It is a shame for English speakers that Anton Chekhov wrote in Russian. He remains one of the most gifted playwrights the world has seen, but his language is often muddled and suffers a loss of meaning at the hands of even the most careful translator.
Fortunately for the College of Fine Arts School of Theatre at Boston University, Paul Schmidt's translation of "Three Sisters" treats Chekhov's words with the care of a mechanic working on a nuclear bomb. It would usually be obvious that you were watching a play in translation if you went to see a production of "Three Sisters" — attempts to be faithful to the original text often manifest themselves in English as awkward exchanges that seem unnatural and give the whole production an air of inaccessibility. Yet Schmidt's translation and the fine work of the BU students brings this play together tactfully.
Although I cannot speak to the veracity of the faithfulness of Schmidt's translation to the original text — as I am one of those unfortunate people mentioned earlier who doesn't know Russian — I can say that it does a beautiful job of turning Chekhov's Russian into an accessible English text.
The play follows the plight of three sisters who have enjoyed a refined upbringing in Moscow, but as they reach their twenties, they are moved to a remote Russian town with their army commandant father and reclusive brother. Following the death of their father, they find themselves marooned — trying but struggling to maintain their sanity in their newfound provincial existence.
The play hits all the expected Chekhovian themes, notably the fall of the upper classes and the characters' search for meaning and happiness in a modern world. As always, Chekhov presents these situations in layered and clever ways through his characters and their predicaments.
A friend of mine once said that the reason she loves classic Russian literature is because one feels like an intellectual while reading a soap opera. The same could be said for "Three Sisters." The work is clearly one of great genius and poses questions and observations that stick long after the curtain falls. Still, you are as enthralled, if not more so, by the goings-on in the household as you would be watching an episode of "The O.C." (2003-2007).
When one of the sisters attempts to escape the monotony of her unhappy marriage by pursuing an affair, the complications and repercussions of the decision elicit fascinating reactions from the other characters, while offering a slice of juicy intrigue to the audience at the same time.
The students in the production clearly feel at home in Schmidt's translation. They are working against an elaborate set and likely share little in common with their characters, but they pull off genuine performance and share an honest story with the audience. Some of the characters are very worldly people, yet the actors' youth is hardly ever betrayed. The show is extremely well-cast — the three titular sisters all sit comfortably in their roles as women with three very different temperaments and play off one another with ease.
I would urge anyone with reservations about going to see a student production to think again — between the excellent original text, its masterful translation and the incredible justice the actors and director have done to their material, this is a must-see for anyone in the Boston area.
