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Chekhov A.P.
- The Cherry
Orchard
The Cherry Orchard was first produced by the
Moscow Art Theatre on Chekhov"s last birthday, January 17, 1904.
Since that time it has become one of the most critically admired
and performed plays in the Western world, a high comedy whose
principal theme, the passing of the old semifeudal order, is
symbolized in the sale of the cherry orchard owned by Madame
Ranevsky.
The play also functions as a magnificent showcase for Chekhov"s
acute observations of his characters" foibles and for quizzical
ruminations on the approaching dissolution of the world of the
Russian aristocracy and life as it was lived on their great
country estates. While the subject and the characters of the
work are, in a sense, timeless, the dramatic technique of the
play was a Chekhovian innovation. In this and other plays he
developed the concept of "indirect action," in which the
dramatic action takes place off stage and the significance of
the play revolves around the reactions of the characters to
those unseen events.
Reprinted from a standard edition, this inexpensive well-made
volume invites any lover of theater or great literature to enter
the world of Madame Ranevsky, Anya, Gayef, Lopakhin, Firs and
the other memorable characters whose hopes, fears, loves and
general humanity are so brilliantly depicted in this landmark of
world drama.
Read this play
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