‘The Seagull’ review
‘From excellent characterisation to well-thought-out staging, The Seagull is a joy – if one can describe any Chekhov as a joy – to watch.’
In Chekhov’s The Seagull, tragedy and comedy are combined as artistic ambition, unrequited love, and existentialism are explored in a Russian country house. Despite the tonal difficulty of this play, Wrong Tree Theatre certainly doesn’t disappoint, and Director Sylvia Gardner, assisted by Mika Trench, with Co-Producers Rhiannon Morgan and Iris Varla, gifts us a memorable and meticulously engaging production. From excellent characterisation to well-thought-out staging, The Seagull is a joy – if one can describe any Chekhov as a joy – to watch.
Throughout, the cast move impactfully across the stage and the whole of the Assembly Rooms Theatre, and the directorial decision to limit ‘cheating out’ and have some moments turned inward to the back of the stage is extremely effective in making viewers feel less like an audience and more like an interloper looking into these private, passionate moments. Certainly, a sense of tragicomedy is achieved, as these emotionally intense scenes are balanced with instances of dark and witty comedy that are well-received.
Harry Robinson excels as young aspiring writer Konstantin Gavrilovich Treplev, with his physical nervous energy perfectly embodying the character’s anxiety of ambition, building up nicely to a pivotal emotional break. Likewise, Ivy Harper, as young aspiring actress and the object of his desire, Nina Mikhailovna Zarechnaya, gives an ethereal performance. Her ability to deliver such a heart-breaking moments through voice and body language – particularly as at times she does not face us – must be commended.
Another brilliant pair that stole the show at times is Kian Standbridge as famous writer Boris Alexeyevich Trigorin, and Nefertari Williams as Irina Nikolayevna Arkadina, Konstantin’s mother and aging actress. Standbridge’s depiction of an erratic, tortured artist is exceptional, and Williams simply commands the stage. Her elegant, eccentric air is balanced nicely with later impassioned speech, and an extremely memorable moment is the pair’s shouting match across the audience.
Emi Sharples’ Masha Ilyinichna is a delight. She gives us an emotionally complex performance, toeing the line between an unrequited melancholy youth and a woman who must come to terms with her own disillusionment. Across from her, Gabriel Cardy-Brown as Semyon Semyonovich Medvedenko is brilliantly nervy, with his uneasy physicality forcing the audience to sympathise with him.
Other standouts are Ben Oliver, whose portrayal of Pyotr Nikolayevich Sorin, Konstantin’s elderly uncle, is brilliantly characterised as he provides a gentle humour and simultaneous sadness throughout, and Moritz Afridi as Dr. Yevgeny Sergeyevich Dorn, who is hilariously cool and collected in contrast to some of the other characters’ intense emotional turmoil. Sam Garratt (Ilya Afanasyevich Shamraev) also injects some great comedic timing, and Sophie Partis (Polina Andreyevna) gives a beautifully grounded and expressive performance.
Overall, The Seagull is extremely poignant and engaging until the very last second. The set, whilst simplistic, is effective, and in particular the clever use of red lighting at certain points ties the production together - this is all testament to the incredible production team consisting of Production Manager Tom Pizii, Deputy Stage Manager Beau Singleton, Lighting Designer and Operator Alex Richardson, Sound Operator Gemma Christie, and Stagehand Mehar Sadique. However, it has to be said that the key stand out is the talented cast, whose impeccable characterisation and physicality, no doubt honed and perfected by Gardner, brings the play to life.
By Bethan Crotty.