Cast and Creative Team Announced for UNCLE VANYA at The Old Globe

The Old Globe's 2017-2018 Season continues with today's announcement of the complete cast and creative team for Anton Chekhov's masterpiece Uncle Vanya, which has received a Globe-commissioned world premiere translation from Richard Nelson, Richard Pevear, andLarissa Volokhonsky. Richard Nelson (Illyria, The Gabriel Plays, Tony Award winner for Best Book of a Musical for James Joyce's The Dead) also directs. Uncle Vanya will run February 10 - March 11, 2018 in the Sheryl and Harvey White Theatre, part of the Globe's Conrad Prebys Theatre Center. Tickets start at $30.00 and are on sale to the general public now. Previews run February 10-14. Opening night is Thursday, February 15 at 8:00 p.m.

An exhilarating revival that pairs one of the greatest plays ever written with the world's most celebrated translators of Russian literature. Vanya and his niece Sonya struggle to care for the estate owned by Vanya's brother-in-law, a wealthy and celebrated professor. When this local legend returns with a beautiful new wife and announces his plans to sell the estate, hidden passions explode and the lives of the entire family come undone. This Globe-commissioned world premiere translation, performed in an unusually intimate and conversational style, provides an up-close encounter with a classic of world drama that every theatre-lover must see.

The cast of longtime Nelson collaborators includes two eminences of the American stage, Roberta Maxwell (Márya Vassílyevna Voinítskaya) and Jay O. Sanders(Iván Petróvich Voinítsky aka "Vanya"), as well as Celeste Arias (Eléna Andréevna), Jon DeVries (Alexánder Vladímirovich Serebryakóv), Kate Kearney-Patch(Marína Timoféevna), Jesse Pennington (Mikhaíl Lvóvich Ástrov), and Yvonne Woods (Sófya Alexándrovna aka "Sonya").

The creative team includes Jason Ardizzone-West (Scenic Design), Tony Award winner Susan Hilferty and Mark Koss (Costume Design), Tony Award winnerJennifer Tipton (Lighting), Will Pickens (Sound Design), Caparelliotis Casting (Casting), and Theresa Flanagan (Production Stage Manager).

"Everything about this production represents the best of The Old Globe, and I am thrilled that it's here," said Erna Finci Viterbi Artistic Director Barry Edelstein. "Uncle Vanya returns the incomparable Anton Chekhov to our stage after a too-long absence. It welcomes Richard Pevear and Larisa Volokhonsky, the world's foremost translators of Russian literature, and perhaps our most influential thinkers about the art of translation, to San Diego. And it marks the Globe debut of a great American playwright, one of our own Chekhovs, who is at once a poet of the stage and an innovator of theatrical form: Richard Nelson. Richard is engaged in a multiyear exploration of a style of theatre that's quiet and highly conversational. Close-up in our White Theatre, that style will bring an emotional intimacy to this show that will make it one of the highlights of the theatrical season in our city. And the humanity and splendor of the play itself, plus the extraordinarily high caliber of the acting talent on hand, in particular that of the eminent Roberta Maxwell and Jay O. Sanders, simply take the whole thing over the top. I am overjoyed to share it with our audiences."

Anton Chekhov (Playwright, 1860-1904) first turned to writing as a medical student at Moscow University, from which he graduated in 1884. Among his early works were short monologues ("The Evils of Tobacco") and one-act farces (The Bear, The Proposal, The Wedding). His first completed full-length play was Ivanov (1887), followed by The Wood Demon (1889), The Seagull (1896), Uncle Vanya (1899), Three Sisters (1901), and The Cherry Orchard (1904).

Richard Nelson (Co-Translator, Director) Mr. Nelson's plays include The Gabriels (Hungry, What Did You Expect?, and Women of a Certain Age) and The Apple Family plays (That Hopey Changey Thing, Sweet and Sad, Sorry, and Regular Singing), which were produced at The Public Theater in New York, toured internationally, and filmed for public television. His other plays include Illyria, Oblivion, Nikolai and the Others, Farewell to the Theatre, Conversations in Tusculum,Frank's Home, How Shakespeare Won the West, Rodney's Wife, Franny's Way, Madame Melville, Goodnight Children Everywhere (Olivier Award for Play of the Year), The General from America, New England, Two Shakespearean Actors (Tony Award nomination for Best Play), Some Americans Abroad (Olivier nomination for Comedy of the Year), and others. His musicals include James Joyce's The Dead with Shaun Davey (Tony Award for Best Book of a Musical) and My Life with Albertine and Private Confessions, both with Ricky Ian Gordon. His films include Hyde Park on Hudson (Focus Features), Ethan Frome (Miramax), and Sensibility and Sense ("American Playhouse"). With Larissa Volokhonsky and Richard Pevear, he has co-translated Ivan Turgenev's A Month in the Country, Nikolai Gogol'sThe Inspector, Mikhail Bulgakov's Molière and Don Quixote, and Anton Chekhov's The Seagull and The Cherry Orchard (all published by Theatre Communications Group). He is an honorary associate artist of the Royal Shakespeare Company and a recipient of the Arts and Letters Award in Literature from the American Academy of Arts and Letters and the PEN/Laura Pels "Master Playwright" Award.

