Kristin Scott Thomas leads Chekhov's The Cherry Orchard at the Harold Pinter Theatre: two reviews
Reviews of Ian Rickson's London production of The Cherry Orchard, in Conor McPherson's adaptation with Kristin Scott Thomas and Stephen Mangan, differ: the Guardian finds it handsome but emotionally limited, the Daily Mail calls it listless and ahistorical.
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The story, neutrally told
Mixed · 2Ian Rickson's new production of Anton Chekhov's The Cherry Orchard, in an adaptation by Conor McPherson, has opened at the Harold Pinter Theatre in London, with Kristin Scott Thomas as Madame Ranevskaya and Stephen Mangan as Lopakhin. The GuardianLC “Ian Rickson’s elegantly directed production uses a plain-speaking new adaptation by Conor McPherson.” Read at The Guardian ↗ Daily MailR “We now find ourselves with Scott Thomas playing Madame Ranevskaya, a bereaved woman returning to her provincial childhood home” Read at Daily Mail ↗ Mixed · 2The play runs until January 9, and the set is by Chloe Lamford; both reviewers describe it as damp-marked or crumbling. Daily MailR “The play runs until January 9.” Read at Daily Mail ↗ The GuardianLC “the crumbling drawing room of Chloe Lamford’s set design bearing damp patches and a faded grandeur” Read at The Guardian ↗ Left · 1The Guardian's Arifa Akbar calls the production "handsome and engaging" and traditional in feel, says Scott Thomas brings a "hard-edged modernity that you believe in", and praises the humour and earthy, sweary frankness of the script. The GuardianLC “This too is handsome and engaging”“who brings a hard-edged modernity that you believe in” Read at The Guardian ↗
Left · 1Akbar finds Mangan's Lopakhin, played as an intimidated, powerless figure, "only half convincing", and says the drama never quite reaches dark or tragic territory and does not always "hit you emotionally", though she singles out Vinette Robinson's Varya and Karl Johnson's Firs as affecting. The GuardianLC “It’s an interestingly powerless interpretation, though only half convincing.”“And when the servant Firs (Karl Johnson) is left behind, like a forgotten piece of furniture” Read at The Guardian ↗ Right · 1The Daily Mail's Patrick Marmion calls it a "listless reboot" in which McPherson's "hollowed-out 'reimagining'" has lost any sense of place or class struggle, with the action apparently moved to the 1980s despite references to the end of serfdom in 1861. Daily MailR “Yet in Conor McPherson's hollowed-out 'reimagining' of the play, any sense of place or class struggle has all but vanished.”“the action looks like it's been transferred to the 1980s” Read at Daily Mail ↗ Right · 1Marmion describes Scott Thomas as a "deracinated lady of leisure" with an air of "lofty indifference", says Mangan has the accent of a public schoolboy so that his romance with Varya carries no agony, and likens the cast to "a herd of cats purposelessly gathered"; he praises Karl Johnson's Firs as the sharpest tool in the box and a festive party scene as bringing fleeting focus. Daily MailR “Scott Thomas is a deracinated lady of leisure, finding escape in inscrutable private reveries.”“The sharpest tool in the box is Karl Johnson as ancient manservant Firs.” Read at Daily Mail ↗
Mixed · 2Both critics note the contemporary, plain-spoken language of the adaptation: Akbar sees it as faithful to Chekhov's tragicomic spirit, while Marmion says it ditches the "ballistic precision" of the dialogue for "blandly contemporary idioms". The GuardianLC “McPherson stays faithful to that original vision.” Read at The Guardian ↗ Daily MailR “Even the ballistic precision of Chekhov's dialogue is ditched for blandly contemporary idioms” Read at Daily Mail ↗
Every sentence links to the reporting it rests on. The pill in front of each says where its sources sit: Left, Centre or Right when one side supplies at least half of them, Mixed when they are evenly split. The number is how many outlets it cites.
Left1 outlet
- Framing
- Largely appreciative review that admires Scott Thomas's modern matriarch and the production's tone, with reservations about emotional impact.
- Emphasis
- Performances, humour, and the continuity with Rickson and McPherson's earlier Uncle Vanya.
- Leaves out or plays down
- Does not discuss the shift in period setting or the loss of historical specificity that the Mail stresses.
- Charged language
- “handsome and engaging”“pitch-perfect”
- For example
-
“This too is handsome and engaging” — The Guardian
“they brought a pitch-perfect version of Uncle Vanya to the West End” — The Guardian
Centre0 outlets
No centre outlet in our sources has covered this story yet.
Right1 outlet
- Framing
- Negative first-night review arguing the adaptation strips out the play's historical and class context.
- Emphasis
- Historical fidelity, the 1980s transfer, accents, and lack of stakes.
- Leaves out or plays down
- Does not mention the comedy and tragicomic tradition the Guardian credits the script with, and gives little weight to the ensemble.
- Charged language
- “listless”“hollowed-out”“cultural vacuum”“herd of cats”
- For example
-
“Ian Rickson's production, likewise, leaves the actors in a cultural vacuum.” — Daily Mail
“it's like watching a herd of cats purposelessly gathered” — Daily Mail
What every side reports
- Ian Rickson directs Conor McPherson's adaptation of The Cherry Orchard with Kristin Scott Thomas (Ranevskaya) and Stephen Mangan (Lopakhin).
- Vinette Robinson plays Varya and Karl Johnson plays Firs; Chloe Lamford designed the set.
- Both reviewers single out Karl Johnson's Firs as a strong element.
Where accounts differ
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Whether the modern adaptation and staging work
- Left
- The Guardian finds the production handsome, engaging and faithful to Chekhov's tragicomedy, with a modern Ranevskaya that feels of our time, though emotionally limited.
- Right
- The Daily Mail calls it a listless, hollowed-out reboot that has lost history and class struggle, leaving actors in a cultural vacuum.
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Scott Thomas's performance
- Left
- Full of subtle inflection, with guilt and sadness quickly hidden away.
- Right
- Cold, lofty and deracinated, with little at stake.
Kristin Scott Thomas person
Her Ranevskaya is read by the Guardian as modern and convincing, and by the Daily Mail as cold and detached.
“Scott Thomas looks the part as the matriarch, wearing an emotional armour.” — The Guardian
“She sets herself apart with an air of lofty indifference” — Daily Mail
The Cherry Orchard other
Treated by the Guardian as a tragicomedy faithfully served, and by the Mail as a study of self-delusion in pre-1905 Russia that the staging neglects.
“Chekhov called his final play a comedy” — The Guardian
“The Cherry Orchard is a subtle study of tragic self-delusion” — Daily Mail
Left1 article
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The GuardianLC · · Opinion
The Cherry Orchard review – Kristin Scott Thomas makes a modern matriarch in trad, earthy Chekhov
Mixed Opinion review mostly warm toward the modern, traditional-feeling staging but finding it short on emotional force.
Centre0 articles
No coverage yet.
Right1 article
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Daily MailR · · Opinion
Critical Opinion first-night review faulting the adaptation for erasing history and class and leaving the leads adrift.
- 13 Oct 22:56 First Daily MailR Kristin's bite at this listless Cherry has missed the historical mark: PATRICK MARMION shares his first-night review of Anton Chekhov's masterpiece Opinion
- 14 Oct 00:01 +1h 5m The GuardianLC The Cherry Orchard review – Kristin Scott Thomas makes a modern matriarch in trad, earthy Chekhov Opinion
Times are when each article was published, or when we first saw it if the outlet gave no time.
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