THE CHERRY ORCHARD And BONES Announced At The Royal Central School Of Speech And Drama

From July 24 - July 27 2019, MA Acting Classical and MA Acting Contemporary students at The Royal Central School of Speech and Drama will perform in their final-year productions of 'The Cherry Orchard' and 'Bones', respectively.

First performed at the Young Vic Theatre in London during October 2014, the adapted production of Anton Chekhov's 'The Cherry Orchard' sets the text in Argentina. The langorous estancias of the Andes foothills where they grow cherries and make Malbec wines. Here too, as in Tsarist Russia and modern South Africa, the old ways of life are being ousted to make way for the new. Award-winning actor and director Janet Suzman directs Chekhov's last and greatest play, in a version proving it to be robustly universal.

Of the production, Janet Suzman said "In 2002 Argentina went bankrupt. The western - agricultural - areas of the country were especially badly hit. Cherry orchards abound on the foothills of the Andes around Mendoza where the Malbec vineyards grow. That is where our cherry orchard is set, owned and loved by one of the old established family estates of the region, but now barren and no longer bearing fruit."

'Bones' was commissioned by Central for its MA Acting Contemporary students. Written by renowned English playwright and Honorary Fellow of the School Tanika Gupta, the idea for the production comes from the recent exposure by local historian Catherine Cortess of the discovery of babies' bones and skeletons found in the grounds of a mother and baby home in Tuam - County Galway - Ireland. The play is loosely based around the events and draws inspiration from the story.

Told through the eyes of Grace and her grandchildren, Tanika Gupta said of the production that "'Bones' is a play about loss, the punishment of unmarried mothers and the legacy of demonization of women by the Church and State, where the human and reproductive rights of women are undermined."

Booking is now available through the schools box office (020 7722 8183 or boxoffice@cssd.ac.uk) or by visiting Central's website at www.cssd.ac.uk.

To post a comment, you must register and login.