Interludes

THE HANGOVER REPORT – Igor Golyak’s dreamlike THE ORCHARD is an intriguingly high-tech but fleeting imprint of Chekhov’s play

• By drediman
• June 20, 2022
• No Comments

Last week, The Orchard – Igor Golyak’s adaptation of Anton Chekhov’s The Cherry Orchard – opened Off-Broadway at the Baryshnikov Arts Center. The staging comes by way of Mr. Golyak’s Arlekin Players Theater, which, unsurprisingly, is presenting the play in conjunction with the Cherry Orchard Festival (along with Groundswell Theatricals and ShowOne Productions). Conceived, adapted, and directed by Mr. Golyak, the production (which works off of Carol Rocamora’s English translation) is a radical riff on Chekhov’s play. As such, it may not be the ideal production to bring Chekhov newbies to.

That being said, those familiar with the classic play will find a number of aspects of the production to fascinate over. The piece is perhaps most notable for endeavoring to capture the essence of memory itself, which Mr. Golyak substantially achieves by truncating and jumbling Chekhov’s play. As a result, some moments come into sharper focus than others, mimicking how the human mind conjures memories. In a more far-fetched interpretation, Mr. Golyak’s decidedly experimental vision can also be seen as a sort of digital excavation – long after the extinction of mankind – of the memory banks of the household’s robotic servant (the production features a shape-shifting robotic arm that dominates the stage and diligently observes the play’s happenings). In summary, The Orchard is little more than a fleeting imprint of Chekhov’s play, for better or worse. And although Mr. Golyak’s aggressive use of technology is undoubtedly intriguing, it’s not apparently congruous with the underlying play (at least initially) and is sure to confound many an audience member.

The performances range from merely serviceable (e.g., Elise Kibler makes for an oddly ineffectual Varya) to richly nuanced (the great Mikhail Baryshnikov is compelling as the elderly servant Firs). The dependable stage veteran Jessica Hecht is perfectly cast in the central role of Ranevskaya. Indeed, her distinctively aloof, almost childlike acting style is an ideal fit for the fluttery matriarch. The auteur-like production by Mr. Golyak is unabashed in its use of various modes of media to attain its intended dreamlike quality. The overall effect is like spying on Chekhov’s play through the gauze of time or the haze of memory. In keeping with the adventurous spirit of the staging, the production can also be live-streamed virtually; allegedly, that experience is vastly different from attending the show in-person.

RECOMMENDED

THE ORCHARD
Off-Broadway, Play
Arlekin Players Theater at the Baryshnikov Arts Center
1 hour, 50 minutes (without an intermission)
Through July 3