Three Sisters at the Almeida Theatre

The first thing that struck me about this play was how modern it sounded. The youngest of the three sisters is Irina, played by Ria Zmitrowicz, sounded just like my fourteen year old granddaughter. What was it? The language or the the tone of voice? One review says that the intonations are decidedly modern, meaning the rise and fall in speech. Another mentions the upward inflection or "uptalk" making statements sound like questions.

The script actually seems more modern than most modern plays, thanks to a superb "adaptation" by Cordelia Lynn. I put the word in inverted commas as Lynn herself, in the best programme notes I have read for years if not ever, is headed "ON NOT TRANSLATING CHEKHOV". She describes her "anxiety over finding the the right word reflects the anxiety I experienced doing the job". Her description of living with the work of another playwright is one of the best pieces of writing I have ever read.

So a translation of Chekhov by Helen Rappaport and this brilliant modern interpretation. OK, there are times in a play written in 1900 that there are things that do sound dated, but mostly we are treated to dramatic scenes one after another. Director Rebecca Frecknall has joined in with a perfect minimalist  modern staging. I was astounded when I found that my seat was in the front row, most of the leads were sometimes sitting on the edge of the raised stage just a few feet away. Then rushing down the steps in front of me, almost brushing past on their way out of the auditorium. Amazing.

The actresses playing the three sisters were all excellent. Patsy Ferran as Olga is now an award winning actress following her performance in "Summer and Smoke" by the same director. When I saw her in the "The Angry Brigade at a deserted  Oxford Playhouse in 2014 and then as Portia at the RSC, I wrote:
 In the acting department, head and shoulders above the rest of the cast (in acting terms if not stature) stands Patsy Ferran as Portia. Only graduating from RADA last summer she has already won high praise for her parts in Blithe Spirit and Treasure Island. I saw her in October at a quarter full Oxford Playhouse in The Angry Brigade. From that seriously sharp performance I could not see her cast as Portia but she is virtually unrecognisable as the same actress. Her voice this time is so soft and highly pitched but with such marvellous projection we catch every word. Her eyes and hands work magic. This is one actress destined for big things.

Pearl Chanda as Masha (on the left above with Patsy Ferran on the right) was brilliant. I saw her in "The Seagull" at Oxford when I wrote: 

the revelation of the evening was the performance of Pearl Chanda in her theatrical debut as Nina, having only graduated from RADA this year. Someone to look out for in the future.

In fact the whole cast were terrific. If I had to pick out somebody, it would be Alan Williams as Ivan. He gets a lot of good lines. I don't always but a programme these days, but this time I'm glad I did, it was so well presented.

It has been a long time since I had been to the Almeida Theatre. The last time was in 2011 to see "My City" and "The Knot of the Heart". It was great to be back.