The company will present Eugenia Ginsburg's Into the Whirlwind (Jan. 21-22), followed by a pair of Chekhov classics: Three Sisters (Jan 24-25) and The Cherry Orchard (Jan. 28-29). All three plays will be performed in Russian with English surtitles.
This marks the first time that a major Russian theatre company has performed in the capital in over 20 years. The season has been made possible with generous support from Roman Abramovich, best known for his ownership of the premiere league Chelsea Football Club in the U.K.
Led by artistic director Galina Volchek, the company is described in press materials as a dominant force in the Russian theatrical and artistic landscape. With casts featuring some of Russia’s most popular stage and film actors, Sovremennik has toured extensively in Europe and America and were the first foreign company to win an American Drama Desk Award.
Sovremennik (literally Contemporary) formed as Russia was beginning to free itself from Stalinism at the time of the "Kruschev Thaw" by young graduates from the Studio School of Moscow Art, driven to create theatre free of State influence. The company features a troupe of 50 of Russia's leading actors, including Marina Neyolova, Chulpan Khamatova, Valentin Gaft and Igor Kvasha.
The London season is produced by Oksana Nemchuk, who has toured the company internationally since 1999. The executive producer is Artsbridge Ltd. To book tickets, contact the box office at 0844 482 5140 or visit www.delfontmackintosh.co.uk.