THE SEAGULL by Anton Chekhov to get UK tour in April 2013
Black Coffee Theatre present
The Seagull
by Anton Chekhov
In April 2013, Black Coffee Theatre are embarking on a UK tour with an exciting new adaptation of Anton Chekhov’s The Seagull set in 1920s England.
The Seagull was written in 1895 and first produced in 1896. It dramatises the romantic and artistic conflicts between four characters: the ingenue Nina, the fading actress Irina Arkadina, her son the symbolist playwright Konstantin Tréplev, and the famous middlebrow story writer Trigorin.
As with the rest of Chekhov's full-length plays, The Seagull relies upon an ensemble cast of diverse, fully developed characters. In contrast to the melodrama of the mainstream theatre of the 19th century, lurid actions are not shown onstage. Characters tend to speak in ways that skirt around issues rather than addressing them directly. The plays are famous for Chekhov’s use of subtext.
Black Coffee Theatre's adaptation relocates the action to the roaring 1920’s. The Bright Young Things have changed the mood in town fuelled by the boom of jazz, fashion and the arts, but on an estate in the country there is only a lake, and the people around it burn for something more. They intend to create a fresh, concise story for a modern audience who may not be familiar with the romantic and dramatic devices that Chekhov uses, whilst still retaining the feel and power of the original. They feel that placing the characters in this era adds further depth to Nina’s yearning and Konstantin’s desire to be different in addition to the needs and wants of all the other characters.
The script will be edited to run straight through at no more than 90 minutes with minimal changes to the characters and plot. The casting of a younger Trigorin will be a one change to the play, furthering his catalytic role amongst the characters and adding an extra dimension to his relationships with the characters around him.
Luke Adamson who has adapted the original for this tour says “Anyone who knows Chekhov, whether actor, writer or scholar, has an opinion on how it should be interpreted and performed. In this version BCT are not saying how we think Chekhov should be performed, but how Chekhov could be performed. We ask you to leave your preconceptions at the door and immerse yourself in the world we have created as we attempt to excavate and define the work of a master of Russian theatre.”
Show Information
Black Coffee Theatre present
The Seagull by Anton Chekhov
Adapted by Luke Adamson
Directed by Jonathan Holby
Tour dates:
6th April
New Wimbledon Studio, London
Directed by Jonathan Holby
Tour dates:
6th April
New Wimbledon Studio, London
Box Office: 0844 871 7646
9th April
The Bradford Alhambra Studio
The Bradford Alhambra Studio
13th April
The Maltings Theatre and Cinema, Berwick-upon-Tweed
The Maltings Theatre and Cinema, Berwick-upon-Tweed
15th – 16th April
Newcastle Theatre Royal Studio
Newcastle Theatre Royal Studio
20th April
The Barnfield Theatre, Exeter
The Barnfield Theatre, Exeter
21st April
The Brewery Theatre, The Tobacco Factory, Bristol
The Brewery Theatre, The Tobacco Factory, Bristol
www.tobaccofactorytheatre.com
Box Office: 0117 902 0344
Casting is currently incomplete
Tickets from £10 (£8 concs)
Suitability 12+ (occasional strong language and drug use)
Box Office: 0117 902 0344
Casting is currently incomplete
Tickets from £10 (£8 concs)
Suitability 12+ (occasional strong language and drug use)
Tickets and further information can be found at www.blackcoffeetheatre.co.uk/seagull
www.blackcoffeetheatre.co.uk
www.blackcoffeetheatre.co.uk
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Theatre