Richard Pevear and Larissa Volokhonsky (Co-Translators) Mr. Pevear was born in Boston, grew up on Long Island, and attended Allegheny College (B.A., 1964) and University of Virginia (M.A., 1965). After a stint as a college teacher, he moved to the Maine coast and eventually to New York City, where he worked as a freelance writer, editor, and translator, as well as a cabinetmaker. He has published two collections of poetry, many essays and reviews, and 38 books translated from French, Italian, and Russian. Ms. Volokhonsky was born in Leningrad, attended Leningrad State University, and upon graduating joined a scientific team whose work took her to the east of Russia, to Kamchatka and Sakhalin Island. She immigrated to Israel in 1973 and to the United States in 1975, where she attended Yale Divinity School and St. Vladimir's Orthodox Theological Seminary. Soon after settling in New York City, she was married to Mr. Pevear, and a few years later they moved to France with their two children. Together they have translated 30 books from Russian, including works by Leo Tolstoy, Mikhail Bulgakov, Nikolai Gogol, Anton Chekhov, Fyodor Dostoevsky, and Boris Pasternak. Their translation of Dostoevsky's The Brothers Karamazov received the 1991 PEN/Laura Pels Translation Award, and their translation of Tolstoy's Anna Karenina was awarded the same prize in 2002. In 2006 they were awarded the first Efim Etkind International Translation Prize by the European Graduate School of St. Petersburg.

Uncle Vanya is supported in part by the Jean and Gary Shekhter Fund for Classic Theatre. This translation of Uncle Vanya by Richard Nelson, Richard Pevear, and Larissa Volokhonsky was commissioned by The Old Globe with generous support from the Jean and Gary Shekhter Fund for Classic Theatre. Additional support comes from Production Sponsors Mary Beth Adderley, Silvija and Brian Devine, Hal and Pam Fuson, and Jean and Gary Shekhter. Financial support is provided by The City of San Diego.

Additional events taking place during the run of Uncle Vanya include:

THE ART AND PRACTICE OF TRANSLATION: Tuesday, February 13 at 2:30 p.m.

A one-hour Q and A-style discussion with Uncle Vanya translators Richard Pevear and Larissa Volokhonsky at University of San Diego's Studio Theatre. The two will discuss their acclaimed and award-winning work translating Russian novels and plays, as well as how translating for the page differs from translating for the stage. FREE.

VICKI AND CARL ZEIGER INSIGHTS SEMINAR: Tuesday, February 13 at 5:30 p.m.

An opportunity to closely connect with productions both onstage and backstage. A panel selected from the artistic company will engage patrons in an informal and illuminating presentation of ideas and insights to enhance the theatregoing experience. Reception at 5:00 p.m. FREE.

Barry Edelstein IN CONVERSATION WITH Richard Nelson, RICHARD PEVEAR, AND LARISSA VOLOKHONSKY: Wednesday, February 14 at 5:30 p.m.

Barry Edelstein sits down with Uncle Vanya translators Richard Pevear and Larissa Volokhonsky and translator/director Richard Nelson to discuss the collaborate process behind this Uncle Vanya, as well as the art of translation and bringing the classics of the stage to life for a contemporary audience.

SUBJECT MATTERS: Saturday, February 17 following the 2:00 p.m. matinee.

Explore the ideas and issues raised by a production through brief, illuminating post-show discussions with local experts, such as scientists, artists, historians, and scholars. Subject Matters will ignite discussion, bring the play's concerns into sharp focus, and encourage you to think beyond the stage! FREE.

POST-SHOW FORUMS: Tuesdays, February 20 and 27, and Wednesday, March 7.

