The Cherry Orchard

A loose adaptation of Chekhov’s final work, a playful, funny and joyful meditation on loss on a galactic scale, dealing with small lives and great ambitions adrift in the cosmos.

Weird isn’t it. Years of the same old thing and then suddenly, without warning, tomorrow is a stranger. An old starship. Far from Earth. Prema Ramesh, the ship’s grieving commander, seeks solace in the sacred mission of her ancestors: leading the remnants of humanity towards the Destination. A bountiful world on which their descendants will one day thrive. But after centuries in the void, the creaking vessel is falling apart, its crew is suffering. What good is a promised paradise when the present is unbearable? So when rumour spreads of another viable, much closer planet, the crew begin to dream of different possibilities. It could all end now. A new future beckons. But first the old structures must crumble. They won’t fall without a fight. A playful adaptation of Chekhov’s tragicomic final work. Joy in the infinite, loss on a galactic scale, small lives and great ambitions adrift in the cosmos. This edition is published to coincide with the world premiere at the Yard Theatre, London, in September 2022. A The Yard Theatre, ETT and HOME Manchester production, co-commissioned by The Yard Theatre and ETT.