A Teacher Guide to

A nton Chekhovs

Colleg e of Arts and Sciences

Department of Theatre and Dance
Longstreet Theatre
Columbia, SC 29 20 8
Teacher Guide to The Cherry Orchard

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T eac her Guide to

T he Cherr y Orchard
Introduction
Theatre South Carolina is proud to present Anton Chekhovs tragicomedy The
Cherry Orchard.
Theatre South Carolina is offering a special student matinee at 10:00 a.m. on
Wednesday, November 16, 2005. Tickets are $5 each for these matinees. You must
make reservations by calling marketing director Tim Donahue at 803-777-9353 or
faxing your request to 803-777-6669. You may also reach him by e-mail at
donahue@sc.edu. Tickets will generally not be available at the door. The scheduled
performance may be cancelled if there is not enough interest.
Regular performances of The Cherry Orchard are November 11-19, Tuesday
through Saturday at 8 pm and matinees at 3 pm on Sunday November 13 and
Saturday November 19.
If after reading this Guide you have additional questions about the play or the
production, call Tim Donahue, at 803-777-9353.
Orga nization
The Story of The Cherry Orchard ......................................... Page 2
Characters ......................................................................... 2
Synopsis ............................................................................ 3
About the Playwright .................................................................... 4
Chekhovs Timeline....................................................................... 6
Historical Background ................................................................... 7
th
19 Century Drama and the Moscow Art Theater........................... 8
Themes ...................................................................................... 10
Class Discussion and Activities ................................................... 12
Theatre Etiquette ................................................................... 15

Teacher Guide to The Cherry Orchard

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T he Story of T he Cherr y Orchard

Characters

Madame Ranevskaya: The owner of the cherry orchard estate. She comes from an
aristocratic family, but she married beneath her. Her youngest child, Grisha,
drowned shortly after father's death and Madame Ranevskaya fled to Paris. This
happened about five years before the play begins. Madame Ranevskaya has
accumulated many debts and cannot pay the mortgage on her estate.
Russians have three names:
A given name: Lyubov
A patronymic name identifying ones
father: Andreyevna (daughter of Andrey)
A surname: Ranevskaya
In Chekhov's time, decorum prescribed
several proper uses of names:
Title and surname be used for formal
relationships: "Madame Ranevskaya"
Given name and patronymic were slightly
less formal: "Lyubov Andreyevna"
Given name alone for familiarity: "Lyubov"
Diminutive of the given name for affection
or condescension: "Lyuba"

Yermolai Alexeyitch Lopakhin: A neighbor of

Madame Ranevskaya. His father and grandfather
were serfs on the cherry orchard estate all of their
lives. Although he was born into a family of serfs,
Lopakhin is now a wealthy landowner and a
shrewd businessman.
Leonid Andreyitch Gayev : Madame Ranevskaya's
older unmarried brother. He has no particular
profession, and apparently lives off of the family
fortune
Barbara: Madame Ranevskaya's oldest daughter.
She is still unmarried.
Anya: Madame Ranevskaya's youngest daughter.

Peter Trofimov: Tutor of Madame Ranevskayas deceased son.

Firs: Born a serf on Madame Ranevskayas estate, Firs remains on the estate.
Although he and Lopakhin share the same background, Firs has not been able to
adapt to the changing society.
Dunyasha: A young servant.
Yasha: Madame Ranevskayas manservant.
Simeon Panteleyitch Ephihodov: A clerk who works on the estate.
Charlotte Ivanovna: Anya's governess, although she is no longer employed at the
end of the play. She is popular for her magic tricks..
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Teacher Guide To The Cherry Orchard

Simeonov-Pishchik: A land-owning neighbor. He spends the play in debt, although

he is able to pay off some of it at the end.

