Created by Igor Golyak, The Orchard is an adaptation of Anton Chekhov's The Cherry Orchard, translated by Carol Rocamora with additional material by Golyak. The work is available for in-person audiences and virtual theatregoers.
Audiences in the theatre enter an immersive environment where perceptions, illusions, and reality collide as a family in crisis tries to process their future. The virtual experience invites audiences on a journey through a three-dimensional property that has been abandoned and is in foreclosure. Audiences can explore magical rooms where they uncover echoes of a past life, including Chekhov's letters, memories, and, ultimately, the play, live, in progress at the Baryshnikov Arts Center.
The in-person and online versions run concurrently for each performance. Partway through the performances, the two versions intersect and the worlds come together.
Read the reviews here.
Cititour NY (Brian Scott Lipton)
NY Stage Review (David Finkle)
New York Theater (Jonathan Mandell)
The New York Sun (Elysa Gardner)
The New York Times (Laura Collins-Hughes)
Playbill will continue to update this list as reviews come in.
The cast is led by Jessica Hecht (Fiddler on the Roof, Breaking Bad) as Ranevskaya with Juliet Brett (Fosse/Verdon), Darya Denisova (State vs. Natasha Banina), Elise Kibler (The Heidi Chronicles), John McGinty (Children of a Lesser God), Nael Nacer (chekhovOS), Mark Nelson (Angels in America), and Ilia Volok (Mission Impossible, Indiana Jones). Mikhail Baryshnikov plays both Anton Chekhov and Firs.
The production has scenic design by Anna Fedorova, costume design by Oana Botez, lighting design by Yuki Nakase Link, projection design by Alex Basco Koch, sound design by Tei Blow, music composition by Jakov Jakoulov, emerging technologies design by Adam Paikowsky, robotics design by Tom Sepe, and hair and makeup design by Anna Hrustaleva. Seth Gore is the director of American Sign Language.
See Inside the Production Below:
John McGinty, Juliet Brett, Mark Nelson, Nael Nacer, Jessica Hecht, Elise Kibler, and Darya Denisova in The Orchard
Darya Denisova, Nael Nacer, Mark Nelson, Jessica Hecht, Juliet Brett, Mikhail Baryshnikov, Nael Nacer, Elise Kibler, and John McGinty in The Orchard
Darya Denisova, Nael Nacer, Mark Nelson, Jessica Hecht, Juliet Brett, Mikhail Baryshnikov, Nael Nacer, Elise Kibler, and John McGinty in The Orchard
Juliet Brett and John McGinty in The Orchard
Mark Nelson, Jessica Hecht, and Mikhail Baryshnikov in The Orchard
Nael Nacer in The Orchard
Jessica Hecht in The Orchard
Darya Denisova, Nael Nacer, Jessica Hecht, Mikhail Baryshnikov, and Mark Nelson in The Orchard
Elise Kibler, Jessica Hecht, and Juliet Brett in The Orchard
Mikhail Baryshnikov and Jessica Hecht in The Orchard
Mikhail Baryshnikov in The Orchard
Darya Denisova in The Orchard
Darya Denisova, Jessica Hecht, Juliet Brett, and Mark Nelson in The Orchard
Nael Nacer and Jessica Hecht in The Orchard
Jessica Hecht, Juliet Brett, Mikhail Baryshnikov, John Mcginty, and Ilia Volok in The Orchard
