Post by The Exodus on Mar 4, 2012 21:51:15 GMT -6
Character: Irina Kozlovaya Martin
Age: 24
Gender: Female
Occupation: Musician
AI: Natalia Tena
Personality: Irina is a risk taker. Her uncle Boris used to say it would get her in trouble one day. And maybe that was a self-fulfilling prophecy. Irina’s wanderlust has sent her all over Europe, in search of something better. But she’s no dreamy-eyed idealist. Her naturally bubbly and feisty nature is tempered by brushes with misery and desperation. She knows better than to believe in luck. Instead, she makes her own and hopes it lasts long enough to see her through. If there is one good thing to say of her, it is that Irina is resilient. Always ready to get up, even after the world has kicked her down.
History: Irina was raised in St. Petersburg by her mother, uncle, aunt, and grandparents. The family (which by the time Irina was eight had expanded to include two cousins) lived in a small apartment and often had difficulty making ends meet. However, her mother, who stayed at home to care for the brood of children and her elderly parents, still found time and money to teach Irina music. Before getting pregnant, Sofia Kozolovina had been a music teacher. She’d lost her job for having an affair with a student’s father (Irina’s father, as well), but her talent and passion inspired Irina throughout her childhood. As a teenager, Irina played music and sang in bars. She also tutored wealthier students at her school for a few years, until the music teacher there forbid her from holding private lessons. All of Irina’s pay went towards taking care of her family. Her beloved grandparents passed away when Irina was fourteen and seventeen each.
At eighteen, Irina made a pact with her best friend, Masha Orlovina, to sign up with Lyubov Agency in the heart of the city, instead of pursuing a higher degree. Lyubov Agency promised both Irina and Masha wealthy, Western husbands. More importantly, Lyubov Agency promised better economic futures for its girls by giving them English lessons and trade classes, if they fulfilled the strict requirements to register with them Masha failed; Irina passed. Irina participated in dozens of photoshoots for Lyubov’s website and dozens of interviews, speed dates, and social events. None were successful. Irina’s outspoken personality turned away many potential fiancés. Finally, the owner of Lyubov Agency gave Irina an ultimatum: play the part of the demure, Russian housewife or her contract would be terminated. She had one last chance to impress after two years. As luck would have it, Irina met Edgar Martin the very next night.
Edgar was a quiet, serious man from England. For him, Irina played the part of a demure housewife-to-be. And somehow, he was smitten. Irina soon bid Russia and her family goodbye and went to live in a strange place called “Yorkshire”.
Life with Edgar was a huge adjustment for Irina. For one thing, he was seventeen years her senior, quiet by nature, and the language barrier seemed insurmountable. However, the one thing the pair both loved was music. Edgar taught Irina to play piano and guitar (she already knew singing and accordion from her mother) during their years of marriage. He also taught her English and while she never mastered the language, it helped in daily life.
After three years of marriage, Edgar had a brain aneurysm and passed away in his sleep. Jobless, alone, and scared, Irina tried to go home to Russia, but found that immigrating back home was no longer an option. Her citizenship in limbo, Irina fled the country and stayed in the first place the train stopped outside of English soil: Paris.
Other: Irina plays three instruments—accordion, guitar, and piano. She also sings in both Russian and English. Her French, however is atrocious and she only knows basic phrases. She is renting an apartment in the Jewish quarter of Le Marais because the concierge there speaks a bit of Russian. Currently, she plays in subways and on street corners in addition to her regular job at Le Baiser Sale, in order to make ends meet.
Age: 24
Gender: Female
Occupation: Musician
AI: Natalia Tena
Personality: Irina is a risk taker. Her uncle Boris used to say it would get her in trouble one day. And maybe that was a self-fulfilling prophecy. Irina’s wanderlust has sent her all over Europe, in search of something better. But she’s no dreamy-eyed idealist. Her naturally bubbly and feisty nature is tempered by brushes with misery and desperation. She knows better than to believe in luck. Instead, she makes her own and hopes it lasts long enough to see her through. If there is one good thing to say of her, it is that Irina is resilient. Always ready to get up, even after the world has kicked her down.
History: Irina was raised in St. Petersburg by her mother, uncle, aunt, and grandparents. The family (which by the time Irina was eight had expanded to include two cousins) lived in a small apartment and often had difficulty making ends meet. However, her mother, who stayed at home to care for the brood of children and her elderly parents, still found time and money to teach Irina music. Before getting pregnant, Sofia Kozolovina had been a music teacher. She’d lost her job for having an affair with a student’s father (Irina’s father, as well), but her talent and passion inspired Irina throughout her childhood. As a teenager, Irina played music and sang in bars. She also tutored wealthier students at her school for a few years, until the music teacher there forbid her from holding private lessons. All of Irina’s pay went towards taking care of her family. Her beloved grandparents passed away when Irina was fourteen and seventeen each.
At eighteen, Irina made a pact with her best friend, Masha Orlovina, to sign up with Lyubov Agency in the heart of the city, instead of pursuing a higher degree. Lyubov Agency promised both Irina and Masha wealthy, Western husbands. More importantly, Lyubov Agency promised better economic futures for its girls by giving them English lessons and trade classes, if they fulfilled the strict requirements to register with them Masha failed; Irina passed. Irina participated in dozens of photoshoots for Lyubov’s website and dozens of interviews, speed dates, and social events. None were successful. Irina’s outspoken personality turned away many potential fiancés. Finally, the owner of Lyubov Agency gave Irina an ultimatum: play the part of the demure, Russian housewife or her contract would be terminated. She had one last chance to impress after two years. As luck would have it, Irina met Edgar Martin the very next night.
Edgar was a quiet, serious man from England. For him, Irina played the part of a demure housewife-to-be. And somehow, he was smitten. Irina soon bid Russia and her family goodbye and went to live in a strange place called “Yorkshire”.
Life with Edgar was a huge adjustment for Irina. For one thing, he was seventeen years her senior, quiet by nature, and the language barrier seemed insurmountable. However, the one thing the pair both loved was music. Edgar taught Irina to play piano and guitar (she already knew singing and accordion from her mother) during their years of marriage. He also taught her English and while she never mastered the language, it helped in daily life.
After three years of marriage, Edgar had a brain aneurysm and passed away in his sleep. Jobless, alone, and scared, Irina tried to go home to Russia, but found that immigrating back home was no longer an option. Her citizenship in limbo, Irina fled the country and stayed in the first place the train stopped outside of English soil: Paris.
Other: Irina plays three instruments—accordion, guitar, and piano. She also sings in both Russian and English. Her French, however is atrocious and she only knows basic phrases. She is renting an apartment in the Jewish quarter of Le Marais because the concierge there speaks a bit of Russian. Currently, she plays in subways and on street corners in addition to her regular job at Le Baiser Sale, in order to make ends meet.
