The Cherry Orchard review – Kristin Scott Thomas makes a modern matriarch in trad, earthy Chekhov
Harold Pinter theatre, London This Ranevskaya feels of our time but Conor McPherson’s plain-speaking adaptation, co-starring Stephen Mangan, doesn’t always hit you emotionally There have been several starry Madame Ranevskayas in recent times. The prodigal Russian landowner, returning to her beloved estate and cherry orchard, was searingly played by Nina Hoss in 2024 and less memorably by Helen Hunt this summer. Now…
Key points
- Kristin Scott Thomas plays Madame Ranevskaya in a new production of The Cherry Orchard at the Harold Pinter theatre in London.
- The production uses a plain-speaking adaptation by Conor McPherson and is directed by Ian Rickson, with Stephen Mangan as Lopakhin.
- The review says the production is handsome and engaging but does not always hit the audience emotionally.
Kristin Scott Thomas stars as Madame Ranevskaya in a new production of Anton Chekhov's The Cherry Orchard at the Harold Pinter theatre in London. The production is directed by Ian Rickson and uses a plain-speaking adaptation by Conor McPherson, with Stephen Mangan playing Lopakhin.
The review says Scott Thomas brings a hard-edged modernity to the role and feels of our time, despite references to dachas and peasants. It notes that the production itself feels traditional and stays faithful to Chekhov's description of the play as a comedy.
Performances and staging
The review praises Scott Thomas for looking the part as the matriarch and wearing an emotional armour, with subtle inflection and quickly hidden guilt over her young son's drowning in the estate's lake. Stephen Mangan's Lopakhin is described as an overgrown, intimidated schoolboy who stays in milky-eyed awe of Ranevskaya, an interestingly powerless interpretation that is only half convincing.
Chloe Lamford's set shows a crumbling drawing room with damp patches and faded grandeur. The review also notes guitar playing from clerk Yepikhodov (Shubham Saraf), pompous comedy from Peter Wight as Gaev, and a strong turn from Ruby Bentall as governess Sharlotta.
There is an earthy, sweary frankness too in how the characters speak.
— The Guardian
Humour and emotional impact
The review says McPherson's script draws out the dithering ridiculousness of the entitled set and includes an earthy, sweary frankness. It finds the atmosphere of absurdity and pettiness works well, but says some edges are softened, including the fire of student Trofimov, played by Jack Riddiford.
The scene where the family faces a begging peasant confirms their cold entitlement, but the review says it does not hit you emotionally. It adds that the biggest affecting moments come from Varya (Vinette Robinson) waiting for Lopakhin to propose, and from Firs (Karl Johnson) being left behind, which shows the carelessness with which Ranevskaya regards those below her.
