May 8, 2007
The President’s Garden at Magdalen College provides the ideal (and somewhat ironic) setting for Chekhov’s play about change and society – crumbling walls, the New Building in the background, evening light and a plethora of trees. Explicitly concerned with the sale of the once wealthy Ranevskayas’ cherry orchard, this social drama also focuses on progression, love and the loss of heritage, both physical and ethereal.
From Kimberly Trewhitt’s (Dunyasha) exciting, excitable entrance to the eerily quiet last scene with Firs alone on the ground murmuring “life’s gone by, it’s as if I’ve never lived”, this production proves thoroughly engaging. This is ultimately the result of some extremely talented actors, and their director, Will Measham.
The acting is the best aspect of this production, with a number of the cast delivering performances of professional quality. Mark Cartwright is superb as the bumbling brother Gaev, delivering his ramblings with aristocratic panache. Similarly brilliant is George Duncan-Jones as the ancient Firs, who will undoubtedly remain an audience favourite. Becca Gibson (Madame Ranevskaya) and Danielle Stevens (Varya) are both excellent, portraying complex and anguished characters, combining to express a tangible family tension. The finest acting of the night came from Nadira Wallace, who plays the younger daughter, Anya. Her poise, grace, vibrancy and delivery never faltered and through delightful facial expressions she perfectly captures her character’s coy (almost coquettish) playfulness.
Unfortunately, as with most student productions, the casting is not quite balanced and the weaker performances do detract from the play’s overall effectiveness. Notably, Sheridan Few (Yasha) often lost his lines to the wind and looked somewhat bored, especially when not speaking. Tom Clark, who plays the eternal student Trofimov, looks shabbily apt for his role and delivers many lines that will undoubtedly prove entertaining to current scholars, especially the more seasoned postgraduates in the audience. However, he is somewhat inconsistent, which is a shame, as it makes it hard to interpret this fascinating character and Anya’s bond with him. Flora Carmichael was another who suffered from the wind’s persistence, but grew into her role as the play progressed. Tom Wild (Pishchik) also improved whilst on stage, becoming brilliantly comic and will undoubtedly continue to do so through the run.
An additional weakness was the occasional overly long pause between scenes. That aside, Will Measham’s direction is to be applauded. The lighting, staging and music are all very apt for this play. The director’s use of tableaux should be singled out for appreciation; set against the weathered wall of the garden, the actors often form symbolic groupings, which are as powerful as the words they speak. The most startling example of this is where Lopakhin brags about buying the precious orchard and all the characters (apart from Mme Ranevskaya who is prostrate with anguish) face away, their backs to the new proprietor, the audience and the orchard.
The Cherry Orchard is an entertaining, intriguing, witty and emotional play and this production lives up to the excellence of Chekhov’s creation.
From Kimberly Trewhitt’s (Dunyasha) exciting, excitable entrance to the eerily quiet last scene with Firs alone on the ground murmuring “life’s gone by, it’s as if I’ve never lived”, this production proves thoroughly engaging. This is ultimately the result of some extremely talented actors, and their director, Will Measham.
The acting is the best aspect of this production, with a number of the cast delivering performances of professional quality. Mark Cartwright is superb as the bumbling brother Gaev, delivering his ramblings with aristocratic panache. Similarly brilliant is George Duncan-Jones as the ancient Firs, who will undoubtedly remain an audience favourite. Becca Gibson (Madame Ranevskaya) and Danielle Stevens (Varya) are both excellent, portraying complex and anguished characters, combining to express a tangible family tension. The finest acting of the night came from Nadira Wallace, who plays the younger daughter, Anya. Her poise, grace, vibrancy and delivery never faltered and through delightful facial expressions she perfectly captures her character’s coy (almost coquettish) playfulness.
Unfortunately, as with most student productions, the casting is not quite balanced and the weaker performances do detract from the play’s overall effectiveness. Notably, Sheridan Few (Yasha) often lost his lines to the wind and looked somewhat bored, especially when not speaking. Tom Clark, who plays the eternal student Trofimov, looks shabbily apt for his role and delivers many lines that will undoubtedly prove entertaining to current scholars, especially the more seasoned postgraduates in the audience. However, he is somewhat inconsistent, which is a shame, as it makes it hard to interpret this fascinating character and Anya’s bond with him. Flora Carmichael was another who suffered from the wind’s persistence, but grew into her role as the play progressed. Tom Wild (Pishchik) also improved whilst on stage, becoming brilliantly comic and will undoubtedly continue to do so through the run.
An additional weakness was the occasional overly long pause between scenes. That aside, Will Measham’s direction is to be applauded. The lighting, staging and music are all very apt for this play. The director’s use of tableaux should be singled out for appreciation; set against the weathered wall of the garden, the actors often form symbolic groupings, which are as powerful as the words they speak. The most startling example of this is where Lopakhin brags about buying the precious orchard and all the characters (apart from Mme Ranevskaya who is prostrate with anguish) face away, their backs to the new proprietor, the audience and the orchard.
The Cherry Orchard is an entertaining, intriguing, witty and emotional play and this production lives up to the excellence of Chekhov’s creation.