Uncle Vanya
by Anton Chekhov
ENVIRONMENTAL THEATER
A new translation of Anton Chekhov’s “scenes of country life” premieres in Provincetown as an immersive and intimate show.
directed by Katherine Mendeloff
ARB ARTS
Ann Arbor, Michigan
The audience is in the room where Vanya, the longtime caretaker of a quiet Russian country estate, sees his extended family arrive at the beginning of each season and depart at the end of it. This summer, a lot of people fall in love, and everyone waits for that wished-for love to be returned. Vacation ends, they are still wishing and waiting when Sonya says:
“We shall live through the long procession of days before us, and
through the long evenings; we shall patiently bear the trials that
fate imposes on us... We shall rest. We shall hear the angels. ...
In a new translation by Moscow Arts critic John Freedman, directed by Katherine Mendeloff (The Notebook of Trigorin, The Pink Bedroom, Summer at the Lake) and produced by Arb Arts from Ann Arbor, Michigan, the show uses live music and autumn roses to capture the sly humor and heartbreak of Chekhov’s look at longing for what won’t happen.
When he was asked who influenced him most, Williams said, “Chekhov! Chekhov! Chekhov!” – exclamation points included. The great Russian playwright is the master of our festival theme this year of waiting and wishful thinking.