Chekhov festival takes off in writer’s family estate

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Published: 19 May, 2010, 22:13
Edited: 20 May, 2010, 23:31

TAGS: Theater, Anniversary, Russia, Literature, Prime Time Russia

The Melikhovo Spring festival, dedicated to Russian writer Anton Chekhov, has gathered actors from all over the world with some of Chekhov's most famous works on the bill.

This year Russia marks the 150th anniversary of Chekhov’s birth. First celebrations have already kicked off in the writer’s blooming family estate of Melikhovo near Moscow where actors from the Strasbourg Theatre School are performing pieces of Chekhov’s plays for crowds from around the world.

The actors speak French, but they all say that Chekhov’s work transcends language.

“Chekhov transcends time. All of his stories are about people and the relationships between them have remained the same. They continue to live, think and dream,” an actor told RT.

The visitors to the festival are sure that the 19th century writer is as modern as possible.

“Reading Chekhov is very interesting, because it’s never trivial. And his works are as close to human relations as possible. This writer can’t become obsolete,” a visitor said.

Read some Chekhov's stories in our "Russian Literature" section

The actors’ troop has been staying in Melikhovo for 5 days, and so far, they say, it has made quite an impression.

“This environment really helps our acting. We imagine how Chekhov was walking in the garden, how he worked in the house. It’s as inspiring to us now as it was for him.”