Description
Book SynopsisAnton Chekhov (1860-1904), Russian physician, dramatist and author, is considered to be one of the greatest writers of short stories and modern drama. Born in Taganrog, a port town near the Black Sea, he attended medical school at Moscow University. He began writing to supplement his income, writing short humorous sketches of contemporary Russian life. A successful literary careered followed, before his premature death of TB at the age of 44. He is best-remembered for his four dramatic masterpieces:
The Seagull (1896),
Uncle Vanya (1899),
Three Sisters (1901) and
The Cherry Orchard (1904).
Rory Mullarkey graduated in 2009 from Cambridge, after which he studied at the State Theatrical Arts Academy of St. Petersburg. A translator of Russian Drama, Mullarkey's translations have been produced by the ADC Theatre, The Royal Court and the Free Theatre of Belarus. Plays include
Single Sex (Royal Exchange);
Remembrance Day (Royal Court),
Trade Review
Rory Mullarkey's poetical, darkly funny but never murky adaptation proves stimulating and surprising . . . makes you laugh one moment and shudder the next * Times on The Oresteia *
The verse rhythms are fluid and flexible, allowing for passages of lyric song, and the language is pithy and vivid . . . shows how "justice" - the word that resounds through Mullarkey's text like a drumbeat - easily transmutes into blood-soaked revenge. * The Guardian on The Oresteia *
There are ticklish jokes and moments of enjoyable mischief... * Evening Standard on Saint George and the Dragon *
