Vanya and Sonia and Masha and Spike – Full Line-up Announced
Rehearsals kicked-off this week for Vanya and Sonia and Masha and Spike by Christopher Durang, which runs in the Headgate Theatre from 14th to 18th November.
In a crumbling old farmhouse in Bucks County, Pennsylvania, sibling non-achievers, Vanya and Sonia, wait for the daily visit of the blue heron. The peace is shattered by an alarming proclamation from Cassandra, the cleaning woman/soothsayer, the arrival of an egocentric movie star sister, Masha, and bright young things, Nina and Spike, who are armed with technology. As mayhem ensues, we are confronted by the question once raised by Anton Chekhov, “What will it be like if the whole world goes to rack and ruin?”.
Quirky, funny and sneakily poignant, the original Broadway production with Sigourney Weaver and David Hyde Pierce won the Tony Award for Best Play. The New York Post celebrated it as “a ton of fun, even if you can’t tell your Seagull from your Uncle Vanya”.
The comedy is in expert hands with the following cast directed by Wendy Smith, last year’s NETG award winner for Mosquitoes at the Headgate Theatre:
- Ella Blaxill (The Comedy of Errors, Wivenhoe Open Air Shakespeare) as Nina
- Abi Cunliffe (Dreambag, Colchester Fringe, Matilda Liar, Mercury Studio) as Cassandra
- Eleanor Kent (Mosquitoes, Playhouse Creatures, Headgate Theatre) as Masha
- Sallie Mills Lewis (Splendour, The Woman Who Cooked her Husband, Mercury Studio) as Sonia
- Anthony Roberts (A Christmas Carol – Touring, Matilda Liar, Mercury Studio) as Vanya
- Chris Smith (Dirty, Mercury Studio, A Matter of Life and Death, Headgate Theatre) as Spike.
The show is co-produced by Headgate Theatre Productions and 3wishes theatre company, long-time friends and collaborators since the last millennium.
Joining director, Wendy Smith on the creative team are:
- Producer, Dave King
- Producer/Designer, Sara Green
- Production Assistant, Lily Chase
- Production Adviser, Roger Mills Lewis
- Technical Co-ordinator, Mike Sullivan
- Lighting Designer, Hazuki Mogan
- Projection Designer, Chris Williams
- Sound Designer, George Emberson
- Sound Operator, Liz Fossey
- Assistant Stage Managers, Annastasia Ward and Marcus Almond
- Voice Coach, Noah Alfred Pantano
- Choreographer, Sarah Suckling
This amateur production is presented by arrangement with Josef Weinberger Ltd.
Or Call the theatre Box Office to book – 01206 366000
You can view a PDF version of the Press Release here.