The Cherry Orchard 212/TCO
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Dramaturgical Production Book The Cherry Orchard 212/TCO Anton Chekhov; Translated by Marina Brodskaya Director: Kelly Galvin Dramaturgy Team: Jack Lavey (314-616-7131; [email protected]) Grace Ralbovsky (347-452-0143; [email protected]) 1 Table of Contents Glossary Production History Sociocultural Information Nomenclature History of Studio 210 Groundplan Selected Documents Program Notes 2 Glossary Page Term Explanation 226 muzhik A peasant; serf; carries negative connotation IPA: mʊˈʐɨk 227 kvass A fermented drink, similar to ale, low in alcohol and made from rye bread 227 abbé French word for abbot; the lower-ranking Catholic clergymen of France 227 Mentone A popular destination on the French-Italian for sufferers of tuberculosis. The town was popular with English and Russian aristocrats who built many of the luxurious hotels, villas, and palaces which still grace Menton today. 229 ruble Currency of Imperial Russia. 1 = $10.62 in 1900. $10.62 in 1900 = $216.63 in 2016 232 billiards Russian billiards: http://www.gamesda.com/russian-pool-rules.html https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Russian_pyramid Primary Differences to Western Pool -Table is larger, as are the balls, and thus the whole game is larger. -The pockets are narrower, which makes it harder to get the ball in the pocket. Reference in TCO: -Cut Shot (very difficult): https://goo.gl/images/HycUvV -Bank Shot (less complicated): https://goo.gl/images/Bha79w 232 boor An ill-mannered, unrefined person and is often pronounced with a diphthong, so it sounds almost like it is a two syllable word, but not quite. (buɚ) 234 crocodile Dishes containing crocodile were in vogue in Paris due to their unnecessary extravagance and expensiveness. 238 “Nothing A colloquialism meaning "definitely not". Usage of this predating doing.” 1904 are in Dickens and Twain. 241 Reed pipe An instrument, similar to a pennywhistle or a recorder, used by shepherds to soothe their sheep. A shepherd with his pipe was a common pastoral image. 3 241 salto mortale Italian for “jump of death”, i.e. a full flip in the air IPA: saltoʊ mortɔleI 242 Guitar vs. Before the 1917 Revolution, guitar was a traditionally bourgeois Mandolin instrument in Russia, a frequent entertainment for the rich, landowning class. Unlike the Western, Spanish-influenced guitar, Russia guitars had seven strings, not six, and were played with the fingers rather than a pick. After the Revolution, the government pushed for large, orchestral music representative of the People, virtually eliminating this type of guitar’s bourgeois tradition. On the other hand, the mandolin was favored by Socialist leaders as it represented the pastoral, folk traditions of Russia’s former serf class. 243 Buckle Henry Thomas Buckle, an English historian who wrote History of Civilization in England, completed in 1857, an extensive and comprehensive history of the country. Sometimes called the “Father of Scientific History”. 244 The 19th century writers and philosophers who praised artifice over the Decadents naïve view of nature, in opposition to Romanticism. 245 croiser French word for cross; a billiard term for a crossing shot 246 Jewish http://www.jewishbookcouncil.org/book/the-most-musical-nation-jew orchestra s-and-culture-in-the-late-russian-empire https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_the_Jews_in_Russia#Russia n_EmpireJewish music in the Russian Empire was not just the Ashkenazic, klezmer style music we so often think of due to media like Fiddler on the Roof. In fact, musicianship was one of the few crafts that gave Russian Jews a respectable and steady source of income. It is important to note as well that this period in Russia is marked heavily by pogroms, mass murders, committed by Tsarist forces across Ukraine and the steppe. 247 promissory A legal document binding a party to pay back a certain sum of money note by a certain time. 248 monkeyshines Mischievous behavior; ‘monkey business’ “без затей” literally meaning austere, or without hardship 249 Asiatic Refers to so-called “barbarians” of the northern Asian region such as barbarism the Mongols. It was widely believed at this time in Russia that those of the former serf class were descended from Asiatic barbarians, and thus deserved to be in a place of virtual slavery. 250 samovar A large, ornate metal container used to heat water for tea and coffee 4 common in Eastern European countries. “Samovar humming/singing”: These devices made strange noises when they were heating up, as their hollow form created an acoustic chamber. Russian folklore tells of samovars having souls because of this ‘singing’. 251 Volga The largest river in Europe, and the national river of Russia, much like the Mississippi is to America. 