Anton Chekhov News

Classic Stage Company, under the leadership of Artistic Director Brian Kulick and Executive Director Jessica R. Jenen, will present THE PROUST PROJECT, a new adaptation series featuring a set of staged readings based on Marcel Proust's Remembrance of Things Past. On four successive Monday evenings beginning March 23, CSC will present staged-readings of works inspired by Proust, giving audiences a unique guided tour through one of the 20th Century's greatest novels. Audiences may enjoy each reading as an independent evening or experience them together as a cycle.

Due to very strong ticket sales, Classic Stage Company's new production of Anton Chekhov's UNCLE VANYA, starring Tony Award winner Denis O'Hare as Vanya, Maggie Gyllenhaal as Yelena and Peter Sarsgaard as Astrov, has extended its limited engagement through Sunday, March 8, it was announced today by CSC Artistic Director Brian Kulick and Executive Director Jessica R. Jenen. Directed by Austin Pendleton, UNCLE VANYA will begin previews on this Saturday, January 17 at Classic Stage Company at 136 East 13th Street, with an official opening set for Thursday, February 12. The cast of UNCLE VANYA also features Mamie Gummer (Sonya), Louis Zorich (Waffles), George Morfogen (Srebryakov), Delphi Harrington (Maria) and Cyrilla Baer (Marina). UNCLE VANYA will feature scenic design by Tony Award winner Santo Loquasto, who received wide acclaim last season at CSC for his design of The Seagull and who has designed numerous Chekhovian productions in his esteemed career including the famed Lincoln Center production of The Cherry Orchard in 1977. Costume design is by Suzy Benzinger, who also designed last season's The Seagull, and lighting design is by Jason Lyons. The play is translated by Carol Rocamora. O'Hare, who last performed at CSC in Yasmina Reza's A Spanish Play, stars as Vanya, the quintessential superfluous man, who wakes up one morning to discover he has wasted his life in the service of others, in Chekhov's tragicomic masterpiece of dashed dreams, thwarted love and eternal longing. The play was first performed at the legendary Moscow Art Theater in 1899, directed by Constantine Stanislavsky.

Anton Chekhov's modern classic The Cherry Orchard opens on March 18 and runs through April 26. Directed by Everyman Artistic Director Vincent M. Lancisi and translated by Michael Frayn, the production features several members of Everyman's Resident Company: Megan Anderson, Deborah Hazlett, Rosemary Knower, Wil Love, Carl Schurr, and Stan Weiman. Media Sponsor is the Jewish Times.

Emmy-nominated Paul Anthony Stewart stars as Raskolnikov in a gripping 90-minute adaptation of Dostoevsky's Crime and Punishment at The Cleveland Play House. In addition to numerous New York and regional theatre roles, Stewart, who was nominated for his recurring role on 'Guiding Light,' recently appeared on Broadway in the revivals of Fiddler on the Roof and Cyrano - The Musical. Performed with only three actors, the adaptation of Crime and Punishment by Marilyn Campbell and Cut Columbus is being helmed by the acclaimed director of the 2005 Play House production of I Am My Own Wife, Anders Cato. Crime and Punishment begins in the Drury Theatre at The Cleveland Play House on Friday, February 27 and runs through Sunday, March 22, 2009. Tickets are on sale now at The Cleveland Play House box office by calling 216.795.7000 ext 4 or online at www.clevelandplayhouse.com. Crime and Punishment is presented in promotional partnership with National City and Baker & Hostetler.

The producers of Blithe Spirit are pleased to announce the show will play The Shubert Theatre (225 West 44th Street). Rehearsals are scheduled to begin Monday, January 26, 2009 with the first performance on Thursday, February 26, 2009.

On Monday Evening, February 23 at 7:00 PM, six New York theater institutions will participate in a special panel discussion featuring five current and upcoming Off-Broadway shows. Harlem Stage (150 Convent Avenue at West 135th Street) will host producing companies Classical Theatre of Harlem, Manhattan Theatre Club, Playwrights Horizons, The Public Theater and Signature Theatre Company in an evening titled I'VE KNOWN RIVERS: A Conversation with Christina Anderson, Charles Fuller, Lynn Nottage & Liesl Tommy. The event marks a unique collaborative effort between six New York theater institutions: a panel discussion in which five gifted African-American theater artists - all of whom have projects happening almost simultaneously at five of New York's most respected non-profit theaters - will discuss their lives, work, and current projects. Moderated by actress Sabrina LeBeauf (Three Sisters, Classical Theatre of Harlem in partnership with Harlem Stage, February/March), the evening's four panelists will be Christina Anderson (author, Inked Baby, Playwrights Horizons, March/April), Charles Fuller (author, Zooman and the Sign, Signature Theatre Company, March/April), Lynn Nottage (author, Ruined, Manhattan Theater Club, January-March) and Liesl Tommy (director, The Good Negro, The Public Theater, March/April). The event title comes from a poem by Langston Hughes, 'The Negro Speaks of Rivers.'

