Chekov for the Stage: The Seagull/Uncle Vanya/The Three Sisters/ The Cherry Orchard

I thuroughly enjoyed the works of Chekhov, the writer who helped define the famous Moscow Art Theatre. His plot twists are a bit difficult to grasp outside of a theatre, but still very enjoyable.

Chekhov utilizes a realistic writing style. Fantastic and absurd stories where the actors just flailed around on stage and delivered their lines were of little use to him. His plays can be viewed in many different ways. A scene that at one moment can seem tragic, can be comedic if looked at another way. There is no consistant good or evil in a Chekhov piece. He once wrote, "depict life as it actually is. Its aim is truth, unconditional and honest... a man of letters... has to... realize that dung heaps play a very significant role in a landscape and that evil passions are as inherent in life as good ones." He wanted the emotions that the characters were experiencing to be sensed in the actions of the actors on stage, not in the words that anyone could sit down and read. This makes his work some of the more difficult to perform in theatre today. Only an experienced actor who is able to create a reality of their character is capable of performing a Chekhov play. Chekhov's comedies are often mistaken for tragidies. They are actually perfect examples of high comedy. In a true tragedy, the main characters have some heroic qualities that make their fall devestating to the audience. The characters in Chekhov's plays "The Seagull," and "The Cherry Orchard" have no such qualities. Chekhov also had a very particular way of writing his play. He set out with a purpose. He felt that the writer of the play needed a clearly defined reason to be writing, or else they would find themselves lost with a mediocre piece of work.

I read an edition that had only two of these plays, so my review is based on two plays only - "The Cherry Orchard" and "The Three Sisters". Chekov's trademark is to write about strong and determined women. This is quite a stretch since the plays were written in the very early twentieth century. These plays are superbly crafted, and the drama unfolds like a flower in slow motion photography. His characters in both are also wonderful. It would be a real treat to see even one of these masterpieces performed on the stage. I recommend this author highly to anyone interested in adding plays to their reading repertoire