The Melbourne Theatre Company's new production of Uncle Vanya, translated by Joanna Murray-Smith and directed by Anne-Louise Sarks, opened at Arts Centre Melbourne. The review describes the production as uneven, with celebrity casting of Shaun Micallef as a disaster and aggressive modernisation that undercuts the play's subtlety.
Uneven performances mar the production
The cast includes Fayssal Bazzi (Astrov), Philippa Northeast (Sonya), Daniel Henshall (Vanya), Catherine Vǎn-Davies (Yelena), Evelyn Krape (Nanny), Don Bridges, and Shaun Micallef (Serebryakov). Bazzi and Northeast are praised: Bazzi is everything one would want from the cracked and noble doctor, and Northeast is crisp and soulful, often making the play feel entirely theirs. Henshall, however, seems to heave his emotions into his throat like he's doing bench presses, creating tumult without heat or genuine grief. Vǎn-Davies never progresses from bored heiress into tragic heroine. Micallef is described as a disaster, playing the professor with silly, floppy gesticulations and cartoonish face-pulling, like a Basil Fawlty understudy barking into a void.
Modernisation and anachronisms
Murray-Smith's translation updates the language with phrases such as “Don't be such a drama queen, Vanya” and “No one says bonking any more,” along with frequent uses of “fuck” and “fuck off.” The review notes that as these anachronisms mount, the play drifts further from its centre, veering dangerously close to farce. The set by Dann Barber, with autumnal poplar trees and lighting by Paul Jackson, starts promisingly, but the aggressive modernisations drive a wedge between the audience and the world of the play. The production recovers some gravitas towards the end in a mournful coda, but it is too late to truly care.
Uncle Vanya is on at Arts Centre Melbourne until 22 August.
