Chekhov

Anton Chekhov began his writing career with short stories and anecdotes, and his first two attempts at plays would earn him no points in literary history. It wasn't until The Seagull was revived in 1898 by Constantine Stanislavsky that Chekhov would earn the reputation of brilliant playwright. The collaboration between the writer and producer on The Seagull would represent the initial bond of an extended and successful professional relationship.

Chekhov began his career through family hardship and the need for success. Born and raised in Russia, his father was a grocer, but after his business went under and he was left with an enormous debt on an unfinished house, he fled to Moscow where Anton's two elder brothers attended school. His mother and two younger sisters remained with Anton for a short while before they too left for Moscow to join his father and brothers in 1876. He sold what remaining possessions the family had and worked as a sketch artist and a private tutor to pay for his education. Any money left over he sent to his family in Moscow. After finishing grammar school, Chekhov moved on to Moscow University in 1879 where he attended the medical program. During the 1880's he worked for different literary publications and as a physician. He had become one of Russia's most distinct young writers, and wrote his first play in 1887 called Ivanov in only two weeks. It wasn't until 1894 that Anton would actually sit down and begin his first major play, The Seagull.

Though Chekhov had written two plays before, The Seagull was by far his biggest undertaking. He was living in a lodge he had recently built in a secluded orchard, where he spent a great deal of time connecting with nature and taking an active role in agriculture. It was initially shown in 1896, at the Alexandrinsky Theatre in St. Petersberg and received the worst reception possible. The audience booed the players off-stage, but captivated one man named Vladimir Nemirovich-Danchenko, a Russian theatre director. After he had seen the show, he persuaded his creative business partner, Constantine Stanislovsky to direct the play. If not for Danchenko, it is very possible Chekhov would have never written another play, as he had denounced the theatre after the initial failure of The Seagull. The success of their collaboration would lead to several others productions, including Uncle Vanya, The Cherry Orchard, and Three Sisters. But The Seagull was step one.

In 1897 Chekhov was diagnosed with tuberculosis, and relocated to Yalta where he built a grand villa for himself, his mother, and his sisters. He reluctantly agreed to meet with Stanislovsky, who at the time was a young actor and director in need of a dramatic play for the opening of the Moscow Art Theatre. Anton remained in Yalta while the production took place December 1898, where it achieved phenomenal success. As one reviewer said, "like an exploding bomb, a sudden deafening eruption broke out."

Although the production received success from both critics and the populous, it was because of Stanislavsky's detail to tragedy rather than Chekhov's taste for humor that led to widespread acclaim. The producer and writer didn't seem to agree on the style or meaning of the plays, but this clash of style melded to form the "blockbuster" theatre performances of the time in Russia. Chekhov focused his writing on the inner thoughts and feelings of his characters, who were usually quite average and based off people he knew and experiences he had heard. He was a satirist in much of his work, never making political gestures but always making social comments. He wrote The Seagull after he had taken a journey to a penal colony in Northern Japan and interviewed 160 prisoners a day. With his expansive understanding of human emotion and interaction it allowed what were formerly short narratives, to be turned into compelling and dramatic plays. This type of content lends itself to a dark and tragic form of plot line, but Chekhov used the form of comedy to display these issues . His intention was to force people to working class to ask themselves "Am I happy with my life?" and he knew the resounding answer would be no. Russia was still essentially in serfdom, and the power was concentrated to the Czar and nobleman.

"All I wanted was to say honestly to people: 'Have a look at yourselves and see how bad and dreary your lives are!' The important thing is that people should realize that, for when they do, they will most certainly create another and better life for themselves. I will not live to see it, but I know that it will be quite different, quite unlike our present life. And so long as this different life does not exist, I shall go on saying to people again and again: 'Please, understand that your life is bad and dreary!"

Chekhov was more than aware of the lifestyle the serf led, considering his grandfather was a serf and he himself was raised extremely poor. He was also aware that they had the ability to change it, and if they seriously examined their situation he thought they might.

Stanislavsky's new form of method acting allowed the players to remove themselves from the exact lines of the play and do controlled improvisation, although it required an understanding of the subtext within the play. The main idea behind his method is that the actor needs to be believable rather than recognized or understood. One part of his method used the idea of "emotional memory", in which the actor would remember something joyful in order to act happy, or something scary in order to act fearful. His method evolved when he added the idea of "physical entries" which are essentially movements or actions that a certain player would do so that it becomes a part of his character, and therefore bridges the gap between the actor and the audience.

Although the Chekhov and Stanislavsky may not have seen eye to eye, I believe each of their methods in conjunction produced an evolution in acting. How could Chekhov expect the classic for of acting to have his introverted scenes and idea expressed outwardly without some sort of emotional acting? You may recognize the actor’s motions, and you may understand what he is saying, but without a certain tone and psychological depth from the line to the actor, the subtle messages would not be heard. Stanislavsky on the other hand, needed an intense, vibrant, aggressive play to get his innovative theater off the ground and The Seagull offered a great opportunity to show the difference method acting could have. The tragedy Stanislavsky brought out was not an intention of Chekhov, but it created an effective show that captivated the audience.

Anton Chekov would die in 1904, but before his death he would write fourteen plays; four of which were produced with Stanislavsky and are considered Russia's finest theatrical offerings. His short stories are world renown and his work as a doctor and local philanthropist have been dwarfed by his achievements as a writer. Chekhov could not have been as successful with his plays if he did not have the Stanislavsky method or the Moscow Theatre. It is only in coalition and conjunction that these two talents were able to form a beautiful time period of Russian theatre never seen before.