The
company would like to thank the following for their assistance
with this production: Casarotto Ramsey
Associates, Leonie Scott-Matthews of Pentameters
Theatre, Andy
Lucas, Sara Mason of Allegresse
Theatre Company, Andrew Muir, Andy
Lucas, and Adam Hawksbee for
the loan of Gayev's cane.
Croydon Advertiser
13th September 2002
Roger Bing
Carola Stewart plays the owner with no money and little appreciation
of her current problems, and Roger Sansom her billiards-loving
brother whose penchant for rambling speeches helps him equally
to avoid the point. The harsh new wind blowing through
Russia and chilling the fate of the orchard and its estate is
neatly demonstrated by Hugo Cox, playing the eternal student
who argues with some passion for the new order, and by Matthew
Brenher, the businessman who tries with an equal passion to warn
the owners of what must happen. These two make impressive
characters, as does Emma Stratton, the always-busy adopted daughter
whose hopes for marriage are to be cruelly ignored. William
Argent cuts a figure as the footman ready to seize any big chance
he spots, while others involved include Victoria
Fradgley as
the eager maid who is also destined to disappointment, Cicely
Tennant as the young daughter and Steve
Dineen as the estate
clerk. The biggest "aah" moment came with the
arrival of the governess, Hilary Burns, and her dog, Binkie
Beaumont,
immaculately behaved throughout. The old footman is played
by Kenneth McClellan who founded the company and found himself
at 84 for once playing someone even older: the character is 87.
Indie London (indielondon.co.uk)
April 2003
Paul Nelson
I have seen the play performed with more hilarity, but rarely
with so uniformly good a cast. The fluttery, exasperating
Madame Ranyevskaya is delightfully
played by Carola
Stewart,
throwing her almost non-existent money all over the place. Her
grief over both her lost son and lost house and orchard were
effectively controlled and played against her empty-headedness. As
her slightly turned brother Gayev (here
referred to as Lenya),
endlessly potting an imaginary billiard ball into an imaginary
hole, and thinking no doubt about an imaginary jackpot on the
way, Roger Sansom is excellent. The
lovers, Anya and Pyotr,
the former surely one of the current beauties of the English
stage, played with charm, fun and pathos by Cicely
Tennant, the
latter, all spent political idealism and held up in his poverty
by his own attractive personality, played by Hugo
Cox. Good
strong and satisfying performances were given to the footman
and the maid, Yasha (William
Argent) and Dunyasha (Victoria
Fradgley). That
almost impossible character to play, Charlotta,
was expertly seen off by Hilary Burns and
excellent work from Steve
Dineen and director Bryan
Hands gave real life to Yepichodov and Pischik. All
in all an evening to remember, One last credit that must
be given is to the character of Firs the
faithful old retainer. Playing
an 87-year-old, the 84-year-old Kenneth
McClellan, founder of
the company, played what, for me, is the final joke of the play
with a delightful twinkle in his eye... Logos has
done it again; long
may this excellent company thrive.
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