The Orange County Register
June 5, 1995
SCR's 'Cherry Orchard' a Tribute to Chekhov
REVIEW: A brilliant set, solid cast and attention to detail grace this quiet, unaffected production.
By PAUL HODGINS, The Orange County Register
Few playwrights were as finely attuned to the pulse of their age
and culture as Anton Chekhov. And no play predicts a nation's future
with the uncanny precision of his final 1903 masterpiece, "The Cherry
Orchard. "
Watching its labyrinthine character relationships slowly reveal
themselves brings on two overriding sensations: delight at the
master's subtlety, and a chill of astonishment at his prescience. Old
Russia was dying, and he knew what the future held.
A quiet, unaffected and nicely detailed production at South Coast
Repertory brings this transitional world into sharp focus.
Estate owner Liubov Ranyevskaya and her clan typify the Russian
pre-Revolutionary bourgeoisie. Her inherited fortune depleted, she
clings desperately to her ancestral home, a decaying country estate
surrounded by a large and unproductive cherry orchard. Liubov has no
idea how to extricate herself from a crushing debt, made worse by a
five-year sojourn in Paris after the death of her son, during which
she wasted the remainder of her fortune on an opportunistic paramour.
Neither she nor her feather-brained brother Leonid Gayev have ever
worked a day in their lives.
The two paths of Russia's future are represented within Liubov's
ragtag circle of friends and employees: Yermolai Lopakhin, a
nouveau-riche businessman whose father and grandfather were her
family's indentured servants; and Petya Trofimov, a scruffy student
whose leftist rantings about a Utopian future and scorn for money
smack of Bolshevism.
One of the most-praised aspects of "The Cherry Orchard" is its
characters' complex mix of good and bad qualities. Lopakhin, a kindly
man, sincerely wants to help Liubov, yet his eye is always on the
bottom line, and he can't forget his past. Trofimov condemns the
family's profligate, selfish lifestyle and suffers their thoughtless
insults; yet, like Lopakhin, he could never bring himself to hate
them.
Aided by Ming Cho Lee's brilliant, expansive set, director Martin
Benson echoes Chekhov's talent for gradually providing clues about
these characters' inner lives. A small rocking horse sits in a corner
of the Ranyevskaya salon, even though there have been no children in
this household for years. An old grandfather clock has stopped,
probably long ago. An imposing bookcase is filled with
impressive-looking tomes, but they're covered with dust. Outside, the
cherry orchard looks more dreamlike than real.
John Vickery plays Lopakhin without a trace of country-bumpkin
roots, which makes his self-deprecating remarks about his humble
origins and rustic ways bitterly ironic. Raye Birk is wonderfully
maudlin as the lovable, helpless Gayev. As perpetually pickled
landowner Boris Semyonov-Pishchik, Richard Doyle gets to pull out all
the "crazy old coot" stops -- something he does exceedingly well. Jon
Matthews shines as Yasha, Liubov's despicable crypto-bourgeoisie
valet (although he is "The Cherry Orchard's" least nuanced
character). David Fenner has fun with the malapropisms of Semyon
Yepikhodov, the family's high-strung, luckless accountant. As Firs,
the older-than-dust butler, Alan Mandell quietly proves the breadth
of his comedic and tragic talents.
Among the women, Cindy Katz's Varya carries a sense of dark
forboding, as if she senses the heartache to come in her desperate
love for Lopakhin. Fran Bennett is mysteriously fascinating as
Carlotta, the family governess. Megan Cole's Liubov, though, seems
weighted too heavily toward weepiness, giddiness and self-pity. We
should feel she's still anchored by the confidence of a noble
pedigree, at least in the beginning. There needs to be some breezy
arrogance behind her thoughtless insults.
Benson's skills are most evident in the third act, a highly
complex entrance-a-minute ballet that he sustains ingeniously. It's
one of the most exhilarating sequences Chekhov ever conceived, full
of conflicts, cross purposes and quick changes of focus. Benson's
blocking, pacing and respect for fast-shifting character dynamics do
it every justice -- a fitting tribute to Chekhov's singular genius.
'The Cherry Orchard'
What: Anton Chekhov's play about a daydreaming family that refuses
to face reality when their estate is sold to pay debts
Where: South Coast Repertory, 655 Town Center Drive, Costa Mesa
Continues: Through July 2. 8 p.m. Tuesday-Friday, 2:30 and 8 p.m.
Saturday, 2:30 and 7:30 p.m. Sunday
How much: $ 16-$ 36
Length: 2 hours, 30 minutes
Suitability: Not suitable for young children