Three Sisters study guide

three sisters

By Anton Chekhov A new translation by Curt Columbus Directed by Terrence J. Nolen

A Supplementary Study Guide

Prepared by Emily Schuman Photo by Mark Garvin

table of contents the play

3..............................characters/meet the cast 5........................................................synopsis 9........................anton chekhov: life and work 11.....................anton chekhov: dramatic style

three sisters at the arden

12........................roles in a theatre production 17...................three sisters directorial concept 18..............................questions for discussion 19.................................................bibliography

Photo by Mark Garvin

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characters Andre Prozorov The only boy in the Prozorov family. His sisters admire him for his musical ability and intelligence. Andre is engaged to Natasha, a woman of whom the three sisters disapprove. He has fallen victim to the mediocrity of his professional career as the recording secretary for the town council. He plays the violin and dreams of one day returning to Moscow as a famous academic.

Luigi Sottile

Natasha – His fiancée, later his wife.

Natasha is anxious about not being accepted by the Prozorov sisters. She is ridiculed for her tasteless fashion, and then resented for taking too much control over the household. She and Andre have a son, Bobik, and later a daughter, Sophie. She has very high standards about how she wants her new home to be run.

Rebecca Gibel Olga Prozorov – His sister Olga is a school teacher and the eldest sister of the Prozorov family. She fears her job is aging her and she dreams of selling the house and moving to Moscow. She is offered a headmistress position, which she reluctantly accepts.

Sarah Sanford

Masha Prozorov – His sister Masha is unhappily married to Kulygin, a high school teacher. They married at 18 when she thought him to be intelligent and interesting. Now that she is older she sees him in a different light. She falls in love and has an affair with Vershinin, the battery commander, but must forget about him when he is called to duty at the end of the play.

Katharine Powell

Irina Prozorov – His sister The youngest sister in the Prozorov family. Irina is the most hopeful of the three sisters. She dreams of one day returning to Moscow and making her life worth something. She believes that hard work will ensure happiness in life. She has many suitors, but loves none of them. She decides to marry the Baron, however, out of sheer practicality, but he is killed in a duel.

Mary Tuomanen

Photos by Mark Garvin

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characters Fyodor Kulygin – A high school teacher, and Masha’s husband A very sweet man, and very much in love with his wife Masha. He always seems to have a smile on his face.

Charlie Thurson

Lt. Col. Alexander Vershinin – The battery commander A visitor from Moscow and an old friend of the Prozorov family. He used to be in the same brigade as their father. He has a mentally unstable wife who keeps attempting suicide and two daughters who are all in town with him, but he quickly falls in love with Masha.

Ian Merrill Peakes Dr. Ivan Chebutikin – Military doctor A recovering alcoholic who has been sober for two years and who was once in love with the Prozorov’s mother. He has an existential life crisis about his education and career when a patient dies in his care. He loses faith in his profession as a doctor and begins to drink again.

Scott Greer

Baron Nikolai Tuzenbach – Also lieutenant in the battery A visitor to the Prozorov home for Irina’s birthday, Solyony’s friend and in love with Irina.

Staff Cpt. Vassily Solyony Tuzenbach’s friend and also in love with Irina.

Sam Henderson

James Ijames

Ferapont – The nightwatchman for the town council An old man who is hard of hearing.

Anfisa – The Prozorov’s eighty year-old nanny Has been a part of the Prozorov household for decades.

The family does not respect or appreciate Anfisa the way Lou Lippa they should. They find her a nuisance. Natasha threatens to fire her because she thinks she is useless while Olga defends her position in the household.

Cathy Simpson

2nd Lt. Alexi Fedotik and Vladimir Rodé Visitors to Irina’s birthday party.

Protopopov – The head of the town council Never appears on stage, but he has an affair with Natasha.

Bobik and Sophie – Andre and Natasha’s children.

Never appear on stage but are born during the course of the play.