Sy nopsis

The Cherry Orchard describes a five or six month period in the lives of a group of
Russians, but the histories of the characters are complex. Thus, the story begins
years earlier than the start of the play.
The play opens in May, at the cherry orchard estate. Everyone is preparing for the
long awaited return of Madame Ranevskaya and her daughter Anya. She fled five
years ago after the deaths of her husband and young son. She is returning now from
France; she has accrued great debts during her absence.
Lopakhin tells the story of his own success: born a serf, he has managed to make
himself a fortune. Another former serf, Firs, readies the house during Lopakhin's
speeches. Firs has maintained the same post he
A serf is a laborer who is bound to
always has, despite the emancipation of the serfs.
the land. Serfs differed from slaves
in that serfs were not property
themselves and could not be sold
apart from the land which they
worked.

Serfdom evolved from agricultural

slavery of the Roman Empire and
spread through Europe around the
10th century. It was dominant during
the Middle Ages.
In England serfdom lasted up to the
17th century, in France until 1789.
The last European country to abolish
serfdom was Russia, in 1861. For
more on serfdom, see page 7.

Madame Ranevskaya arrives; friends and family are

overjoyed to see her. There is much talk of love in
the first act: a romance between the tutor Trofimov
and Anya, another hopeful romance between
Barbara and wealthy Lopakhin, and a love triangle
among the servants.
Neither Madame Ranevskaya nor her brother Gayev
have money to pay the mortgage on the cherry
orchard estate, and unless they find a solution, the
property will be auctioned off in August.

Lopakhin suggests that Madame Ranevskaya build

villas on the estate. She can lease them and use the
money to pay the mortgage. Madame Ranevskaya and Gayev object, saying they
will work something out on their own. Firs' health is declining. Gayev begins to
consider a job at a bank. Pishchik borrows money from Madame Ranevskaya, whose
own funds are dwindling away to nothing.
By the night of the auction, Madame Ranevskaya has taken no action about the
mortgage. She holds a dance. Charlotte performs, and guests and servants dance.
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Madame Ranevskaya and Trofimov have a serious conversation about Madame

Ranevskayas extravagance; not only does she continue to run up debts, but she is
now considering to return to her abusive lover in France. Madame Ranevskaya is
nervous about the outcome of the auction; she is still hoping for a miracle.
Gayev and Lopakhin return: Lopakhin has bought the cherry orchard and cannot
hide his happiness: he owns the estate where his family lived as serfs. The circle is
complete.
In Act IV Madame Ranevskaya leaves the cherry orchard for the last time. Lopakhin
has brought champagne, but no one but Yasha will drink it. Lopakhin and Trofimov
share a tender farewell: Trofimov will return to the university. Charlotte complains
that she no longer has a position. Epihodov has a new position with Lopakhin.
Pishchik is able to pay off some of his debts. Gayev has a job at a bank, Barbara a
position as a housekeeper, and Yasha will stay on with Madame Ranevskaya, who is
returning to France. Many characters try to confirm that Firs has been sent to the
hospital. Lopakhin misses his last chance with Barbara, and Dunyasha cries that
Yasha is leaving.
Madame Ranevskaya and Gayev share a nostalgic moment alone before leaving. In
the last moment, the sound of axes cutting down the orchard rings out, and Firs
stumbles on to stage, forgotten, locked in the house. He lies down to rest,

About the Playwright

Anton Chekhov is one of the greatest playwrights of modern times. His works
reflect the frequently turbulent developments specific to Russia in the years leading
up to the communist revolutions, but their lasting appeal lies in Chekhov's talent
for exploring universally human situations with grace and insight.
Anton Pavlovich Chekhov was born in Tanarog, Russia,
on January 17, 1860. The very fabric of Russian society
was permanently altered when Chekhov was only one
year old: on February 19, 1861, Russia's serfs were freed.
Chekhov was the grandson of a serf, and the overturning of this older social order
plays a central role in many of his writings.

You must trust and believe in

people or life becomes
impossible.

