|
SHERMAN THEATRETHE CHERRY ORCHARD A reimagining by Gary OwenDirector Rachel O’Riordan |
This reimagining of Chekhov’s masterpiece is the latest project from the team behind the smash-hit successes of Iphigenia in Splott and Killology, writer Gary Owen and director Rachel O’Riordan. The Cherry Orchard will be the first major Sherman Theatre produced piece of new writing on the main stage during O’Riordan’s tenure as Artistic Director.Set in Pembrokeshire in 1982, Owen’s play looks back at our recent history to see the world we know today taking root. Like Chekhov’s original, the play is set in a time on the cusp of huge social change. Pre-Revolutionary Russia is exchanged for Britain in the early days of Margaret Thatcher’s regime, an era in which many people were filled with a new confidence, a new energy and a sense that anything was possible. With The Cherry Orchard Anton Chekhov created one of the greatest studies of the human condition. Owen’s fresh new take on this classic honours both the comedy and tragedy of Chekhov’s original. Rachel O’Riordan has said “Chekhov is one of the great playwrights. His ability to articulate human interaction, with all its flaws and misunderstandings, makes him a natural writer for Gary Owen to adapt. The idea of Gary reimagining The Cherry Orchard was very exciting to me. I have directed two of Gary’s plays before, but we haven’t worked on a more classically structured piece, so I’m really looking forward to continuing my partnership with this wonderful playwright, and looking afresh at one of the great classical plays.” The action is set in a rambling, ramshackle old manor house on the sun-kissed south Pembrokeshire coast where Rainey raised her children, surrounded by golden beaches and lush green orchards. But the untimely death of her beloved son and husband sent her fleeing to London, abandoning what remained of her family. Now, with the bank threatening to repossess, Rainey is forced back home to face her ghosts – and her furious daughters – or lose everything. An exceptional cast, comprising of both actors celebrated for their work on stage and screen and the brightest emerging talent has been assembled for this world premiere production. The cast includes Denise Black (Coronation Street, Queer as Folk, Cucumber) as Rainey, Simon Armstrong (Coronation Street,Game of Thrones) as Rainey’s brother Gabriel, Morfydd Clark (King Lear,Old Vic) as Anya, Richard Mylan (Killology, Coupling) as Ceri, Hedydd Dylan (Lady Chatterley’s Lover, Sheffield Theatres) as Valerie, Matthew Bulgo (Kenny Morgan, Arcola Theatre) as Lewis and Alexandria Riley (How My Light Is Spent,Sherman Theatre/ Royal Exchange Manchester/ Theatre by the Lake) as Dottie. The Cherry Orchard has been specially selected as a cornerstone of Wales’ Russia 17 season that marks the centenary of the Russian revolution with a range of events which capture the social and cultural revolutions of the era, and Wales’ historic connections with the Russia of the time. Sherman Theatre, Senghennydd Road, Cardiff, CF24 4YE 13 – 28 October 2017, 7.30pm (except 17 October, 7pm) and 19 and 28 October, 2pm. Previews 13, 14 & 16 October, 7.30pm. Tickets £16 - £26 (Previews £13 - £21) | Half price for under 25s | £2 off for concessions Post Show Talks, evenings 19 and 24 October Audio Described performance, 20 October 7.30pm Captioned performance, 27 October 7.30pm shermantheatre.co.uk | 029 2064 6900 Photo by Mark Douet |
| Sherman Theatre Cardiff web site: http://shermantheatre.co.uk |
| Ed Newsome e-mail: Ed.Newsome@shermantheatre.co.uk |
Thursday, September 28, 2017 |
Older news
stories have been carefully archived.
2006 | 2005 | 2004 | 2003 | 2002 | 2001 | 2000 | 1999