Nathan Keepers and Tracey Maloney Photo by Lauren B. Photography

Yet, it appears that the orchard, managed by Andréyevna's adopted older daughter, Várya, in the matriarch's absence, has been unprofitable and that Andréyevna's flagrant spending and careless generosity has put the family in serious debt. Andréyevna's brother, Leonid Andréyich Gáyev, isn't much help, only preparing to protect himself by taking a job as a banker a step down for the landed gentry. Andréyevna's 17-year-old younger daughter, Anya, who returned from Paris with her mother, seems like unmolded clay: she enjoys the flouncy dresses and life of leisure she has always known, while drawn to the revolutionary rhetoric of Trofimov, a perpetual university student who is Anya's friend and perhaps her suitor, though he disavows any place for love in the purity of his socialist vision.

This dilemma, along with the shadow it casts on servants and others who live in the orbit of the Gáyev's largesse, is the thrust of The Cherry Orchard , considered one of Anton Chekhov's quartet of great plays, along with The Seagull, The Three Sisters and Uncle Vanya. The Moving Company and Jungle Theater have joined forces in a co-production, currently playing on the Jungle's stage and directed by Dominique Serrand, a co-artistic director of The Moving Company. The production maintains the play's potency and poetry, with Chekhov's empathic illumination of characters, and the clear intimations of impending loss as new ideologies pry away the old guards grasp of power. But the play's relevance is not confined to that particular historical time and place; change, and the willfully oblivious response by those whose lives the change is about to upend, is a recurring event in history.

As is the modern custom, Chekhov's four acts have been condensed into two. Under Serrand's direction, the first act is presented in a naturalistic style, akin to the type of presentation that has typified work by Jungle Theater throughout its history. It feels like a wall has been sliced off the Gáyev manse and we observe the interactions within, with all their realism intact. The second act is stylized and whimsical in the manner I have come to identify with The Moving Company. The language is still Chekhov's, but the movement and blocking of characters creates an almost surreal affect. This is particularly true during a ball held in the Gáyev home while offstage the property is being auctioned off. Characters express themselves through posture, position, and proximity to one another, as much as by their words or voice.

Chekhov called The Cherry Orchard a comedy, even though it has serious themes of loss and social upheaval. In the first act, the text presents most of the comedy, whereas in the second, the staging draws out its comical aspect along with the text, as if the decorum of this family, representing the landed gentry, has cracked open and they are moving through limbo in search of a new way to live.

In addition to directing, Serrand designed the production's largely bare set and magnificent projections. The projections dominate the rear stage wall, inserting monumental, curved staircases, pillars supporting plaster arches, a lush garden trellis, and other images, zooming in or out, scrolling up or down, and altering images to depict the creeping onset of decay. Similarly, Sonya Berlovitz's costumes convey elegance and charm at the onset and become increasingly askew and unlikely as the play moves forward. Note in particular the difference in Madame Andréyevna's gowns. Marcus Dilliard's lighting adds nuance and underscores the shifts in emotional tone.

The cast is a seamless ensemble, with precisely timed entrances and exits, and lines exchanged between characters without an iota of hesitation. Tracey Maloney, in what is considered the lead role of Liubóv Andréyevna, is a marvel, conveying the luminosity of a woman who has always been pampered by life, even in the midst of grief over the early death of a beloved child, and later, shows us the pall that settles over this same woman when the new reality crashes down upon her. Nathan Keepers (another of The Moving Company's co-artistic directors) is outstanding as Lopákhin, the astute businessman who, through tireless work, usurps control of the estate from its founders and celebrates having dominion over the land his grandparents toiled on as serfs. The sign of the rising middle class, he is proud of working hard, while the gentry take pride in others laboring on their behalf.

Kenzi Allen is an engrossing Anya, conveying a blend of innocence and insights, torn between a desire to be part of a world changing for the better and her devotion to a mother who is drowning in the weight of a society facing its death knells. Elizabeth Efteland is quite remarkable as both Várya, the older daughter burned with responsibility for an estate she seems to have little fondness for, as she dreams of the serenity of life as a nun while harboring a love that has yet to bear fruit; and as Trofimov, the student whose starry-eyed radicalism far outstrips his actual life experience. Efteland conveys Trofimov's obvious affection or Anya, despite the youth's resolve to put ideals before love.

Dominique Serrand plays the role of Andréyich Gáyev, resigned to whatever fate brings his way. Randy Reyes is delightful as two comedic characters, Pishchik, a near-do-well neighboring landowner in constant need of a loan, and Yepikhódov, a self-effacing clerk who doggedly pursues the housemaid Dunyásha. As Dunyásha, Sophina Saggau expresses deference to the obedience forced upon her station in life, allowing herself to take pleasure in her employer's downfall, mixed with the uncertainty of not knowing how she will live now.

This production is based on a translation of The Cherry Orchard by Paul Schmidt that has been widely used around the United States since it appeared in 1997. This, and Schmidt's translation of other Chekhov plays, has been hailed for making the works more accessible to American audiences. With adaptation by The Moving Company's three co-artistic directors Serrand, Keepers, and Steven Epp, this production omits a number of minor characters–primarily, household servants and neighbors–without sacrificing the dramatic thrust nor the comedic elements of the play.

The Moving Company and Jungle Theater's co-production of The Cherry Orchard gives this classic play a polished showcase that draws out the humanity of people caught up in the cycles of history that whirl around them, some making good choices, some making bad choices, and some making no choice at all. In that way, it is a story as eternal and as relevant as the morning news.

The Cherry Orchard, a co-production of The Moving Company and Jungle Theater, runs through November 2, 2025, at the Jungle Theater, 2951 Lyndale Avenue S., Minneapolis MN. For tickets and information, please visit www.jungletheater.com.

Playwright: Anton Chekhov, translated by Paul Schmidt, and adapted by Steven Epp, Dominique Serrand, and Nathan Keepers; Director, Scenic Design, and Projections Design: Dominique Serrand; Assistant Director: Hannah Steblay; Costume Design: Sonya Berlovitz; Lighting Design: Marcus Dilliard; Assistant Lighting Design: Jacqulin Stauder; Stage Manager: John Novak; Technical Director: John Lutz; Production Manager: Kathy Maxwell.

Cast: Kenzi Allen (Anya), Zach Christensen (understudy), Elizabeth Efteland (Várya/Trofimov), Nathan Keepers (Lopákhin), Tracey Maloney (Madam Liubóv Andréyevna), Randy Reyes (Yepikhódov/Pishchik), Sophina Saggau (Dunyásha/homeless person), Anna M. Schloerb (understudy), Dominique Serrand (Leonid Andréyich Gáyev).