When his father's business failed, the family moved to Moscow, a Russian center for
intellectuals. He attended medical school at the University of Moscow. While at
medical school, Chekhov also began writing to help support his family. He worked

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Teacher Guide To The Cherry Orchard

as a freelance writer for newspapers and magazines; the respect he gained from the
humorous pieces encouraged Chekhov to begin writing serious short stories.
Chekhov graduated from medical school in 1884. He continued to write both short
stories and plays. The early plays received only moderate interest from the public
and critics.
In 1899, Chekhov gave the Moscow Art Theatre a revised
version of an early play, now titled Uncle Vanya. Three
Chekhov plays, Vanya, The Three Sisters (1901), and The
Cherry Orchard (1904) are masterpieces of the modern theatre.
Chekhov considered his mature plays to be a kind of comic
satire, pointing out the unhappy nature of existence in turn-ofthe-century Russia. Perhaps Chekhov described his style best:

All I wanted was to say honestly to people: 'Have a look at

yourselves and see how bad and dreary your lives are!' The
Anton Chekhov
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.
In March of 1897, Chekhov suffered a lung hemorrhage, and was forced to spend
most of his time in the Crimea where he had been sent for his health. He died of
tuberculosis on July 14, 1904, at the age of forty-four.
Though a celebrated figure in Russia at the time of his death, Chekhov remained
rather unknown internationally until the years after World War I, when his works
were translated into English.
Chekhov changed the theatrical world. Chekhov
Any idiot can face a crisis; it
believed that the darker side of his plays should
is this day-to-day living that
in no way undercut the immensely funny comic
wears you out.
elements. This jumbling together of comic and
tragic elements is one of Chekhov's important contributions not only to theater,
th
but also to 20 century literature in general.
Chekhov is also known for the emphasis he places on dialogue and off-stage action.
The most important events in Chekhov's plays do not necessarily occur on stage;
often, the audience experiences some of the most pivotal and dramatic action not
by seeing it, but by hearing about it afterwards.
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He used ordinary conversations, pauses, miscommunication, inaction, incomplete

thoughts, to reveal the truth behind trivial words and daily life. Usually in
Chekhov's dramas surprise and tension are not key elements. Dramatic movement
is subdued. People do not fight; they endure their fates with patience..
The personal life of every individual is
based on secrecy, and perhaps it is partly
for that reason that civilized man is so
nervously anxious that personal privacy
should be respected.

Chekhov felt it was important that his

characters be sympathetic. (There is no
villain in The Cherry Orchard.) Chekhov
combined the dispassionate attitude of a
scientist and a doctor with the sensitivity
and psychological understanding of an artist.

Chekhov's Timeline
1860

1875
1876
1879
1882
1884
1886
1887
1888
1889
1890
1895
1896

1897
1898
1899
1900
1901
1903
1904
1904

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Anton Pavlovic Chekhov is born, the son of a grocer, in Taganrog. In the US, Abraham
Lincoln is elected president and South Carolina secedes from the Union. The Civil War
continues to 1865.
Chekhov's father flees Taganrog due to bankruptcy; Chekhov's family is kicked out of
their house.
In the US, Lt. Col. George A. Custer's regiment is wiped out by Sioux Indians under
Sitting Bull at the Little Big Horn River, Mont (Custers Last Stand).
Chekhov rejoins his family in Moscow, enrolls in University to study medicine.
Chekhov is a regular contributor to a St. Petersburg humorous journal with short
stories and sketches.
Chekhov begins practicing medicine.
In the US, the Statue of Liberty is dedicated.
Chekhov is a literary success in St. Petersburg with his first play, Ivanov.
Chekhov begins publishing his stories.
In the US, Oklahoma is opened to settlers.
Chekhov begins to see himself as a serious writer. In the US, last major battle of the
Indian Wars occurs at Wounded Knee in South Dakota
Moscow Art Theatre opens. Chekhov writes The Seagull .
The Seagull opens. It survives only five performances after a disastrous first night. In
the US, Plessy v. Ferguson: Landmark Supreme Court decision holds that racial
segregation is constitutional, paving the way for the repressive Jim Crow laws in the
South
Chekhov realizes he is suffering from advanced consumption (tuberculosis).
The Seagull is produced successfully by the Moscow Art Theatre. The US annexes
Hawaii.
Uncle Vanya is produced successfully by the Moscow Art Theatre.
In the US, Galveston hurricane leaves an estimated 6,000 to 8,000 dead.
Three Sisters is produced to poor reviews. Chekhov marries actress Olga Knipper.
In the US, Wright brothers make the first controlled, sustained flight in heavier-thanair aircraft at Kitty Hawk, N.C.
The Cherry Orchard, Chekhov's last play, is produced.
After two heart attacks, Chekhov dies in a hotel bedroom at the age of 44.

