There is a party for Sorn, Emma's older brother, when he turns 60.  We all got to sing Happy Birthday.  David Snider plays Sorn and he brings a new "life-of-the-party" gloom to the role. He is charming and loveable and though Sorn is not a pessimist, he certainly is not one to hold out hope as a major option. Snider gives the role a stronger feeling than is usual in the Chekhov but here he is just right. In a way the part is usually a representative eye and voice of the playwright (Chekhov and Sorn are both doctors) here he seems much more his own character.  That could be due to the language of the play which is so very everyday America 2019.

Though not usually necessary in a comedy to have a comic relief character that is just what Sorn becomes. And whether or not this play is a comedy depends upon its audience. There are two suicides, infidelity and a touch of Oedipus Complex in the mix. We all bring our own experiences into the theater with this one. So, come prepared. 

Annabel Hoffman as Mash, Louis Celt as Dev; Photo: Sara Kelly

Pennington, who has a vast resume and an Obie Award, had a tendency to swallow a third of each line keeping us in the dark as to what he was saying. He is handsome and possesses a soft lyrical voice which should have given his romantic figure an alluring personality, but those lost words made that difficult.

Evan McFarland's Con was bombastic and depressive, just the right interpretation from start to finish. The role and the character are both melodramatic and he pulled out all the stops to sustain this image and style.

His best friend and confidante, Dev, was played by Louis Celt, with the best possible manner keeping his attention on the action and Dev's emotional turmoil while confiding his thoughts to us. The love of his life, Mash, was given a wonderfully grumpy personality by Annabel Hoffman. This beautifully talented actress sang songs, played the ukelele and was entrancing in spite of Mash's negativity. More a tomboy in act one and a devoted madame in the final act she managed to meld the two variants nicely. 

Nina, played here by Amrita Li Newton, has always been a bit of a mystery character. She is earthy yet ethereal, almost unreal for a while. Then she is definitively sensual and self-assured with a growing coldness that takes everyone by surprise. Later she is a shadow character with so much unexplained about her that she almost approaches that original sense of herself but without pride or pleasure. Newton manages all those changes in this production which is quite a challenge. We can easily accept all of that in a character from the past, but it is the contemporary woman in the light of #MeToo, that makes the challenge greater. Newton, presumably guided by the director, allows this to be very real indeed.

Kirk Jackson has done a wonderful job maneuvering his company from place to place on his isthmus shaped stage. He focuses us as well as his actors as things happen where they should. He also manages to surprise us with his actors appearances in places, solo and in chorus. Jackson has found neat solutions to the stagnancy of Chekhov's construction.

He is aided by a team of creative artists: Andy Nice as scenic designer, Richard MacPike creating the costumes, and Dan Salzer providing some unique lighting effects. Stage Manager Margaret Fortuna Yassky kept the show alive and hyper-active.

The play covers four years and a week in just a bit over two hours and that is time well-spent. The new script is amusing, there are laughs throughout, yet it remains faithful to Chekhov's intentions, a perfect combination. The only challenge to those of us sitting and watching is how involved can we become without feeling silly or imposed upon. Everyone will react in a different way and all ways here, as Louis Carroll wrote, "are the Queen's ways." So watch out for your head. 

+  01/25/2020  +