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1964

The Seagull

Written by Anton Chekhov

Play Details

Context

Artistic Director
George Devine

Translated By
Ann Jellicoe

Original Language 
Russian

Part Of
ESC at the Queen’s

Dates Performed

Thursday 12th March 1964
ESC at the Queen’s

Play Details

Synopsis

A picturesque country estate by a lake becomes the stage for a complex web of unrequited love, artistic ambition, and generational conflict.

Konstantin, a young, aspiring playwright, struggles to find his artistic voice and win the approval of his mother, the famous actress Arkadina. His innovative play, performed for a small gathering at the family estate, is met with derision by his mother and confusion by others, setting the stage for a series of interconnected personal and artistic crises. As Konstantin pines for Nina, a young actress from a neighbouring estate, he finds himself entangled in a web of unrequited love that ensnares nearly every character in the play.

Chekhov masterfully weaves together themes of artistic integrity, generational conflict, and the pain of unrequited love. Through a series of subtle, often tragicomic interactions, he exposes the deep-seated insecurities and unfulfilled desires of his characters. The play’s innovative style, blending naturalistic dialogue with symbolic elements (such as the titular seagull), marks a significant departure from the melodramatic conventions of its time.

As the characters grapple with their thwarted ambitions and romantic disappointments, Chekhov poses a profound question: In a world where art imitates life and life imitates art, can we ever truly distinguish between genuine emotion and theatrical performance?

Director(s)

Tony Richardson

Content Warning

References to suicide

Other productions

Cast & Creative

Cast

Peggy Ashcroft

Cast

Ann Beach

Cast

Kate Binchy

Cast

George Devine

Cast

Mark Dignam

Cast

Peter FInch

Cast

Derek Fuke

Cast

Reginald Graham

Cast

Rachel Kempson

Cast

Philip Locke

Cast

Peter McEnery

Cast

Vanessa Redgrave

Cast

Malcolm Taylor

Translator

Ann Jellicoe

What our readers say

 

The play spans four acts set at Sorin’s estate, with a jump of two years between some acts. It’s grounded in reality, but it also plays with abstract ideas, like Konstantin’s mini-play and the repeated symbol of the seagull.

 

What is it like reading this play now? 

It’s a play that still feels incredibly relevant as even though it’s set in the late 1800s it explores and takes apart universal ideas and questions around the human experience. It speaks to questions around intergenerational conflicts, love, family, and the reasons of how and why we make theatre feel everlasting.

 

If you like this, you might also like…?

‘Mosquito’ by Lucy Kirkwood, ‘The Effect’ by Lucy Prebble, ‘Three Sisters’ adapted by Inua Ellams, ‘Miss Julie’ by Strindberg


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Want to read the script?

 

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