251 kopeck Currency of Imperial Russia equal to 1/100th of a ruble. 0.01 = $0.11 in 1900 = $2.24 in 2016 IPA: koʊpək 252 Labor Russian word for "work/labor" carries many connotations including action, effect, force, influence, toiling, and struggle. 253 “Promenade à French: Promenade as a pair! une paire!” 253 “Grand-rond, French: In a big circle, get ready! balancez!” 253 “Les cavaliers French: Gentlemen, on your knees and thank your ladies! à genoux et remerciez vos dames!” 253 swallowtail A jacket with two tails hanging to the knees resembling a swallow’s tail. 254 Caligula A Roman emperor who promised to make his favorite horse a consul of the Senate. 254 lezginka A pairs dance from the Caucasus with music in 6/8 at a fast pace. 255 “Guter German: Good man, but bad musician. Mensch, aber schlechter Musikant.” 255 “Eins, zwei, German: One, two, three! drei!” 256 Yaroslavl Yaroslavl is the oldest of all the towns along the Volga (the main river in Russia). It became a major industrial town because of Peter the Great. In 1860 Yaroslavl gained the capacity to send and receive 5 telegraphs, in 1870 the railroad began running, and in 1873 a municipal waterway was established. It was a city with a population around 93,000 at the time of The Cherry Orchard, and continued to have an incredibly strong infrastructure until WW1 and the 1917 revolution. 259 The Sinner Alexei Konstantinovich Tolstoy, a relative of famed Leo Tolstoy, Woman wrote this poem in 1857. Also known as The Magdalen, it is a “moralistic story about the sinning Mary Magdalen who changes her wicked ways.” (Brodskaya) The Other approaches her home. He places his saddened gaze. And for the first time, evil became a horror to her. In this gaze, full of goodness, she reads His condemnation during her days of debauchery And His pardon and mercy. She falls down in tears with her face in the ground Before the holiness of Christ. 259 Sealing wax A perpetually tacky wax used to seal letters before envelopes had adhesive built in. Made of colored rosin, which is derived from tree sap. 263 Crimean Crimea is a small peninsula of land along the Black Sea which was herring annexed by the Russian Empire in 1783. From 1853-56, Britain, France, the Ottoman Empire, and Russia disputed ownership of the land, escalating into the Crimean War. IPA: kraImiə 266 Kharkov The second largest city after Kiev in Ukraine; a major source of trade and industry in the Russian Empire. 268 “Vif la French: Vive la France! (with a Russian accent) Frantz!” 270 white clay A fine white mineral known in Russia as kaolin used to make cosmetics, toothpaste, fine china, and as a diffuser on the inside of light bulbs. 272 Yashnevo There are several potential locations to which Lopakhin could be referring at this point. One is a tiny farm town about 500 km north of Moscow, called Yashnevo. Another is an administrative district of Moscow itself called Yasnevo whose huge wooded areas gave a perfect hidden locale for the KGB headquarters before the fall of the USSR, and now for the Russian Foreign Intelligence Service. Yet another is a town in the oblast of Yaroslavl called Yasnevo. 273 Trinity Also known as Pentecost Sunday, this is a Christian holiday in early 6 Sunday June celebrating the descent of the Holy Ghost upon the disciples of Jesus Christ. In the Eastern Orthodoxy, the holiday is celebrated by decorating one’s house and clothes in flowers and attending church/family gatherings. It is one of the most important holidays of the year. 7 Selected Production History ● Original Production: The play opened on 17 January 1904, the playwright's birthday, at the Moscow Art Theatre under the direction of the actor-director Konstantin Stanislavski. During rehearsals, the structure of Act Two was re-written. Famously contrary to Chekhov's wishes, Stanislavski's version was, by and large, a tragedy. Chekhov disliked the Stanislavski production intensely, concluding that Stanislavski had "ruined" his play. In one of many letters on the subject, Chekhov would complain, "Anya, I fear, should not have any sort of tearful tone... Not once does my Anya cry, nowhere do I speak of a tearful tone, in the second act there are tears in their eyes, but the tone is happy, lively. Why did you speak in your telegram about so many tears in my play? Where are they? ... Often you will find the words "through tears," but I am describing only the expression on their faces, not tears. And in the second act there is no graveyard." It was a resounding theatrical success and the play was almost immediately presented in many of the important provincial cities. This success was not confined only to Russia, as the play was soon seen abroad with great acclaim as well. Shortly after the play's debut, Chekhov departed for Germany due to his worsening health, and by July 1904 he was dead.