The first of what are considered to be Chekhov’s four major plays (namely – apart from The
Seagull – Uncle Vanya, Three Sisters and The Cherry Orchard) was first produced in 1896 at the Alexandrinsky Theatre in Petersburg and was a complete disaster. It was not until 1898 that the play achieved renown, thanks to the Moscow Art Theatre’s production directed by C. S. Stanislavski and V. I. Nemirovich-Danchenko.
“The Chekhov-like, awkward love-chasing doesn’t intend to be ostentatiously original. The stage designer Pavol Andraško has situated it in a gallery that is literally crammed with realistic and impressionistic landscapes and itself set in a huge wooden picture frame. Nevertheless, The Seagull in Dejvické theatre is a major theatrical event. It is delightful in the preciosity of performance, in the way it adapts Chechkov and in the unusual ways it interprets his situations. There is no need to be afraid of the three and a half hour (running time). They pass more quickly than does the first act alone in many other theatres.”
Michal Zahálka, Hospodářské noviny (daily newspaper)
genres
Drama
CZECH TITLE
Racek
AUTHOR
Anton Pavlovič Čechov
DIRECTION
Michal Vajdička
LENGTH OF THE PERFORMANCE
140 minutes
STAGE AREA
Middle
NUMBER OF TRAVELLING PERSONS
22
LANGUAGE
Czech
AUDIENCE
Adult
AWARDS
Alfréd Radok Award 2013 (nomination in the Best Play category; Miroslav Krobot – Best Actor category), Alfréd Radok Award 2012 (Theatre of the Year category); Thalia Award 2013 (Best Actor); Theatre News Award 2013 (Best Director, Best Actor and Supporting Role)