Richard Nelson, Richard Pevear, and Larissa Volokhonsky's updated translation will make its Los Angeles premiere at the historic Pasadena Playhouse beginning June 1 ahead of a June 5 opening night, and continuing through June 26. The production follows the translation's 2018 world premiere at San Diego's The Old Globe.
Nelson, who wrote the book for the Tony Award-winning musical version of James Joyce's The Dead, has also adapted three other Chekhov plays: Three Sisters, The Seagull, and The Wood Demon. Prior to Uncle Vanya, Nelson worked with Richard Pevear and Larissa Volokhonsky on translating other works from a selection of playwrights.
Pevear and Volokhonsky both bring extensive translation abilities to the process. Pevear has worked as a writer, editor, and translator, including 38 published books translated from French, Italian, and Russian. Together, the pair has translated 30 books from Russian, including works by famous Russian authors such as Leo Tolstoy and Fyodor Dostoevsky in addition to Chekhov. Volokhonsky was born in Leningrad and lived in Russia until 1973.
First produced for a metropolitan stage at the Moscow Art Theatre in 1899, Uncle Vanya looks closely at the relationships of Serebryakov family as they teeter on the edge during a hot summer amidst growing passions and financial pressures. It has been translated, adapted, and parodied frequently throughout its legacy.
For more information and tickets, visit PasadenaPlayhouse.org.
