Nestor Vasilievich Kukolnik () (1809–1868) was a Russian playwright and prose writer of Carpatho-Rusyn origin. Immensely popular during the early part of his career, his works were subsequently dismissed as sententious and sentimental. Today, he is best remembered for having contributed to the libretto of the first Russian opera, A Life for the Tsar by Mikhail Glinka. Glinka also set many of his lyrics to music. Family background Nestor Kukolnik was born on 8 September 1809 in the city of Saint Petersburg in the family of a professor lecturing at the Saint Petersburg Teacher's College. His father, Bazyli Wojciech Kukolnik, belonged to the ethnic group of Rusyns (Ruthenians) and came from an old noble family. Graduate of Vienna University, he lectured at Poland. In 1804, Bazyli Wojciech Kukolnik was invited to teach in Russia along with professors Ivan Orlay (Orlay János) and Mikhail Balugjanskij. Among his pupils were Grand Duke Constantine Pavlovich of Russia and Grand Duke Nikolai Pavlovich of Russia, the future emperor Nikolai I of Russia; Czar Alexander I of Russia granted Vasily Kukolnik an estate in the Vilno Oblast and was Nestor Kukolnik's godfather at his baptism. Early life and studies Nestor studied at the Nizhyn Gymnasium of Higher Sciences (present-day Ukraine), founded earlier by Nestor's father. Nikolai Gogol studied at the same institution and they both played at the school theater. Kukolnik's literature activity started in gymnasium, where he wrote his first verses and dramas. After graduating from Nizhyn Gymnasium in 1829, he gave lessons at Vilnius Gymnasium, and, in 1831, moved with his brother Platon Kukolnik to Saint Petersburg, where he served at the Ministry of Finance. Literary activity In 1833 Kukolnik's first play “Tortini” was published by Faddei Bulgarin, soon followed by fantasy drama “Torcuato Tasso”, which resulted in his reputation as a legendary playwright in the capital. The turning point in his literary career came in 1834, after demonstration of patriotic drama "Ruka Vsevishnego Otechestvo Spasla" (The God's Hand Saved The Motherland), applauded by the Russian Emperor Nicolas I at the play's premiere. Inspired by this success, the writer produces historical play “Prince Mikhail Vasilievich Skopin-Shuysky”. In 1836 he founded The Gazette of Fine Arts (Khudozhestvennaia gazeta) which was published in Saint Petersburg until 1842 and wrote more than two hundred articles on art. Kukolnik's oeuvre is diverse. He experimented with multiple genres and formats: novels, historical tales, criticism, poetry and even music.