Photos by Mark Garvin

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synopsis act i Act I reveals the hopes and aspirations of the characters of the play. It begins in the living room of the Prozorov home in the provincial country side of Russia. It is Irina’s birthday and friends of the Prozorovs have come to celebrate. It also happens to be the one year anniversary of their father’s death, leaving the mood bitter-sweet in the Prozorov home.

The room is filled with nostalgia as Olga and Irina reminisce about the past, dreaming of their youth in Moscow eleven years ago, and how they long to return. Irina stresses the importance of hard work to achieve happiness in life. Masha, however, is in a sour mood.

She misses the days when her father was around because he made their home so lively.

She also is living unhappily married to Kulygin and is full of self-pity. Meanwhile, birthday guests, Tuzenbach and Solyony are in love with Irina. Newcomer, Battery Commander, Alexander Vershinin, is an optimist and is always seeing the light in every situation. He immediately becomes a source of hope for the sisters and they tell him their dreams of one day returning to Moscow. Natasha, Andre’s fiancée, arrives just as the guests are sitting down for lunch. She is very anxious for the sisters’ approval. Olga criticizes her attire, immediately making her feel uncomfortable and unwelcome. Andre then consoles Natasha, who feels out of place and unwanted at the Prozorov household, he tells her how much he loves her and proposes to her. The act concludes with all the friends and family seated for Irina’s birthday lunch.

Photo by Mark Garvin

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synopsis act ii It is 8:00 in the evening one-and-a-half years later and Natasha and Andre are talking. We begin to see a controlling side of Natasha that was absent in the first act. She exudes a dominating power over her husband and the household. She disapproves of how the sisters run the place and of their failure to control their maid, Anfisa. There is a party that night and she wants to cancel it because she is worried about the health of her son, Bobik. She wants to move him into Irina’s room where he will be more comfortable. After Natasha leaves, Andre confides in Ferapont—the hard of hearing night watchman—about his worries of being unhappy at his current job. He wishes to be a famous academic, a professor at Moscow University, the pride of Russia.

Vershinin and Masha are alone. In the time since we last saw them, they have started an affair. He tells Masha about his problems at home and of his immense love for her. Irina arrives home from work. The sisters find out that Andre lost quite a bit of money gambling at the club. Irina is getting anxious about not moving to Moscow sooner. Vershinin, Tuzenbach and Masha discuss what life will be like in future generations. Vershinin believes “We are simply here to work and work, and that happiness is the destiny of future generations” (26).

Tuzenbach believes that life never changes, that humans and animals alike will continue their paths of life. Masha believes faith plays a part in imposing meaning on those paths of life. Masha and Irina continue to get restless about not being in Moscow.

Vershinin finds out that his wife has tried to commit suicide again and he reluctantly leaves the Prozorov home to be with his family. Everyone begins to have a good time dancing and being merry when Natasha comes in and cancels everything on account of her ill son. After the party dissipates, Solyony confesses his love for Irina. Natasha interrupts the moment and asks Irina to give up her bedroom for her son, Bobik. Natasha then quickly runs off to go on a sleigh ride with Protopopov, the head of the town council. Olga, Kulygin, and Vershinin return and discuss Andre’s money situation. Irina is left alone in the end of the act, calling “Moscow, Moscow, Moscow!” (35).

Photo by Mark Garvin

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synopsis act iii This act takes place two years later in Olga and Irina’s room. It is three in the morning and no one has slept because there was a disastrous fire on Kirsanov Street and Vershinin’s family was affected. Olga is pulling clothing out of her drawers to donate to the victims. She wants to give everything away. She wants the Vershinin family to stay at their house. Natasha, too, wants to help the victims because she feels it is her “responsibility to the lower classes” (37). Natasha has had another child, Sophie.

Natasha and Olga discuss the importance of employing Anfisa. Natasha does not feel she is equipped to do her job, while Olga feels Anfisa has been with the family too long to dismiss her and will not tolerate Natasha’s rudeness towards Anfisa. Natasha tells Olga she will be offered the Headmistress position. Olga does not want to take the position, but Natasha tells her it won’t make a difference, that the town council has already chosen her. Olga insists that she won’t accept because she is not strong enough. The conversation is interrupted when Kulygin enters with Chebutikin, who is apparently drunk for the first time in two years and is having an existential life crisis.

