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ABSTRACT
While the legacy, names, and even faces of Konstantin Stanislavski, Vladimir Nemirovich-Danchenko, and Anton Chekhov are readily recognizable to theatre historians, identifying Stanislavski’s female collaborators and their contributions remains challenging more than a century later. This article focuses on the creation of the role of Nina Zarechnaia in Chekhov’s play The Seagull in the first ten years (1885–1905) of its production history, through four very different actresses: Vera Kommissarzhevskaia, Maria Roksanova, Maria Andreyeva, and Maria Lillina. Stanislavski needed these women to embody the complex female characters of Chekhov’s play and also to realize his vision of a new style of performance for a new century. The role of Nina offered particular challenges to the original actresses who were cast to play her – the play and the character both straddle the dynamic shift from the melodramas of the 19th century to the modernism of the 20th century. Through a careful analysis of the character and these four specific performances, I argue that this role in particular and the work of these women are pivotal to the enduring success of the Moscow Art Theatre.
Disclosure statement
No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).
Notes
1. Schuler, Women in Russian Theatre, 186.
2. Moscow Art Theatre webpage, accessed April 4 2021. https://mxat.ru/history/persons/roksanova/.
3. Malague, “Stanislavsky’s System and Women,” 143.
4. Schuler, Women in Russian Theatre, 14.
5. Cassiday, “The Rise of the Actress in Early Nineteenth-Century Russia,” 139.
6. Ibid.
7. Ibid., 142.
8. Hollosi, “Chekhov’s Reactions to two Interpretations of Nina,” 118.
9. Chekhov, Two Plays, 51.
10. Ibid., 56–57.
11. Ibid., 56.
12. Ibid., 65.
13. Ibid., 75.
14. Ibid., 84.
15. Whyman, Anton Chekhov, 79.
16. Chekhov, Two Plays, 84.
17. Chekhov, Letters, 119.
18. Ibid., 372.
19. Ibid., 337.
20. Ibid.
21. Ibid., 338.
22. Merlin, “Which Came First,” 218.
23. Ibid.
24. Ibid., 219.
25. Chuperov, A. P. Chekhov and the Alexandrinsky Theater, 94–95.
26. Merlin, “Which Came First,” 219.
27. Chekhov, Letters, 341.
28. Ibid., 342.
29. Glass, This American Life, Episode 61.
30. Chuperov, A. P. Chekhov and the Alexandrinsky Theater, 108; Whyman, Anton Chekhov, 91.
31. Merlin, “Which Came First,” 218.
32. Chekhov, Letters, 338.
33. Chuperov, A. P. Chekhov and the Alexandrinsky Theater, 179–180.
34. Chekhov, Letters, 342.
35. Chuperov, A. P. Chekhov and the Alexandrinsky Theater, 88–93.
36. Cassiday, “The Rise of the Actress in Early Nineteenth-Century Russia,” 138; Schuler, Women in Russian Theatre, 19–40.
37. Chekhov, Letters, 343.
38. Hollosi, “Chekhov’s Reactions to two Interpretations of Nina,” 120.
39. Borny, “The Seagull: From Disaster to Triumph,” 130.
40. Merlin, “Which Came First,” 218.
41. Ibid.
42. Benedetti, “Stanislavski and the Moscow Art Theatre,” 256.
43. Ibid.
44. Ibid., 257.
45. Lewis, “She Inspired Stanislavski,” 118.
46. Worrall, The Moscow Art Theatre, 102.
47. Borny, “The Seagull: From Disaster to Triumph,” 135.
48. Hollosi, “Chekhov’s Reactions to two Interpretations of Nina,” 123.
49. Worrall, The Moscow Art Theatre, 208.
50. Borny, “The Seagull: From Disaster to Triumph,” 135.
51. Chekhov, Letters, 237.
52. Ignatieva, Stanislavsky and Female Actors, 53.
53. Ibid.
54. Ibid., 68.
55. Ibid., 51.
56. Ibid., 62.
57. Ignatieva, Stanislavsky and Female Actors, 57.
58. Ibid., 58.
59. Ibid.
60. Whyman, Anton Chekhov. 210.
61. Ignatieva, Stanislavsky and Female Actors, 60.
62. Ibid., 30.
63. Ibid., 33.
64. Ibid, 34.
65. Ignatieva, “Stanislavsky’s System and Women,” 5.
66. Ibid., 3.
67. Ibid., 4.
68. Ignatieva, Stanislavsky and Female Actors, 23.
69. Ibid., 30.
Additional information
Notes on contributors
Claire Marie Mannle
Claire Marie Mannle is a director and creative producer. Her MFA in Ensemble-Based Physical Theatre is from the Dell’Arte International School in Blue Lake, California, and her BA is from Smith College in Theatre Arts and French Studies. Her creative practice is focused on producing inclusive, ensemble-driven work. She taught courses on acting, directing, devising, and career development at the University of Arizona from 2015-2021. She is the Special Projects Manager for SITI Company.