On Monday Evening, February 23 at 7:00 PM, six New York theater institutions will participate in a special panel discussion featuring five current and upcoming Off-Broadway shows. Harlem Stage (150 Convent Avenue at West 135th Street) will host producing companies Classical Theatre of Harlem, Manhattan Theatre Club, Playwrights Horizons, The Public Theater and Signature Theatre Company in an evening titled I'VE KNOWN RIVERS: A Conversation with Christina Anderson, Charles Fuller, Lynn Nottage & Liesl Tommy.

Ripe Time has announced that it will present the world premiere of Fire Throws, written and directed by Rachel Dickstein, based on Sophocles's Antigone, beginning Wednesday, February 18, at 8pm at 3LD Art & Technology Center, 80 Greenwich Street at Rector Street. Opening night is set for Sunday, February 22 at 8pm. In Fire Throws a contemporary Antigone challenges her past, re-examining her own story of sacrifice through the kaleidoscopic frenzy of a fever dream. Through video projection, live music, and dance-inspired staging, Fire Throws explodes the classic text into a cutting-edge meditation on desire, drive, and what is at stake in breaking the rules. Fire Throws features two Antigones: the one we know from the original story and the 2400-year-old symbol she has become, looking back on her story and searching for the person inside the icon. Antigone's brazen defense of the sanctity of burial takes a new relevance when staged blocks away from ground zero; and Creon's misguided use and abuse of power is a cautionary tale in a world of divisive politics. Ripe Time uses its signature physical and visual story-telling style to re-invigorate a great classic with a contemporary and relevant energy.

The OBIE, Drama Desk and Lortel Award-winning Classical Theatre of Harlem (CTH) will begin their 10th Anniversary Season with a new production of Anton Chekhov's classic THREE SISTERS, directed by CTH Co-Founder Christopher McElroen (The Cherry Orchard). Performances will be at Harlem Stage Gatehouse, 150 Convent Avenue at West 135th Street, and will begin on Thursday, February 5th. Opening night is scheduled for Wednesday, February 18th and the show will run through Sunday, March 8th.

Classic Stage Company's upcoming new production of Anton Chekhov's UNCLE VANYA, starring Tony Award winner Denis O'Hare as Vanya, Maggie Gyllenhaal as Yelena and Peter Sarsgaard as Astrov, had its official opening night on Thursday, February 12th, 2009. BroadwayWorld's camera caught the starry official first night action.

Classic Stage Company's upcoming new production of Anton Chekhov's UNCLE VANYA, starring Tony Award winner Denis O'Hare as Vanya, Maggie Gyllenhaal as Yelena and Peter Sarsgaard as Astrov, had its official opening night on Thursday, February 12th, 2009. BroadwayWorld's camera caught the starry official first night action.

Bruce R. Nelson Excels at the Everyman Theatre:Well, it's happened three times. Plays that I saw on Broadway that were critically acclaimed but yet I didn't really enjoy them. Then I saw them at the intimate Everyman Theatre and loved them. It started with Proof, then Doubt, and now I Am My Own Wife. In the latter, I was stunned at the wonderful performance by Jefferson Mays (an associate artist at Center Stage), yet I didn't grasp the show as much as I did after seeing the cast at the Everyman. And who makes up the cast? The incomparable Bruce R. Nelson in a tour de force performance that you will remember forever!

Classic Stage Company's upcoming new production of Anton Chekhov's UNCLE VANYA, starring Tony Award winner Denis O'Hare as Vanya, Maggie Gyllenhaal as Yelena and Peter Sarsgaard as Astrov, has set its official opening night for Thursday, February 12 at 7 pm, it was announced today by CSC Artistic Director Brian Kulick and Executive Director Jessica R. Jenen.

Emmy-nominated Paul Anthony Stewart stars as Raskolnikov in a gripping 90-minute adaptation of Dostoevsky's Crime and Punishment at The Cleveland Play House. In addition to numerous New York and regional theatre roles, Stewart, who was nominated for his recurring role on 'Guiding Light,' recently appeared on Broadway in the revivals of Fiddler on the Roof and Cyrano - The Musical. Performed with only three actors, the adaptation of Crime and Punishment by Marilyn Campbell and Cut Columbus is being helmed by the acclaimed director of the 2005 Play House production of I Am My Own Wife, Anders Cato. Crime and Punishment begins in the Drury Theatre at The Cleveland Play House on Friday, February 27 and runs through Sunday, March 22, 2009. Tickets are on sale now at The Cleveland Play House box office by calling 216.795.7000 ext 4 or online at www.clevelandplayhouse.com. Crime and Punishment is presented in promotional partnership with National City and Baker & Hostetler.