Chebutikin is upset because a patient died due to his malpractice. He rants about how he has forgotten everything about medicine and doesn’t understand why everyone expects him to have the answers. He feels like a fake and like he doesn’t exist. He is also confused as to why no one has noticed Natasha’s obvious affair with Protopopov.

In the midst of Chebutikin’s crisis, Vershinin has an epiphany about life. He claims that the future generations will learn from the small intelligent few in the present and that eventually everything will be as it should. This makes him want to live dangerously.

Once the crisis dies down, Tuzenbach is ready to leave and he confesses his love once more to Irina. Kulygin continues to profess his love for his wife, Masha. Meanwhile, Masha is upset at her brother, Andre for mortgaging the house and letting Natasha take all the money. The sisters discuss how Andre has lost his passion for life since being with Natasha. Irina begins to get hysterical, fearing she too has forgotten her education and that they will never return to Moscow. Olga advises Irina to marry the Baron, even if it isn’t for love.

Masha confesses to her sisters that she loves Vershinin. Andre enters and is very upset with his sisters about how rude they have been to Natasha. The act ends with Irina’s decision to marry the Baron under the condition that they go to Moscow.

Photo by Mark Garvin

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synopsis act iv

It is five years from the start of Act I in the garden outside the Prozorov house. Everyone is saying goodbye to friends, Rodé and Fedotik. Solyony is angry with the Baron because he too is in love with Irina. Irina has decided to marry the Baron and the wedding is tomorrow. Solyony, however, has challenged the Baron to a duel. Andre says that he will feel alone when everyone leaves and he confesses to Chebutikin that he is beginning to have doubts about his marriage; “I love Natasha, it’s true, but sometimes she seems surprisingly common to me” (53). Chebutikin advises Andre to leave and never look back. Tuzenbach enters and continues to tell Irina how much he loves her. He is quite nonchalant about the duel and says he will return to marry her. They have decided together that it is okay if she does not love him. Tuzenbach embraces the possibility of death as he goes out to the duel. He asks Irina to have his coffee ready for him when he returns because he didn’t have any this morning, and leaves for the duel. Vershinin arrives to say goodbye to Masha and embraces her one last time before he departs. Masha, in tears, begins to sing a song to calm herself.

Kulygin continues to be a loving and supportive husband. We hear a shot in the distance. Natasha is oblivious to all that is happening around her and begins to make arrangements for lots of change in the Prozorov house. Chebutikin returns and declares that the Baron has been killed in the duel. Irina rises above her sorrow saying, “There will come a day when everyone will know why we had to suffer like this, what it was all for…but until then, we have to live…have to work, just work!” (61). The sisters are all content to stay right where they are and the play ends with Olga exclaiming, “If only we could know, if only we could know!” (61).

Photo by Mark Garvin

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anton chekhov life and work

Anton Chekhov was born in 1860 to a shopkeeper and choirmaster in Taganrog, Russia. Only a year after his birth, Tsar Alexander II abolished serfdom—a condition in which peasants worked under the feudal system, which was established during the Middle Ages to ensure a hierarchy among the classes. Chekhov might have been born a serf had his grandfather not bought their freedom. From the age of seven to nineteen, Chekhov attended school and was a very active student, writer and theatergoer. In 1879 he moved to Moscow to attend the medical university there. By the time he graduated from the University of Moscow in 1884, he was able to start his own general practice in medicine, all the while pursuing his love of writing plays, articles, and short stories and establishing himself as a well known writer. At the age of just twenty-four, Anton began showing signs of pulmonary tuberculosis, a disease he would live with until the end of his life.

