DOUGLAS FIELD relishes the hard-boiled language, satire and humour of the third and last of the Harlem trilogy
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A Cherry Orchard ripe with contemporary resonance
Role-playing: Eva Magyar (centre) as Charlotta
[Jon Rowley]
STEPHANIE BROWN draws attention to the hidden labour of the female embroiderers, and how a 19th century replica made no such error
MIK SABIERS revels in a band that ploughs an idiosyncratic furrow of expletive laden, guitar-driven alt rock
ANDY HEDGECOCK, MARIA DUARTE and ANGUS REID review Synthetic Sincerity, Our Hero, Balthazar, Heartstopper Forever, and A Year In London
The bard invites readers to a gig, raps for Clacton, and lays out the Burnham-Hurzeler conundrum
RON JACOBS recommends an important book that enhances the oppositional theories put forth by Fanon and, in doing so, remakes psychology itself
The Cherry Orchard
Bristol Old Vic
IF YOU are hoping to reconfirm expectations of a lyrical turn of-the-century masterpiece, where inevitable social upheaval on a provincial Russian estate mirrors the mood of the passing seasons and elegiac sentiment prevails, this production of The Cherry Orchard is likely to disappoint.
Director Michael Boyd has worked with Rory Mullarky to produce a fresh, vibrant translation of Anton Chekhov's play, giving it a far more contemporary resonance, while Tom Piper’s in-the-round stage design makes the audience a key element. This is very much a production about performance and communication or, rather, its absence.
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