Strawdog Theatre Company continues their 21st season with Curt Columbus' translation of Anton Chekhov's classic 'Cherry Orchard' (note this translation doesn't have 'The' in the title); directed by Strawdog Artistic Associate Kimberly Senior. Chekhov's dark comedy follows the aristocratic Gayev family as they return to their beloved orchard estate, desperate to save it from foreclosure. 'Cherry Orchard' was the last play written by Chekhov, whose esteemed canon includes 'Uncle Vanya,' 'The Seagull' and 'Three Sisters.' 'Cherry Orchard' runs about two hours with one intermission, and includes free admittance to Strawdog Late Night following the Friday and Saturday shows (Late Night schedule available on www.strawdog.org).

Columbia Stages' presents their production of Euripides' MEDEA, translated by Michael Collier and Georgia Machemer and directed by Alicia Dhyana House, atThe Riverside Theatre (91 Claremont Avenue b/w 120th and 122nd Streets). The production features an ensemble cast of 17 including Jessica Bates*, David Elyha*, Jillian Lynn Johnson, Meera Rohit Kumbhani, Jason Martin, Asher Muldoon, Joy Notoma,Anjili J. Pal, Janet Prince, Monica Santana,Alexis Savino*, J. H. Smith III*, Tai Verley,Emily Ward, Lucy York, and Broadway veterans Michael Tommer* (Fiddler on the Roof, Medea) and Obie Award-winner Arthur French* (Dividing the Estate, Ma Rainey's Black Bottom, Death of a Salesman, The Iceman Cometh). Victim of a man's world. Child butcher. Refugee. Lover. Monster. Behind the 2000 year-old myth of jealousy and revenge, there was once a real person. Discover MEDEA.

Columbia Stages presents Euripides' MEDEA, translated by Michael Collier and Georgia Machemer and directed by Alicia Dhyana House, running January 28th - 31st, 2009, at The Riverside Theatre, located in the historic Riverside Church at 91 Claremont Avenue between 120th and 122nd Streets.

On Monday Evening, February 23 at 7:00 PM, six New York theater institutions will participate in a special panel discussion featuring five current and upcoming Off-Broadway shows. Harlem Stage (150 Convent Avenue at West 135th Street) will host producing companies Classical Theatre of Harlem, Manhattan Theatre Club, Playwrights Horizons, The Public Theater and Signature Theatre Company in an evening titled I'VE KNOWN RIVERS: A Conversation with Christina Anderson, Charles Fuller, Lynn Nottage & Liesl Tommy. The event marks a unique collaborative effort between six New York theater institutions: a panel discussion in which five gifted African-American theater artists - all of whom have projects happening almost simultaneously at five of New York's most respected non-profit theaters - will discuss their lives, work, and current projects. Moderated by actress Sabrina LeBeauf (Three Sisters, Classical Theatre of Harlem in partnership with Harlem Stage, February/March), the evening's four panelists will be Christina Anderson (author, Inked Baby, Playwrights Horizons, March/April), Charles Fuller (author, Zooman and the Sign, Signature Theatre Company, March/April), Lynn Nottage (author, Ruined, Manhattan Theater Club, January-March) and Liesl Tommy (director, The Good Negro, The Public Theater, March/April). The event title comes from a poem by Langston Hughes, 'The Negro Speaks of Rivers.'

On Monday Evening, February 23 at 7:00 PM, six New York theater institutions will participate in a special panel discussion featuring five current and upcoming Off-Broadway shows. Harlem Stage (150 Convent Avenue at West 135th Street) will host producing companies Classical Theatre of Harlem, Manhattan Theatre Club, Playwrights Horizons, The Public Theater and Signature Theatre Company in an evening titled I'VE KNOWN RIVERS: A Conversation with Christina Anderson, Charles Fuller, Lynn Nottage & Liesl Tommy.

Classic Stage Company, under the leadership of Artistic Director Brian Kulick and Executive Director Jessica R. Jenen will present MONDAY NIGHT OTHELLO, an exciting theatrical experience in which acclaimed actors including Michael Cumpsty, John Turturro, Alan Cumming and Michael Potts will work through and explore a different act of Shakespeare's OTHELLO with an acclaimed director in front of an audience on four Monday evenings this winter at Classic Stage Company (136 East 13th Street). The directors are CSC Artistic Director Brian Kulick, former CSC Artistic Director Barry Edelstein and Michael Sexton.