In 1887, Chekhov’s first full length play, Ivanov, was performed in Moscow, receiving mixed reviews. In 1900 he wrote Three Sisters, and it premiered very successfully the following year at the Moscow Art Theatre and received the Griboedov Prize of Society of Dramatic Authors and Opera Composers. Chekhov also met his wife that year, actress Olga Knipper, who played Olga in the play. Just four years after the premier of Three Sisters, Chekhov’s health began to deteriorate and he died in July of 1904 at the age of 44. By the time of his death, Chekhov had published a plethora of short stories and famous works of theatre including, The Seagull (1896), Uncle Vanya (1896), and The Cherry Orchard (1904). Though he lived a short life, the works he produced during his lifetime continue to affect artists and audiences all over the globe.

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anton chekhov dramatic style

Original Three Sisters production photo in 1901 Anton Chekhov and wife, Olga Knipper, 1901

Though Anton Chekhov was drawn to the world of theatre, he maintained a fear that “the demands of the stage would coarsen or distort his carefully wrought perceptions.”1 In other words, Chekhov believed the rules of the theatre at the time would hinder, not reflect his own view of the world. There were two popular play structures of the 19th Century, the “Well Made Play” and the Russian open-ended dramas exemplified by Russian playwright, Alexander Ostrovsky.

The “Well Made Play” was a popular European and American style of theatre. It functions under a very specific plot structure which includes a heroic character that undergoes a series of misfortunes, much dramatic exposition, and a denouement that allows good to conquer evil.

The Russian open-ended dramas had a looser plot structure than the “Well Made Play,” but they too explored the battle between good and evil and added an element of morality to the mix.

1. Senelick, Laurence, Introduction to The Complete Plays: Anton Chekhov, by Anton Chekhov, translated by Laurence Senelick, p. xlvii, New York: W.W. Norton & Company, Inc., 2006.

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anton chekhov dramatic style

Director Constantin Stanislavski and actress Olga Knipper

Unlike the playwrights of his time, Chekhov was not interested in farcical plot structures or the battle between good versus evil, but rather he was interested in depicting the monotony of lives with unfulfilled desires and lost ambitions. Thus he began writing a multitude of works that would soon be placed in a category called Chekhovian Drama, “an imitation of stasis, with action so gradual and non-progressive as sometimes to be imperceptible,” (xlix). His plays, rather than focusing on a central heroic character, display an ensemble of people that are neither good nor evil. Much of the dramatic action occurs offstage leaving conversation and philosophical discussion center stage. His plays are full of symbolism though he is often put in the category of realism as he strives to depict life as it is, with no judgments or embellishments.

Constantin Stanislavski directed many of Chekhov’s plays at the Moscow Art Theatre and Chekhov felt his intentions as a playwright were incredibly misunderstood in the productions. However, when smaller theatres did Chekhov’s plays following his vision of portraying life in a monotonous manner, they were not as well received as his plays directed by Stanislavski whose actors read in between Chekhov’s lines to reveal the true, expressive feelings of his characters. Therefore Chekhov’s true dramatic nature as a playwright is often mislabeled as realism due to Stanislavski’s directing style, which was layered with detail and aesthetic and which loosely respected the structure and dialogue laid out by the playwright.

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three sisters at the arden roles in a theatre production Director

(Terrence J. Nolen) The ultimate decision maker in a production. The play is usually a product of his/her directorial vision. It is his/her responsibility to rehearse the actors and convey that vision to them through the rehearsal process. He/she is in constant contact with the designers of the play and they collaborate together to ensure the director’s vision. Once the play opens, he/she may move on to another play to rehearse and it is now the stage manager’s job to maintain that production.

Directorial Vision How the director wishes to present the play. The director asks him or herself, what is it about this play that is important and how will I bring all the elements of theatre together to reflect that vision? With the Arden’s production of Three Sisters, Mr. Nolen along with his collaborators sought to bring Philadelphia a vibrant, new Three Sisters that is alive and American. They wish to present a play that is true to the playwright as well as reflect their rich rehearsal process on stage.