Teacher Guide To The Cherry Orchard

Historical Background
The nineteenth century was a time of change for Russia. As a country, it was rapidly
emerging from feudalism and rushing towards revolution. As a result, the old rules
were rapidly changing.
In 1900 the Russian Empire covered nearly 8.8 million square miles. (For
comparisons, the US covers about 3.5 million square miles.) A quarter of it was in
Europe and the rest in Asia. Russia's population reached 136 million at the end of
the centurycompared to 41 million for Britain, 56 million for Germany, and 76
million for the United States. The majority of the population was Slavic, but there
were over 200 different nationalities. Several of
these groups wanted regional autonomy and this
was the cause of a constant source of political
conflict. There were also five million Jews and
around 23 million Muslims living in the Russian
Empire. The government's policy of
russificationforbidding the use of local
languages and the suppression of religious
customscreated a great deal of resentment.
In Russia before 1861, there were more than 22
million serfs, (compared to four million slaves in
the United States.) They were around 44% of
Russia's population. They were the property of a
little over 100,000 land owning lords. In contrast
A painters study of a peasant, which is to say, a
former serf, 1882.
to slavery in the United States, virtually no one in
Russia was defending serfdom ideologically. There
was no racial divide or Biblical quotation to argue about. Those who owned serfs
defended that ownership merely as selfish interest.
Even after the emancipation of the Serfs in 1861, around 85 per cent of the Russian
people lived in the countryside and earned their living from agriculture. The
nobility owned the best land and the vast majority of people lived in extreme
poverty. Per capita manufacturing output was only 15 percent of Britains, which
had one-third Russias population.
As the dawn of the 20th Century approached, Russia lingered in the past. Where
other European nations had begun the process of industrialization, which sent
citizens pouring into the cities and brought the power of machines to their daily
lives, Russia remained a country of farmers tethered to the old-fashioned plow.
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Illiteracy was higher in Russia than elsewhere,

poverty was more widespread, land was scarce,
and food was hard to come by.

A a painting of a Russian rural fair, 1906.

More significantly, Russia's political system

was a remnant of the past. The Czar still
occupied the royal throne, he claimed to draw
his power directly from God, and passed the
throne to a chosen successor. His rule was
absolute. Those who protested his decisions
were subject to severe and immediate
punishment, including execution.

The Czar and his family were executed in 1918, during one of the several
revolutions that lead to communist Russia.
th

19 Century Drama and The Moscow Art Theater

From the middle of the 19th century theatre began to take on a new respectability
and draw in more middle class audiences. They were enthralled by historical
accuracy and attention to detailspectaclethat was
dominating stage design.
Outside of Shakespeare, melodrama was the primary
th
form of theatre during the 19 century. In
melodrama, music was used to increase emotions or
to signify characters. Melodrama presents a simplified
moral universe; good and evil are embodied in stock
characters. Melodramatic theater exploited special
effects: fires, explosions, drownings, and earthquakes.
Stage machinery was called into use whenever
possible, to make a ghost vanish into thin air or to
effect pantomime transformations, and when all else
failed there was blue fire to make a brilliant climax to
the dreariest play. Nineteenth-century theatre thrived
on spectacle and variety.

