Cherry Orchard

With the characters of Lovey and Gaev juxtaposed with Lopakin, it seems that the masters
of the house are idle and resistant to change. Whereas if one looks to the history of Russia
at this time, the aristocracy were bred that way. Money was simply paper they gave away to
possess everything they were told they should have, they were never meant to actually
work. So how does a director in this day and age, where idleness is viewed as socially
wrong lead the audience to have compassion for Lovey and Gaev?
Idleness is viewed as socially wrong? I think it's socially encouraged -- television, video
games, internet porn, etc. I think these people are us, sadly; the brilliance of Chekhov is that
he writes about the human condition. The sad thing is that humans don't really ever change.
Curt Columbus talking with students about the upcoming season
And for maybe a simpler question, who do
you most admire out of these cast of
characters?
I admire and love them all. Seriously.
Why is this play important for students?
What can students born in the 1990's take
away from a play written over 100 years
ago, in another country, and in a totally
different time period?
Nothing about this play is rooted in 19 th
century Russia. Really, Chekhov writes
about the human condition. Money, real estate, loss, unhappy love affairs. And what do we
do when faced with the worst case scenario? We go on, as hard as that is to believe.
Since your arrival last winter, you have spoken quite a bit about the importance of theater
in education - what is the role of theater and performance in the classroom, and in a
child's development? Is there anything you would like to say directly to the teachers or
students, either about future programming with Trinity, or about what you've called "the
public square"?
Well, that’s a big question! Certainly one of the things that drew me to Trinity Rep was its
strong heritage of arts education. Sure I want young people to find out how much fun they
can have in the theater, but I also believe that performance plays a powerful role in learning.
That’s why we’re working to increase the work we do in the classrooms. Last year, a special
grant from the National Endowment for the Arts made it possible for our company actors and
staff to visit the schools and lead workshops before and after students saw Hamlet. It was
such a success that we’re committed to building a similar program ourselves around a
“centerpiece” play each season. This year, it’s Our Town. We want to add depth to the
students’ understanding of the play, and to encourage them to share their own responses to it.
It’s going to be a big part of the winter, around here.
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