Robert Garcia shines as Lopakhin, a self-made businessman from lowly origins. More than just a clumsy entrepreneur, he’s descended from serfs, but in the process of lifting himself socially and financially has lost his self-deprecating humor and humble grace. His boyhood affection for Ranevskaya has been superseded by the overwhelming adult desire to move out of coach and into the first-class car. Mark Shepard plays Pishchik, a neighboring landowner who perpetually asks the family for loans to cover his debts, despite the fact they have nothing to give him. Like Ranevskaya, he is condemned to a rootless existence.
Rachel Watts appears as Anya, Ranevskaya’s impressionable youngest daughter. She and her worrywart sister Varya (Annette Roggenbuck) must teach their mother the art of letting go with dignity while staring into the abyss of an uncertain future. Both girls have their eyes on various suitors, only to be disappointed.
Trifimov (Ryan Martin) is the first local resident to declare that it's time to move on. This eternal student (who was the tutor of Ranevskaya's dead son) speaks of social progress and the necessity of intense, hard work to all who will listen. The witty Charlotta Ivanova (Elexa Poropudas) is a governess who during the last party at the estate transforms herself into a court jester. She’s an independent woman looking out for herself first.
Bookkeeper Yepikhodov (Ross Berger) is a squeaky-shoed, guitar-strumming geek who, accepting his irrefutable status as a weirdo, seems content to perpetually court Dunyasha (Isabel Heaviside), a young maid who is politely unfazed by his affections. Optimistically, Dunyasha has her eyes set on Yasha (Adam Roy), a handsome, ambitious servant who has always been eager to please. Roy was one of the most interesting people on stage, clearly communicating his character’s thoughts and emotions.
All the actors in this production give strong interpretations, including Robert Smithton as Firs, the old servant mulling over his responsibilities to the estate and its owners past, present and future. Tim Manek appears briefly as a vagrant, and Miller Oberlin has the role the stationmaster; miscellaneous roles are handled by ensemble members Cole Aviles, Caroline Doyle, Joanna Klasa, Geof Peterson and Maxine Sattizahn.
There is much to praise in this COM production. Carefully observed detail and strangely intriguing relationships make for a compelling theatrical visit to late 19th –century Russia.
