"The Cherry Orchard" at Classic Stage Company, December 2, 2012
(photo: Carol Rosegg)
Classic Stage puts up The Cherry Orchard, the last production of its Chekhov Initiative, that included The Seagull, Uncle Vanya and Three Sisters in a new and very casual translation by John Christopher Jones.
Mr. Jones reportedly worked directly with the cast during rehearsals to make the vocabulary choices for their respective characters. It had to have been great fun for the actors, but the result ends up straddling the border of anachronism and "huh?" It was my first time seeing this play and I can't help but wonder there's something about Chekov that never makes it through translation.
