“Sex and the City” in Russian: what happened to the actresses of the popular Zero Era TV series “Balzac”

Central to the plot of the series were the stories of four adult friends – Vera, Sophia, Alla and Yulia – with an unstable personal life. This made the series related to another foreign TV hit on the same topic – “Sex and the City”. “Balzac Age” was openly called the analogue of the story of Carrie Bradshaw and her friends. However, this in no way affected the popularity of the Russian series – and its viewers watched with pleasure. By the way, in 2013 a sequel was released – “The age of Balzac, or All men are their … 5 years later.”

So, who did these actresses play and how did their fates change after the show.

The main role in the series went to Yulia Menshova. As in “Sex and the City”, the story was told in the name of the main character. Here, however, the heroine Menshova Vera was not very similar to Carrie. She was the most reasonable friend, worked as a psychologist and raised a 16-year-old girl from an unsuccessful marriage in her youth. By the way, the parents of the heroine herself in the series were played by Yulia’s real parents – Vera Alentova and Vladimir Menchov.

Alas, only Vera Alentova is alive today, Menshova’s father died in 2021. Julia herself continues to pursue a media career. She leads the YouTube channel “Menshova herself” and performs in theatrical productions. In the personal life of the actress, too, everything is in order. She is married to actor Igor Gordin and they have two children.

The popular pop singer got the role of a criminal lawyer on the show. Son Alla was an independent, confident and slightly cynical woman – the guy looked a bit like the character Samantha in Sex and the City. The audience liked that Alla never gives up and always knows how to get out of the most difficult situations.

For Lada Dance, filming in the series was the first serious acting experience, and after that, in the 2000s, she starred in several more television series (but more in central roles). Interestingly, the theme of “the age of Balzac …” was close to Lada herself – in 2002 she just divorced her husband Pavel Svirsky, from whom she gave birth to a son and a daughter.

Today Lada is reluctant to talk about her personal life, however, she admits that she is ready to remarry. She regularly appears on TV shows, comes out, communicates with fans on social networks. Recently, Dance discovered a new hobby – the singer is engaged in pole dancing.

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Zhanna Epple played in the series the most emotional and loving heroine Yulia Shashkova. She is definitely unlucky with men, but she hasn’t lost her romantic mood.

Today, Epple continues to act, but with less success. For example, she received a cameo role in the new film In the Sun, Along the Rows of Corn, but during the premiere of the film she found that all the scenes with her participation were cut.

Alika Smekhova played in the series a twice-widowed heroine who now dreams of marrying a rich old man.

The personal life of the actress herself also perfectly suited the action-packed storyline of a melodrama. She was married three times, and the second marriage lasted only two months. The actress has two sons, one of whom was born out of wedlock in a relationship with businessman Igor Makarov.

Today, Smekhova is rarely removed, but she plays in the theater and sometimes appears as a guest at social events.

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