The Moscow Art Theater is still

training actors and producing plays.
Here, a picture from a recent
production.

The Moscow Art Theater was founded in 1898 by Konstantin Stanislavski and
Vladimir Nemirovich-Danchenko.

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Teacher Guide To The Cherry Orchard

At the Moscow Art Theatre, Stanislavski began to develop a system of training for
actors that would enable them to perform realistically in any sort of role and
situation. Stanislavski had a more profound effect on the process of acting than
anyone else in the twentieth century.
Stanislavski asserted that if the theater was
going to be meaningful it needed to move
beyond external representation. Over forty
years, he created an approach that emphasized
the psychological and emotional aspects of
acting. The Stanislavski System, or "the
method" as it has become known, held that an
actors main responsibility was to be
believedrather than recognized or
understood. The Moscow Art Theater
emphasized the subtext, the underlying
impulse behind a characters speech and action.
In his travels throughout the world with the
Moscow Arts Theater, Stanislavski earned
international acclaim as an actor, director, and
coach. Today in the United States,
Stanislavskis theories are the primary source
of study for many actors. Among the many
great actors and teachers to use his work are
Stella Adler, Marlon Brando, Sanford Meisner,
Stanislavky, playing the role of Gayev in The Cherry
Orchard.
Lee Strasberg, Harold Clurman, and Gregory
Peck. Among the best known proponents of
the method is the Actors Studio, an organization that has been home to some of
the most talented and successful actors of our time.
For its fifth production the Moscow Art Theatre staged Anton Chekhov's The
Seagull, a play that had failed miserably in its first production. With its revival of
The Seagull, the Art Theatre not only achieved its first major success but also began
a long artistic association with Chekhov. Chekhov's artistic realism perfectly suited
the esthetic sensibilities of the Moscow Art Theatre and Stanislavski.

Themes

Social Change and Progress: Ironically, when the estate is auctioned, it is purchased
by Lopakhin. He used to be a slave at the orchard, but after he won his freedom, he
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became a successful merchant, who could afford to purchase the estate. The sale of
the cherry orchard exemplifies the old order giving way to the new.
Several characters address the potential difference between social change and social
progress. Firs and Trofimov question the utility of the emancipation. As Firs notes,
it made everyone happy, but they did not know what they were happy for. Society
has changed, but Firs life, and the lives of countless others, have not progressed.
Both characters insinuate that the emancipation is not enough to constitute
progress.

Independence, Emancipation, and Freedom: This play deals with the theme of
independence in many different ways. The play may be seen to ask: What does it
mean to be free? The play's characters demonstrate the different degrees of freedom
that result from the Emancipation. On opposing ends of this question are Lopakhin
and Firs. One man has been able to take advantage of his emancipation to make
himself independent; the other, although he is technically free, has not changed his
position at all and is subject to the whims of the family he serves.
Madame Ranevskaya is not free in a very different way: she had enough assets to be
able to control her own destiny, but she has been a slave to her passions, spending
extravagantly and making poor decisions in romance.
Trofimov, the play's idealist, offers one definition of freedom: he is a free man
because he is beholden to no one, just his own concept of morality.
The play suggests that there are two sources that control freedom: economics,
which comes from without, and control over oneself, which comes from within.

