the "Smena" magazine published her works. These were the verses from the "Svetoch Moy Nebesny" collection ("My Heavenlike Torch").

In early 1998 her new book titled "The Verses" was published. She was surprised to see her book sold out very quickly, even more so as she spent no money on advertising the book.

"I was so inexperienced, that agreed to give my home phone number at the end of the book, - Angelina recalls. - Even now people keep calling…"

A new book by Polonskaya will soon be issued. It is entitled "The Sky as it sees GI" and includes the verses written within the last year and a half. We are looking forward to see it.