THE CHERRY ORCHARD

Maumbury Rings, Dorchester

OUTDOOR theatre has its own challenges and Miracle Theatre’s production of Chekhov’s classic work had quite a few awkward moments to deal with during their Dorchester Arts performance when a police helicopter buzzed overhead for a long time, children ran amok, and one of the actors became infested with insects and subsequently lost the plot.

The cast of six each took on several roles as they swapped wigs, costumes and characters with amazing speed and skill in a play that takes place in pre-revolutionary Russia when the upper classes ruled supreme and the social underlings knew it.

The action opens with a posh family facing bankruptcy and eviction from their stately home, but their denial of the true state of affairs is brought into focus by their servants and friends who battle to bring them into the real world but with only limited success.

Usually told as a tale of woe, this adaptation in the hands of Bill Scott brings out the comic possibilities of the play with enriching results that the capacity audience thoroughly enjoyed and appreciated.

In this production, the Cornish company’s professional actors brought an unexpected joy to the play as they changed from upper to lower class within seconds and in doing so, cleverly epitomised the times that were to come for the country.

During its West Country tour of the play, the Miracle Theatre will be appearing at Swanage on Wednesday 18th July, an opportunity not to be missed.

MARION COX