Director Terrence J. Nolen rehearsing with actors Katharine Powell and Mary Tuomanen Photo credit: Sam Tower

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three sisters at the arden roles in a theatre production Stage Manager

(Alec E. Ferrell) The stage manager is in charge of all scheduling and overall structure during the rehearsal process. They record all actors’ movements or “blocking” on stage, any props that are used, and any light or sound in the play. Once the play opens, the director’s job is finished and the stage manager is in charge of any and all situations on stage and off. It is the stage manager’s job to make sure that the director’s vision is maintained and that the actors do not stray from what was rehearsed. They do what is called “calling the show,” which means they sit in the booth with the light and sound operators and tell them when to press light and sound cues. They also give actors warnings as to when the show will begin, and deliver the final cue call even after the show ends and the actors have bowed.

Also, they usually get paid the most. So if you want a job in theatre, take that one!

Assistant Stage Manager

(Will Freske) Helps out with all of the organizational aspects that the stage manager is responsible for as well as to make sure the show runs smoothly back stage. He/she may be in charge of pre-setting costumes and props, and keeping track of where they travel throughout the show.

Actors Scott Greer and Ian Merrill Peakes, and Technical Director Glenn Perlman at first rehearsal

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three sisters at the arden roles in a theatre production

Translator Curt Columbus and actors Cathy Simpson and Luigi Sottile at the first rehearsal of Three Sisters

Translator

(Curt Columbus) Translates the play from one language to another and ultimately is responsible for how the play will be received in another language. In this case, Curt Columbus translated Chekhov’s Three Sisters from Russian. Columbus, along with director Nolen, believes that many of Chekhov’s works have been poorly translated and they wanted to honor the playwright’s vision of theatre. The language of this translation is significantly more contemporary than most translations of Three Sisters.

Playwright

(Anton Chekhov) This person writes the dramatic literature that is usually then performed by actors on stage.

Dramaturg

(Sally Ollove) The dramaturg is present during the rehearsal process to ensure historical accuracy to the production. For instance, if a game of bridge is played on stage, it is the dramaturg’s job to make sure that everyone understands and knows how to play that game correctly. Additionally, if the play takes place during another time period, it is important for everyone involved in the production to be aware of historical events, clothing, language and anything else that might help the play ring true. It is also the dramaturg’s responsibility to adapt to the ideas of the director and ensure that the production is consistent in its choices. The dramaturg is often a sounding board for the director, translator, or playwright when they make choices about the text.

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three sisters at the arden roles in a theatre production

Olivera Gajic’s costume inspiration for each character in The Arden’s production of Three Sisters

Set Designer

(Eugene Lee) The artist who designs the scenery for the play.

Costume Designer

(Olivera Gajic) Responsible for dressing the actors in the appropriate clothes for their characters in the play.

Sound and Video Designer

(Jorge Cousineau) Creates any sound that is written in the play’s script. This can range anywhere from birds chirping to a doorbell. The video designer is in charge of creating and projecting any video that is used on stage.

Lighting Designer

(F. Mitchell Dana) This artist is in charge of lighting the stage so we can see the actors! Their job is extremely important because often a simple shift in light can help the audience to understand setting, time of day, and even which actor to focus on!

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three sisters at the arden roles in a theatre production

Actors, Sam Henderson, Jake Blouch and Mary Tuomanen at music rehearsal Photo Crefit: Sam Tower

Rebecca Gibel, Luigi Sottile, Mary Tuomanen and James Ijames in Three Sisters Photo credit: Mark Garvin

Actors

It is an actor’s job to interpret the playwright’s words and realize his/her character(s) on stage in a truthful manner. They are in constant contact with the director who guides them towards his/her vision.

Assistant Director

(Samantha Tower) Aids the director of a production in a number of ways, from taking many notes and being in contact with actors, to rehearsing any understudies that may exist for a show.

Composer

(James Sugg) The person who writes any music for the show. Sometimes they write the music to musicals, and other times (in the case of Three Sisters) they may write short pieces that are included in certain scenes and scene changes.

