The Seagull
SDC Director Joel Ferrell
Associate Director Katie Ibrahim
Asst Director Larsen Nichols
Scenic Designer Track Curtis
Lighting Designer Nicole Iannaccone
Costume Designer Aaron Patrick DeClerk
Wig Designer Nicole Alvarez
Props Designer Zareen Afzaal
Sound Designer Dylan Hearn
Intimacy Coordinator Kelsey Milbourn
Stage Manager Davvi Solomon
Asst Stage Manager Sarah C Barnes
Production Asst Grace Simmons
Theatre Three presents
The Seagull by Anton Chekhov
Adapted by Blake Hackler
My thoughts on The Seagull or…Russians in need of a little Prozac with their vodka,
It’s a wonder to me that this story of ten Russians whose glasses are all half empty can be so interesting and Blake Hackler’s adaptation is the best I have seen. The language is contemporary, it’s sharper and wittier, and the focus is kept on the main characters of Irina and Konstantin.
Joel Ferrell helms this splendid production which is beautifully costumed by Aaron Patrick DeClerk . Scenic Designer Track Curtis uses furniture, mostly chairs, tables, and a chaise to suggest locations in the house and on the Sorin’s estate and Nicole Iannaccone provides the lighting.
Irina, a noted, aging actress, brings her younger lover, and successful writer Trigorin to the family’s country estate now run by her older, ailing brother Sorin. Irina’s twenty something son Konstantin, an aspiring writer, lives there along with the longtime family servants Shamrayev, his wife Polina, and their daughter Masha. Masha is being pursued by Medvedenko, a local teacher. Also in the picture are the family doctor Dorn and the young neighbor Nina, a budding actress.
Ferrell gets phenomenal performances from his cast of veteran performers and some “Theatre Three worthy” newcomers. Christie Vela leads the cast of seasoned performers as the vain, selfish famous actress Irina. Bill Hass is her not ready to die brother Sorin. Jessica D. Turner is Polina, married to the alternately charming and domineering Shamrayev played by Jakie Cabe, but longing for her former lover, the affable doctor Dorn played by Robert San Juan. These stage vets are never less than thrilling to watch and are total masters of their craft.
The talented group of newcomers includes Logan Rhys Hallwas as the writer and Irina’s lover Trigorin. Francesca Santodomingo is the depressed and miserable Masha, who loves Konstantin devotedly and Hunter Wilson-Leal is Medvedenko who has the misfortune of being in unrequited love with Masha. Kimberly Turner is the tragic Nina, the ingenue obsessed with Trigorin. Caleb Mosley has the lead role of Konstantin who is obsessed with creating his art, winning his mother’s approval, and Nina. If this upcoming generation of actors is exemplified by the group Ferrell has assembled, the future of theater is in very capable hands.
The acting in The Seagull is so strong it actually had me in tears twice. In Act I there is an incredibly tender and moving scene where Irina wraps the head of the wounded Konstantin. Vela and Mosley make this scene so stunningly real that it went straight to my heart. Never mind that the scene spirals out of control moments later when Vela’s Irina starts inflicting wounds instead of binding them. When Irina’s calm, loving, maternal nature peaks out momentarily, it is pure stage beauty.
Late in Act II Nina comes to see Konstantin. She is crying and the tragedy of her life eventually becomes apparent as she talks. This is a complex scene and Kimberly Turner delivers it with such power and conviction that I connected emotionally to Nina’s plight.
The common denominator of these two remarkable scenes is Caleb Mosley. He is the embodiment of the manchild that is Konstantin. We are drawn to him even before the play begins. As he lounges on the chaise drinking vodka, the skillful Mosley conveys Konstantin’s inner conflict. Konstantin is in many ways a Hamlet and Mosley captures the torment and angst of the character. We become invested in the world of The Seagull through Mosley. It’s as if we could see inside his head. Bravo, Sir.
If you overhear anyone saying you can’t see great acting outside of New York in the next few weeks, I would point them toward Theatre Three’s The Seagull.
