Theater Review by Ron Fassler . . . .
Anton Chekhov, the Russian-born author, dramatist, and medical physician, died at age forty-four 120 years ago. In his short lifetime, he wrote four extraordinary plays, one of which is 1898’s Uncle Vanya, now being produced in a limited engagement at Lincoln Center. It has only been a dozen years since Cate Blanchett and the Sydney Theatre of Australia company were at City Center in 2012 with their Vanya. A 2018 Off-Broadway production with Jay O. Sanders earned him a Drama Desk Award as Best Actor in the title role. Only last year, Andrew Scott’s one-man adaptation written by Simon Stephens (Curious Incident of the Dog in the Nighttime) was a huge hit on the London stage while at the same time, David Cromer and Bill Irwin starred in a “hyper-intimate” version (the press release term) set in a private loft in the Flatiron district, lit by candlelight. Only forty people were allowed in per performance (it sold out).
I mention all these productions to point out that Uncle Vanya is one of the most enduring titles in the classical theater canon and that it never gets old. In its drama (and comedy), its depiction is of the mundane lives of ordinary people who share a universal truth—and all of whom are stunted by self-inflicted wounds, have dreams of rising above their situations, but are plagued by delusions about how to do so. These funny folk are all too relatable and, despite having been seemingly sketched in broad outlines, consistently lure high-caliber actors who wish to explore every bit of minutiae in these characters to create lasting impressions. The bitter honesties that lurk beneath everything that is spoken in Chekhov’s dialogue are catnip for anyone with an Equity card. Now a major cast has been brought together under Lila Neugebauer’s (acclaimed this season alone for Itamar Moses’s The Ally) direction, and in a new translation from playwright Heidi Schreck (What the Constitution Means to Me). Does this cast coalesce into the kind of acting necessary to make Chekhov work onstage? They do, they do.
It’s no easy task. Without everyone on the same page, Chekhov does not work. Some producers who think that his plays are star vehicles are often very surprised when that setup fails. Ensemble acting of the highest order is not only preferred, but essential, with one loose thread capable of tearing apart an entire tapestry. I’ve seen it go down time and again and am happy to report that the nine-person cast currently on the same stage of the Vivian Beaumont Theatre in this Uncle Vanya is delivering the goods.
Credit is due to Neugebauer for running a tight ship. She, along with Schreck, have removed any traces of the play’s Russian roots, save for the character names. The director told her cast on Day One, “There won’t be a samovar in sight.” This helps take the play out of mothballs a bit, especially when Schreck has updated its vernacular in more subtle ways than just adding four-letter words or modern references. The time period is kept nebulous (either now or in the near future) with American and British accents mixing nicely. On a sparsely furnished set (first outdoors, then indoors), the players come and go, pairing and unpairing. They tend to get a bit lost in the enormous expanse of the Beaumont’s stage and Mimi Lien’s tendency to do everything in shades of brown makes for a dull palette (the lighting is by Lap Chi Chu & Elizabeth Harper) which is also on the dim side. They may not have played up other Slavic aspects of the story, but these elements feel authentically drab and Russian. The costuming by Kaye Voyce provides a proper contemporary feel, though the clothes worn by Vanya (Steve Carell) are too casual. They befit a relaxed person, which is the last thing Vanya is, so it makes for a curious choice.
As for the plot, Vanya manages, with his niece Sonia (Alison Pill), a large family estate that’s fallen on hard times. When her father, the eminent scholar Alexander (Alfred Molina), arrives he is with his relatively new wife Elena (Anika Noni Rose). Tensions mount due to Alexander’s intention to sell the estate (shades of Chekhov’s later work, The Cherry Orchard), with matters compounded by Elena falling for a friend of the family, Dr. Astrov (William Jackson Harper), who is conversely in love with her. To complicate matters further, Vanya finally finds the courage to offer his ever-lasting heart to his brother-in-law’s new wife, all while Sonia remains hopeful Astrov might find an interest in her. This roundelay is played for both comedy and tragedy, and when the sparks fly they are capable of igniting a hell of an evening in the theater.
The most successful casting coup here is William Jackson Harper as Astrov. This young actor gave one of the finest performances on stage this past season Off-Broadway in Eboni Booth’s Primary Trust and here makes one feel the entire classical repertoire could be his oyster if he so chooses. I can easily imagine his Trigorin in The Seagull, Vershinin in Three Sisters, and Lopakhin in The Cherry Orchard. The heat generated between him and Anika Noni Rose would serve them well in Shakespeare’s Antony and Cleopatra. Harper has a marvelous theatrical voice that he employs beautifully, bringing fresh ideas and passion to his work. He is matched by Rose’s austere Elena, which often provides a ready trap for falling into a one-note performance that is effectively avoided here. Steve Carell accomplishes a careful balancing act as Vanya, a character often misrepresented as a sad sack. Carell finds the backbone of the man and uses humor to deflect the insecurities he so clearly wears on his sleeve. There are moments where he is less successful, but on the whole his is a smart take on a difficult role.
The supporting cast really can’t be improved upon, led by Alfred Molina, an actor always arresting either in film or in the theater. His piercing intelligence is in the grand tradition of the British actors in whose footsteps he follows—and I do mean Olivier, Guinness, Hopkins, et. al. His Alexander is not merely the dull pedant seen many times, but a complex, vain individual who will not accept the role of villain no matter how insensitive he is. Though they don’t get a great deal to do, Jonathan Hadary, Jayne Houdyshell, and Mia Katigbak, in particular, are all quite good. Alison Pill’s unique turn as Sonia (part tomboy, part sexually frustrated young woman) is a fascinating take.
There are many lines Shreck pulls off that highlight the essential Chekhovian humor necessary, but they are too numerous to mention. Allow, then, for a personal favorite that occurs when Vanya talks about how bad the books Alexander composes are. He exclaims, “I pity the paper.” No pity here for fans of one of this writer’s greatest achievements. This Uncle Vanya can stand tall with the best of them.
Uncle Vanya. Through June 16 at Lincoln Center Theater’s Vivian Beaumont Theater (150 West 65th Street, at Columbus Avenue). www.lct.org
Photos: Marc J. Franklin
