Date added:
31 May 2023, We
MAY. CHEKHOV. THEATER
"Come and visit me in Melikhovo in May, when the gardens are blossoming...", wrote Anton Pavlovich Chekhov. For more than twenty years in a row, in May, the writer and playwright's estate in Melikhovo has hosted theatre troupes with performances based on his works to take part in the International Theatre Festival "Melikhov Spring".
The magic of this place, where Chekhov wrote The Seagull, attracts directors and actors. They come here to breathe in the fragrance of fresh greenery, lilacs and flowers and perform their plays with a special feeling of joining the life of the great writer and playwright, which embraces anyone who visits the place.
The festival grew out of the annual spring theatre festival held since 1982 in Melikhov on the initiative of the director of the museum Yuri Konstantinovich Avdeev and the head of the Lipetsk State Academic Drama Theatre named after L.N. Tolstoy Vladimir Vladimirovich Avdeev. Vladimir Mikhailovich Pakhomov, head of the Lipetsk State Academic Drama Theatre named after Leo Tolstoy. Then, through the efforts of the next director of the museum, Yuri Alexandrovich Bychkov, the tour of this theatre with its Chekhov premieres grew into a festival of Russian and foreign plays based on the works of A.P. Chekhov or about Chekhov himself.
"Every year the Melikhovo garden blossoms, and like birds from all over the world theatre groups fly to Melikhovo near Moscow to once again "live" confirm or refute the formula "Chekhov is inexhaustible", legitimised by another brilliant contemporary of A.P. Chekhov - K.S. Stanislavsky", - emphasised Anastasia Zhuravleva, General Director of the Museum.
Having kept its original name - "Melikhov Spring" - the festival has changed. This year there is a new corporate style, and on the logo of the theatre forum there is a crown and initials "A.Ch.", the style of posters, booklets, souvenirs has completely changed. Chekhov's drawings, "collected" from the pages of his letters, were taken as a basis.
To increase the number of spectators and to make watching the performances pleasant and comfortable the new theatre ground on the Kryzhovnik glade allowed. And also the Festival has a new artistic director - Konstantin Khabensky. He noted: "It is very happy that every year the Festival grows and changes, while its essence remains unchanged: to show how differently the works of this great writer can be staged, how many deep meanings are embedded in his works, how his work is always relevant".
Today's festival is not only a review of performances, but also a discussion of them by leading critics of Russia, open to all comers, meetings with famous theatre figures, an opportunity to make new acquaintances for guests of the festival and its participants.
The 23rd "Spring" took place from 19 to 28 May. Its playbill included 20 plays based not only on works by A.P. Chekhov, but also by A.N. Ostrovsky. The programme "Chekhov+" was represented by plays based on the works of this playwright, who celebrated his 200th anniversary this year.
It was possible to see the productions on two platforms in the museum "Melikhovo" and on the stage of the City Musical Drama Theatre of Serpukhov, which has been welcoming the participants of this theatre forum for many years.
"Geography" of the festival was represented by Russian theatres from Moscow and the Moscow region, St. Petersburg, Ryazan, Vorkuta, Nizhny Novgorod, Sevastopol, Vladimir, Perm, Vologda and other cities.
The festival was launched by the Chekhov Moscow Art Theatre, presenting the Landscape Theatre, a project designed to go beyond the usual stage space.
"Landscape theatre" is a short outdoor performance created by the theatre specifically for a certain location. This time such a production was prepared especially for the Melikhov estate. The action unfolded not only on the stage, but also in the auditorium, so that the spectators themselves became its participants.
An obligatory moment of the "Landscape Theatre" is the installation of a verst pole with two plates. One indicates the distance from this point to the Chekhov Moscow Art Theatre, the other - to the local theatre. Such a pole has appeared in Melikhov. It shows the distance to the museum theatre "Chekhov Studio", which presented at the festival its new play "Guide for those who want to get married" based on the works of Anton Chekhov.
Two "Seagulls" flew to the birthplace of the play from Istra and Nizhny Novgorod. Different productions, but each in its own way revealing the mysteries of this work....
A very nice adult-child story about Kashtanka was told by the Sevastopol Theatre of Young Spectators.
A special Chekhov happened at the festival. The students of the course of deaf actors of the Russian State Specialised Academy of Arts from Moscow presented their performance based on the author's works. The performance involved six students of the final year of the theatre faculty of the Russian State Specialised Academy of Arts. Some of them are hard of hearing, and some of them cannot hear at all. But this is their strength, superpower and point of growth: they are incredibly talented guys!