Memory: In The Cherry Orchard, memory is seen both as a source of personal

identity and as a burden preventing the attainment of happiness. Ranevskaya wants
to seek refuge in the past from the despair of her present life but the estate contains
awful memories of the death of her son. For Lopakhin, memories are oppressive, for
they are memories of a brutal, uncultured peasant upbringing. They conflict with
his present identity as a well-heeled businessman.
Trofimov is concerned more with Russia's historical memory of its past, a past
which he views as oppressive and needing an explicit renunciation if Russia is to
move forward. Firs lives solely in memorymost of his speeches in the play relate
to what life was like before the serfs were freed. At the end of the play, he is
forgotten by the other characters.
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Teacher Guide To The Cherry Orchard

Each character sees a different aspect of the past, either personal or historical, in the
cherry orchard. Ranevskaya, for example, perceives her dead mother walking
through the orchard in Act One; for her, the orchard is a personal relic of her idyllic
childhood. Trofimov, on the other hand, near the end of Act Two sees in the
orchard the faces of the serfs who lived and died in slavery on Ranevskaya's estate.
For Lopakhin, the orchard is intimately tied to his personal memories of a brutal
childhood.

Class Discussion and Activities

A class that has studied the play before seeing it would get the greatest
insight into the play in production. There are several public-domain
editions available on the World Wide Web at no cost. However, the
teacher is advised to use a contemporary translation.
The Russian language is written in
For the USC production, the adaptation by Robert
the Cyrillic alphabet. For example,
Brustein is being performed. (Elephant Paperbacks,
the word Russia in Cyrillic is:
Ivan R. Dee, Chicago, 1995. ISBN: 1-56663-085-1)

Names, which cannot be

translated, are written in any
English tranalation of Chekhov
plays in the European alphabet to
sound like the name in Russian.
As a result, different translations
and adaptations may spell
character names slightly
differently.

There are a number of videos of The Cherry

Orchard. We recommend not viewing a video
before seeing the production. Live theatre is so
different from film, with its close-ups, editing,
realistic settings and background music. Using
excerpts from video for study after seeing the play
can be useful.

Note: The figures in the left column of the tables on the following pages are
some of the South Carolina Theatre Curriculum Standards that are
addressed by the activity or discussion described.

Teacher Guide to The Cherry Orchard

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Activities
VB

Assign students or groups of students to research topics relevant

to the play and present reports to class. Some suggested topics:
th

Role of women in 19 century Russia and US

th
Food and drink in 19 century Russia
th
Social classes in 19 century Russia
th
Education and literacy in 19 century Russia and US
Comparison of Russian serfs and US slaves

Page 12

III C

Students design stage settings for the play and present their
designs to the class. The designs can be hand drawn, computer
drawn, or modeled in cardboard or balsa wood. In presenting the
design, the students should connect their designs to their analysis
of the text, with an emphasis on cultural and historical
perspectives.

ID

Using a portion of Chekhovs text, students draft a script for a

video.

VI D
VIII

Engage a dance teacher or choreographer to teach the class the

social dances the upper classes of Russia might have been dancing
th
in the 19 century. Compare those dances with the dances of
today and any other time period the class has studied. Discuss
how the style of the dance reflects social attitudes, the
relationships between the sexes, and social class.

VII D

Have each class member write a review of the production.

Obtain one or more published reviews from the local papers (The
State and Free Times), duplicate and distribute. Discuss the
published reviews in class and contrast the newspaper critics
opinions with those of the class.

VII C
IV C

To the extent that the reviews produced above are negative,

students describe how they would change the production to
address the criticism. Dont ignore changes to the physical
production: sets, costumes, lighting, sound effects, music, and the
like.

Teacher Guide To The Cherry Orchard

Ideas for Discussion

IA
III B
VB

What is the significance of the play's setting? What major shifts in

locale take place in the play, and when do they occur? How
might this movement in the play's setting be symbolically
interpreted?
What is suggested by the start of the play at dawn with cherry
trees blossoming in cold weather? What is symbolized by such a
setting? Why does the action of the play begin at the nursery? Is
it important that a train is in the process of arriving? How about
the telegraph poles and the city outline in the horizon mentioned
at the start of Act 2?

II C
IA

Compare and contrast the main sets of characters, in terms of

personality, speech and language, actions, morality. The sets are:
Ranevskaya and Lopakhin, Anya and Varya, and Trofimov and
Lopakhin.

