On the day of the 150th anniversary of Konstantin Sergeyevich Stanislavsky, an evening dedication "Outside the System" took place on the Main Stage of the Moscow Art Theater. The production is based on documentary material — letters, memoirs, memoirs, diaries, recordings of rehearsals. The fate of the founder of the Moscow Art Theater is reflected in the testimonies of his greatest contemporaries, friends, students and opponents.

The memory of the young promising composer Gleb Shubnikov helped his widow and his friend Sanya find their place in life...

After a young noblewoman decides to elope with an officer, a powerful blizzard puts a stop to their plans.

A graduate of the journalism department of Moscow State University Veronica Vesnina, the daughter of a famous journalist in the capital, goes to the provincial city to work on the radio...

After the funeral of a friend, the artist Arkhipov experiences a creative crisis. However, having met a ballerina who was hospitalized due to an injury, he spends many days with her, helps the young woman get back on her feet and forgets about his own misfortune.

The film is dedicated to the heroines of Ostrovsky’s plays—wives, cooks, actresses, matchmakers. For the most part, these are composite characters, but many of them have real-life prototypes. The author was a keen observer and recorded everything interesting in his diary. This is how the gallery of images from his native Zamoskvorechye, where Ostrovsky was born, came into being. Later, after traveling along the Volga, portraits of residents from small towns along the river were added. Alexander Nikolaevich never overlooked the details. When the playwright described daily life, the details of clothing, or the manner of speaking of a character, the hero would literally come to life.