Changing Times

By Gwendolyn Rice, The Isthmus

August 18, 2017

The first moments of American Players Theatre’s production of Anton Chekhov’s Three Sisters are picture perfect. It is early May, and one of the servants (an earthy Sarah Day) is laying out crystal and silver on ornate rugs for 20-year-old Irina’s name-day party. Far in the background, in the actual green hills behind the stage, Olga and another servant are picking flowers in the meadow to celebrate the occasion. As the two women bring their bouquets to the feast, several exuberant (and shirtless) young men tumble down the hill in a good-natured race, frolicking until a photographer urges them to gather for a picture. The group obediently assembles for the photo, but not before the vigor drains from their faces. Clothes are straightened and hair smoothed. Joy is replaced by steely eyes and stoic expressions. They hold the pose while the film is exposed. The image of this day, which will outlive all its participants, is one of dour resolve.

The simplicity of these scenes, illustrating the short distance between a life filled with color and energy and one of staid grim monotones, is breathtaking. There are many such moments in the play, directed by William Brown, which chronicles the classic story of three young Russian women who wish in vain to return to Moscow and a gentler time filled with wonderful possibilities. Instead, they face an increasingly dreary life in a provincial town far away from their cosmopolitan upbringing.

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