VB
III C

How was costuming used by the designers to reflect the differing

backgrounds, activities and opinions of the varied characters?

VII D

A production of a play must make many choices not specified in

the text about tone, emphasis and theme. What choices have the
director, designers and actors made in this particular production
of the play? How might the class have staged the play
differently?

VII D
IA

Was anything seen on stage surprising, given what the students

had read before seeing the play?

IA
II C

What love relationships are developed in the play and how do

they each end?

IA
VIII B

Many of the most important and traumatic events in the play

either happen before the play's action or off-stage. Why would
Chekhov stage some of the most dramatic events outside the
confines of the play itself? What effect does this have on the play?

IA
II C

When a drunkard stumbles upon several of the characters in the

countryside near the end of Act Two, each one reacts in a
different way to his intrusion and his demands. What do these
reactions tell us about the characters in question?

IA
II C

In Act One, Ranevskaya thinks she sees her mother in the cherry
orchard. At the end of Act Two, Trofimov talks of "faces" gazing

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Page 13

at he and Anya from the leaves and trunks of the trees. Compare
and contrast these two "visions", discussing what they tell us
about each character and that character's attitude towards the
orchard.

Page 14

IA
VB
VII B
VIII C

Take a close look at the list of characters. Draw a chart of the

social status of the characters and their inter-relationships. For
example, there are a landowner and her daughters, brother, her
friends (another landowner, a governess), her maid, an old man
servant of hers, a young valet. Together with them, we have a
student and a merchant. What does the chart of characters tell
you about social world of the play?

IA

How does the playwright present the characters? Do you think he

is harsh/critical to any one of these characters? For example, do
you feel Lopakhin, the merchant, is unpleasant, or do you
like/dislike Madame Ranevskaya because of the way she acts or is
treated in the play? Why or why not?

IA

On occasion the dialogue seems fragmented and disjointed

more a series of disconnected remarks than a real dialogue. Find
one such passage and consider its purpose and point.

IA
II C

What does the old servant Firs suggest about the supposed
emancipation of the serfs? Does he see it as an improvement in
the condition of the serfs? Why or why not? How does that
compare, for example, to the emancipation of the slaves in 19thcentury America? Were the slaves and the serfs truly liberated?

IA
II C

What is the meaning of Gayev's constant use of expressions used

in the game of billiards e.g. "pot the red in the middle"? How
about his also constant consumption of candy?

IA
VIII B
VIII C

Were the Ranevskayas doomed to lose the cherry orchard? What

does Trofimov suggest are the historical causes behind the loss?

IA
VIII B
VIII C

Why does Trofimov say that he is not interested in love? Why is

love a target of the criticism of the play? Why is love perceived as
a problem?

VIII B
VIII C

What does the play say about work?

IA

Even though the play is a tragedy, there are many humorous

Teacher Guide To The Cherry Orchard

scenes and moments. Explain three places where humor is found

and how it is developed.

Theatre Etiquette
Live theatre distinguishes itself from television and film in a most
intimate way. The experience is much like watching the private and
personal lives of real people, as if you were in the room with them. You
can see and hear them, but they are not supposed to see or hear you.
To make this play enjoyable for all people in the theatre, audiences are
expected to please respect the convention that the audience is a silent
partner. The actors and the other people in the audience appreciate this
polite behavior.
Audience members should also turn off cell phones, pagers, beeping
watches, etc., when entering a theatre.
No t e South Carolina Visual and Performing Arts Curriculum Standards
2003 for theatre education grades 9-12, Standard VII A: [Students will]
Demonstrate audience etiquet t e during theatre performances

Teacher Guide to The Cherry Orchard

prepared by Tim Donahue
University of South Carolina
Longstreet Theatre
Columbia, SC 29208
email: theatre@sc.edu
voice: 803/777-4288
http://www.cas.sc.edu/thea

Teacher Guide to The Cherry Orchard

Page 15