Review: UNCLE VANYA at Berkeley Repertory Theatre

Conor McPherson’s 2020 revitalized translation of Chekhov’s Uncle Vanya was hailed as a breath of fresh air and this production, featuring a stellar performance by Hugh Bonneville in the titular role, feels updated, and more humorous than previous incarnations.  The pace of the drama about the ennui of provincial life, unrequited loves, middle-aged disappointments and regrets is quicker and the humor from the updated language doesn’t detract from Chekhov’s work.

Uncle Vanya tells the darkly comic tale of those that work the land with little reward, those that live off that toil and the futility of tedium. Bonneville’s Vanya is weary, disheveled, and bitter. His niece Sonya, played with heartfelt romanticism by Melanie Field, is a dutiful plain Jane burdened with unrequited love for Doctor Astrov (Tony Award winner John Benjamin Hickey).

Enter the estate owner (Vanya’s brother-in-law) and his gorgeous younger wife Yelena and the whirlwind of dramas begins. The Professor (Tom Nelis) is a writer of pamphlets with dreams of one last success. Ito Aghayere is charming as the tempting wife, who like a siren attracts the attention of both Astrov and Vanya. The characters all have opportunities to vent their frustrations, which is heartbreaking, and entirely universal and sympathetic.

The prime fireworks is the battle between the Professor, who wants to sell the estate and Vanya who represents the everyman. The educated elite versus the working folk is a constant theme going back centuries. Astrov’s love of environmentalism shields him somewhat from this disillusionment of the death’s he sees everyday as the local doctor. The tragicomedy plays out wonderfully under the direction of Shakespeare Theatre Company Artistic Director Simon Godwin and the star performances of Bonneville and Hickey.

Uncle Vanya continues through March 23rd. Tickets available at berkeleyrep.org or by calling 510-647-2949.    

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