The evening in memory of the legendary man, artist, teacher and director Oleg Efremov is a traditional and long-awaited event of every Melikh school.
The magic of this place, where Chekhov wrote The Seagull, attracts directors and actors. They come here to breathe in the fragrance of fresh greenery, lilacs and flowers and perform their plays with a special feeling of joining the life of the great writer and playwright, which embraces anyone who visits the place.
The festival grew out of the annual spring theatre festival held since 1982 in Melikhov on the initiative of the director of the museum Yuri Konstantinovich Avdeev and the head of the Lipetsk State Academic Drama Theatre named after L.N. Tolstoy Vladimir Vladimirovich Avdeev. Vladimir Mikhailovich Pakhomov, head of the Lipetsk State Academic Drama Theatre named after Leo Tolstoy. Then, through the efforts of the next director of the museum, Yuri Alexandrovich Bychkov, the tour of this theatre with its Chekhov premieres grew into a festival of Russian and foreign plays based on the works of A.P. Chekhov or about Chekhov himself.
"Every year the Melikhovo garden blossoms, and like birds from all over the world theatre groups fly to Melikhovo near Moscow to once again "live" confirm or refute the formula "Chekhov is inexhaustible", legitimised by another brilliant contemporary of A.P. Chekhov - K.S. Stanislavsky", - emphasised Anastasia Zhuravleva, General Director of the Museum.
Having kept its original name - "Melikhov Spring" - the festival has changed. This year there is a new corporate style, and on the logo of the theatre forum there is a crown and initials "A.Ch.", the style of posters, booklets, souvenirs has completely changed. Chekhov's drawings, "collected" from the pages of his letters, were taken as a basis.
To increase the number of spectators and to make watching the performances pleasant and comfortable the new theatre ground on the Kryzhovnik glade allowed. And also the Festival has a new artistic director - Konstantin Khabensky. He noted: "It is very happy that every year the Festival grows and changes, while its essence remains unchanged: to show how differently the works of this great writer can be staged, how many deep meanings are embedded in his works, how his work is always relevant".
Today's festival is not only a review of performances, but also a discussion of them by leading critics of Russia, open to all comers, meetings with famous theatre figures, an opportunity to make new acquaintances for guests of the festival and its participants.
The 23rd "Spring" took place from 19 to 28 May. Its playbill included 20 plays based not only on works by A.P. Chekhov, but also by A.N. Ostrovsky. The programme "Chekhov+" was represented by plays based on the works of this playwright, who celebrated his 200th anniversary this year.
It was possible to see the productions on two platforms in the museum "Melikhovo" and on the stage of the City Musical Drama Theatre of Serpukhov, which has been welcoming the participants of this theatre forum for many years.
"Geography" of the festival was represented by Russian theatres from Moscow and the Moscow region, St. Petersburg, Ryazan, Vorkuta, Nizhny Novgorod, Sevastopol, Vladimir, Perm, Vologda and other cities.
The festival was launched by the Chekhov Moscow Art Theatre, presenting the Landscape Theatre, a project designed to go beyond the usual stage space.
"Landscape theatre" is a short outdoor performance created by the theatre specifically for a certain location. This time such a production was prepared especially for the Melikhov estate. The action unfolded not only on the stage, but also in the auditorium, so that the spectators themselves became its participants.
An obligatory moment of the "Landscape Theatre" is the installation of a verst pole with two plates. One indicates the distance from this point to the Chekhov Moscow Art Theatre, the other - to the local theatre. Such a pole has appeared in Melikhov. It shows the distance to the museum theatre "Chekhov Studio", which presented at the festival its new play "Guide for those who want to get married" based on the works of Anton Chekhov.
Two "Seagulls" flew to the birthplace of the play from Istra and Nizhny Novgorod. Different productions, but each in its own way revealing the mysteries of this work....
A very nice adult-child story about Kashtanka was told by the Sevastopol Theatre of Young Spectators.
A special Chekhov happened at the festival. The students of the course of deaf actors of the Russian State Specialised Academy of Arts from Moscow presented their performance based on the author's works. The performance involved six students of the final year of the theatre faculty of the Russian State Specialised Academy of Arts. Some of them are hard of hearing, and some of them cannot hear at all. But this is their strength, superpower and point of growth: they are incredibly talented guys!
The evening in memory of the legendary man, artist, teacher and director Oleg Efremov is a traditional and long-awaited event of every Melikh school.