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three sisters at the arden directorial concept As told from an interview conducted with Assistant Director Samantha Tower The Arden’s production of Three Sisters uses the play’s four acts as dividing points to share and reflect the intricate process of rehearsing and producing a play. The play begins set around a table in a rehearsal space as if it is the first day of rehearsal for this play. The actress who plays Olga also takes on the temporary role of Stage Manager as she reads the stage directions out loud (which are traditionally not spoken aloud during a production) as the other actors sit reading from their scripts. As we continue into Act II, some set pieces are added to the stage and a few lighting effects begin to take shape. At this point, the actors have memorized their lines and have begun moving about the space. By the time the production reaches Act IV, the actors are no longer dressed in contemporary clothing, but the classic garb of the time period and the world of the play has now been built around the characters we’ve grown to love. Additionally, throughout the play, the audience has full exposure to actors’ exits and entrances and we are able to see them sitting offstage observing what is happening on stage. This adds to the metatheatrical aspect of the production showing many aspects of the production process while at the same time, telling the story of Chekhov’s play. “[Terrence J. Nolen’s] concept helps to break open the humanity of the play and allow the contemporary audience to step inside the rich landscape of humanity that Chekhov has created.”

Act I of the Arden’s Three Sisters Photo credit: Mark Garvin

Left to right: James Ijames, Mary Tuomanen, Charlie Thurson, and Scott Greer in Act IV of the Arden’s Three Sisters Photo credit: Mark Garvin

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questions for discussion

Sarah Sanford, Katharine Powell and Mary Tuomanen Photo credit: Mark Garvin

1.

Some of the themes in Three Sisters are love and desire, education versus ignorance, and nostalgia. How do each of the sisters relate to these themes?

2.

Why do you think the sisters’ dream of Moscow is forgotten at the end of the play?

What does Moscow represent to each character and what is preventing them from moving there? Do you think that is the real reason? Why or why not?

3.

In Act III, Vershinin says, “In two hundred, three hundred years, people will look at the way we live now in horror, or just laugh, because it will all seem so awkward, and dif ficult, and really uncomfortable, and odd” (52). Since it has been at least a century since Chekhov wrote these words, do you agree with Vershinin about how we view people of the past? How do you project societies will think of us two to three hundred years from now?

4.

The power struggles in the relationships in this play are overlapping and intertwined.

Discuss the ways in which each character both has power and does not have power.

For instance, begin by discussing the differences in power between Masha’s relation ship with Vershinin versus her husband, Kulygin.

5.

Discuss the concept of work in this play. Why is it so important to Irina?

6.

What role does music play both in the script of the play and in the Arden’s production of Three Sisters?

7.

Chekhov has defined his own dramatic style as, “an imitation of stasis, with action so gradual and non-progressive as sometimes to be imperceptible.” Do you think Three Sisters reflects this definition? What are your reactions to his subtle plot points and actions? How is the style similar to or different from contemporary entertainment such as television shows, movies, or other plays that you know?

8.

Which character do you most connect with and why?

9.

Discuss how the Arden’s production of Three Sisters tells two stories at the same time.

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bibliography Images of Chekhov http://static.guim.co.uk/sys-images/Guardian/About/General/2010/11/3/1288798538036/anton-chekhov-006.jpg http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/af/Anton_Chekhov_and_ Olga_Knipper%2C_1901.jpg/414px-Anton_Chekhov_and_Olga_Knipper%2C_1901.jpg http://trentarthur.ca/wp-content/uploads/2014/01/Three-Sisters-Original-Cover-image. jpg http://blog.wtfestival.org/wp-content/uploads/2012/08/300px-Stanislavski-Knipper-1909.jpg Works Cited Senelick, Laurence. Introduction to The Complete Plays: Anton Chekhov, by Anton Chekhov, translated by Laurence Senelick, xiii-lx. New York: W.W. Norton & Company, Inc., 2006.

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