Join us after the show for an informal and enlightening question-and-answer session with cast, crew, and/or Globe staff members. Get the inside story on creating a character and putting together a professional production. FREE.

SINGLE TICKETS to Uncle Vanya start at $30.00 and are on sale to the general public now. Tickets can be purchased online at www.TheOldGlobe.org, by phone at (619) 23-GLOBE [234-5623], or by visiting the Box Office at 1363 Old Globe Way in Balboa Park. Discounts are available for full-time students, patrons 29 years of age and under, seniors, military members, and groups of 10 or more.

Performances begin on February 10, 2018, and continue through March 11, 2018. Performance times: Previews: Saturday, February 10 at 8:00 p.m.; Sunday, February 11 at 7:00 p.m.; Tuesday, February 13 at 7:00 p.m.; and Wednesday, February 14 at 7:00 p.m. Opening night is Thursday, February 15 at 8:00 p.m.Regular performances (February16 - March 11): Tuesday and Wednesday evenings at 7:00 p.m., Thursday and Friday evenings at 8:00 p.m., Saturdays at 2:00 p.m. and 8:00 p.m., and Sundays at 2:00 p.m. and 7:00 p.m. There will be an additional matinee performance on Wednesday, February 28 at 2:00 p.m. and no matinee performance on Saturday, March 3 at 2:00 p.m.

LOCATION and PARKING INFORMATION: The Old Globe is located in San Diego's Balboa Park at 1363 Old Globe Way. Through a special arrangement with the San Diego Zoo, Old Globe evening ticket-holders have the opportunity to pre-purchase valet parking in the Zoo's employee parking structure. With a drop-off point just a short walk to the Globe, theatregoers may purchase fast, easy, convenient valet parking for just $14 per vehicle per evening. Pre-paid only, available only by phone through The Old Globe Box Office. Call (619) 234-5623 or visit
www.theoldglobe.org/plan-your-visit/directions--parking/valet-parking. The Balboa Park valet is also available during performances, located in front of the Japanese Friendship Garden. For additional parking information visit www.BalboaPark.org.

There are numerous free parking lots available throughout the park. Guests may also be dropped off in front of the Mingei International Museum. There is a 10-minute zone at The Old Globe, used only for daytime deliveries, ticket purchases, and handicapped access dropoff. For directions and up-to-date information, please visit www.theoldglobe.org/plan-your-visit/directions--parking/detailed-directions.

PLEASE NOTE: To look up online or GPS directions to The Old Globe, please do not use the Delivery Address above. For GPS users, please click here for the map coordinates, and here for written directions to The Old Globe and nearby parking in Balboa Park.

CALENDAR: The Importance of Being Earnest (1/27/18-3/4), Uncle Vanya (2/10-3/11), AXIS: Give Love SD (2/10), American Mariachi (3/23-4/29), AXIS: MariachiReyna (3/31), The Wanderers (4/6-5/6), AXIS: Happy Birthday, Mr. Shakespeare! (4/21), A Thousand Splendid Suns (5/12-6/17), Native Gardens (5/26-6/24), The Tempest (6/17-7/22), Dr. Seuss's The Lorax (7/2-8/12), Barefoot in the Park (7/28-8/26), Much Ado About Nothing (8/12-9/16), 2018 Globe Gala (9/22).

The Tony Award-winning Old Globe is one of the country's leading professional regional theatres and has stood as San Diego's flagship arts institution for over 80 years. Under the leadership of Erna Finci Viterbi Artistic Director Barry Edelstein and Managing Director Timothy J. Shields, The Old Globe produces a year-round season of 15 productions of classic, contemporary, and new works on its three Balboa Park stages: the Donald and Darlene Shiley Stage in the 600-seat Old Globe Theatre and the 250-seat Sheryl and Harvey White Theatre, both part of The Old Globe's Conrad Prebys Theatre Center, and the 605-seat outdoor Lowell Davies Festival Theatre, home of its internationally renowned Shakespeare Festival. More than 250,000 people attend Globe productions annually and participate in the theatre's artistic and arts engagement programs. Numerous world premieres such as the 2014 Tony Award winner for Best Musical, A Gentleman's Guide to Love and Murder, Meteor Shower, Bright Star, Allegiance, The Full Monty, Dirty Rotten Scoundrels, and the annual holiday musical Dr. Seuss's How the Grinch Stole Christmas! have been developed at The Old Globe and have gone on to enjoy highly successful runs on Broadway and at regional theatres across the country.

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