THE ORCHARD Reschedules First Performance Date Due to Covid
The cast is helmed by Jessica Hecht, Mikhail Baryshnikov and more.
By: Chloe Rabinowitz May. 27, 2022
Due to a limited number of Covid cases within the company, The Orchard, conceived, adapted, and directed by Ukrainian born theater director Igor Golyak, will begin previews on June 7, instead of the previously scheduled May 31. Opening night remains unchanged, and is still scheduled for June 16 for a limited run through July 3.
Ticket holders for cancelled performance should return to their point of purchase to exchange tickets for another performance or request a refund.
The Orchard is an adaptation of The Cherry Orchard by Anton Chekhov as translated by Carol Rocamora, with some additional material developed by Golyak. This hybrid production includes two simultaneous and intersecting theatrical experiences - a live performance at Baryshnikov Arts Center (450 W. 37th Street) and a separate interactive virtual experience online that audiences can participate in live from around the globe.
The Orchard invites us into the fragile world of a family yearning for connection and struggling with the end of their world as they know it. Threatened with foreclosure and the loss of their beloved orchard, they face unstoppable, destructive forces that dismantle their lives like the breaking of a string.
Developed through Arlekin's (zero-G) Virtual Theater Lab, The Orchard is a hybrid piece of theater and can be seen in two formats: Live & In-Person at the Baryshnikov Arts Center and The Virtual Experience - Online.
The cast is helmed by Jessica Hecht (Fiddler on the Roof, Breaking Bad) as Ranevskaya, with, Juliet Brett (Fosse/Verdon), Darya Denisova (State vs. Natasha Banina), Elise Kibler (The Heidi Chronicles), John McGinty (Children of a Lesser God), Nael Nacer (chekhovOS), Mark Nelson (Angels In America), and Ilia Volok (Mission Impossible, Indiana Jones). Mikhail Baryshnikov will play both Anton Chekhov and Firs.
The Orchard is produced by Arlekin's (zero-G) Virtual Theater Lab, Cherry Orchard Festival Foundation, Groundswell Theatricals, Inc., & ShowOne Productions.
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The Orchard - Live & In-Person at the Baryshnikov Arts Center
The Orchard is an intimate, fully staged live performance of The Cherry Orchard as translated by Carol Rocamora and adapted by Golyak. An international team of collaborators, spanning theater, gaming, film, robotics, and emerging technologies, was assembled to create the world of The Orchard. Audiences in the theater will enter an immersive, dreamlike environment where perceptions, illusions, and reality collide as a family in crisis tries to process their uncertain future.
The creative team includes scenic design by Anna Fedorova, costume design by Oana Botez, lighting design by Yuki Nakase Link, projection design by Alex Basco Koch, sound design by Tei Blow, music composition by Jakov Jakoulov, emerging technologies design by Adam Paikowsky, Robotics design by Tom Sepe, hair and makeup design by Anna Hrustaleva, and Director of American Sign Language by Seth Gore.
The Orchard -
Virtual Experience Online
The virtual experience online invites audiences on a journey through a beautifully rendered, three dimensional virtual property that has been abandoned and is in foreclosure. There, audiences can explore and discover magical rooms where they uncover echoes of a past life, now lost, including Chekhov's letters, memories, and ultimately the play, live, in progress at the Baryshnikov Arts Center.
The creative team of the Virtual Experience includes virtual scenic design by Anna Fedorova, in partnership with Alex Coulombe of Agile Lens, Athomas Goldberg of Lifelike & Believable Animation Design, and Unreal designers Daniel Cormino, Yu-Jun Yeh and Emily Cho, with virtual sound design by Alexey Prosvirnin, and interactivity design by Sasha Huh.
The in-person and online versions will run concurrently - live - for each performance. Partway through the performances, the two versions intersect and the worlds come together.
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"This is a story about the delicate relationships at the center of a family facing the end of the world as they know it," said Igor Golyak. "We are living through an unimaginable time of change and destruction with the war in Ukraine and with the pandemic. As humans, we are perpetually losing our cherry orchards, losing our worlds. This play is about us today."
"Our incredible creative team is collaborating at the edges of artistry, traditional theater techniques, and emerging technologies to bring The Orchard to life," said Executive Producer Sara Stackhouse. "We are creating something that audiences can see in person and then can return to another night online for a second and totally unique artistic experience. This is the new world of hybrid production and a new frontier for theater."
The performance schedule is: Tuesday - Thursday at 7PM, Friday - Saturday at 8PM, with matinees on Saturday and Sunday at 2PM. There will also be an additional 2PM matinee on June 15. The Orchard will play a limited engagement through Sunday, July 3, 2022. All attendees will be required to show ID and proof of COVID vaccination.
Ticket prices for Live & In-Person at the Baryshnikov Arts Center are $79, $59, and $39 with premium seating available. Tickets for the first week of previews are $69, $49, and $29.
Tickets for The Virtual Experience Online are $29. There are also bundles available for those who want to experience both versions of The Orchard and the prices are $99, $79, and $49 with premium seating available.
For tickets and information, please visit: www.TheOrchardOffBroadway.com.
The Orchard is produced by Arlekin's (zero-G) Virtual Theater Lab in association with The Cherry Orchard Festival Foundation, Groundswell Theatricals, and ShowOne Productions, with additional support from ArtsEmerson, The Fooksman Family Foundation, and Aximmetry, the official software provider for (zero-G) Lab.
Robotics and web/app design provided by dotdotdash.io.
Quadruped robot provided by Graisin Robotics.
Volumetric footage provided by NYU Tandon Bldg 22, captured and rendered using Evercoast.
Unreal technical design provided by Agile Lens.
Videography provided by Moonlight Motion Pictures.
Director of Photography, Transcend Streaming.
Virtual technical design provided by Lifelike and Believable Animation Design / ShoCap.
Streaming powered by Heavenue.
The Orchard runs Tuesday - Thursday at 7PM, Friday - Saturday at 8PM, with matinees on Saturday and Sunday at 2PM.
The Orchard will play a limited engagement through Sunday, July 3, 2022. All attendees will be required to show ID and proof of COVID vaccination.
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