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Antaeus, L.A.’s multiple award-winning classical theater company, marks its 2012 season with a return to seminal ensemble classics. Andrew J. Traister directs the fully double-cast production of The Seagull, Anton Chekhov’s tragicomedy about life, love and the reckless pursuit of happiness. Set on a country estate by a lake in 19th century Russia, the idyllic locale belies the turbulent passions of its inhabitants. When the famed but aging actress Irina Arkádina returns home with her younger lover, she finds a household overflowing with creativity, fantasies of fame, jealousy and unrequited love.
“The Seagull is a comedy of human foibles and ...Read More
Antaeus, L.A.’s multiple award-winning classical theater company, marks its 2012 season with a return to seminal ensemble classics. Andrew J. Traister directs the fully double-cast production of The Seagull, Anton Chekhov’s tragicomedy about life, love and the reckless pursuit of happiness. Set on a country estate by a lake in 19th century Russia, the idyllic locale belies the turbulent passions of its inhabitants. When the famed but aging actress Irina Arkádina returns home with her younger lover, she finds a household overflowing with creativity, fantasies of fame, jealousy and unrequited love.
“The Seagull is a comedy of human foibles and frailty,” explains Traister. “The behavior in the play is so human and real that it causes us to laugh at ourselves. Each character wants something that is unattainable for him.”
He laughs, “I see Chekhov as the first absurdist playwright. He took city people, put them in the country with nothing to do, and they end up eating each other.
Performances run through February 23-April 15; The Antaeus Company at The Deaf West Theatre, 5112 Lankershim Blvd., North Hollywood, CA; $15-$34; 818-506-1983; www.Antaeus.org. Join us on Facebook at www.facebook.com/AntaeusTheater; follow us on Twitter @AntaeusTheater
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