A striking version of Chekhov's classic play, by Charlotte Pyke, John Kerr and Joseph Blatchley, restoring to the play the cuts demanded by the Russian censor in 1896.

In nineteenth-century rural Russia, an anxious young writer prepares the first performance of his new play for the two women in his life. The consequences are devastating, with everybody in love with the wrong person, and death hovering close by.

Through both comedy and tragedy, Seagull explores lives that are precariously balanced between love and indifference, success and failure, hope and despair.

This version of Anton Chekhov's The Seagull was first performed at the Arcola Theatre, London, in 2011.

About the Author
Anton Chekhov (1860-1904), a physician by training, is now considered the most notable 20th-century Russian dramatist. His major plays, all staged by Stanislavsky at the Moscow Art Theatre, helped establish psychological realism in European theatre. Charlotte Pyke is an actress and translator. She has translated several Russian plays, including The Seagull (as Seagull) for the Arcola, The Government Inspector, Philistines and The White Guard for the National Theatre; Enemies, The Suicide and The Bath-House for the Almeida Theatre; and Uncle Vanya for Presence Theatre Company. As an actress she trained at the St Petersburg Academy of Dramatic Art, and LAMDA. Theatre includes: Philistines and Burnt by the Sun (National Theatre) Television includes: Spooks, A Single Father, Heartbeat, Holby City and The Bill. John Kerr trained as screenwriter with the National Film and Television School. Theatre includes: Creditors, Mechanical Piano and The Jury. Film and television includes: The Riveter, Flying Colours, Capital City, The Volunteer, Night Shift. Radio includes: Stranger in the Bed. Books include: The Red Hog of Colima and Tic and Toc. Joseph Blatchley is an actor and director who has worked extensively in the theatre, film and television in England and France, working with Tony Richardson, Nick Roeg, Bill Douglas, Francois Truffaut and Peter Brook. He studied film-making at the National Film and Television School. His short film Fragments has been shown in many festivals, and won 'Outstanding Film of the Year' at the London Film Festival. He has directed all of Chekhov's major plays, including his own adaptation of Platonov. He has directed over seventy plays. In England his productions have included plays at LAMDA, GSMD, DCL, RADA, Hampstead Theatre, the White Bear Theatre, the Gate Theatre, Riverside Studios and Royal Exchange, Manchester.

Reviews

'Absorbingly vibrant - a Seagull that soars'

* The Times *

'Wonderfully nimble... the play feels fresh and vital... full of warmth and wit'

* Stage *

'New translation brings an immediacy and a vibrancy to the play that does it a world of good'

* Whatsonstage.com *



Book Information
ISBN 9781848422100
Author Anton Chekhov
Format Paperback
Page Count 88
Imprint Nick Hern Books
Publisher Nick Hern Books
Weight(grams) 100g
Dimensions(mm) 196mm * 128mm * 6mm