Uncle Vanya, With Reed Birney, Maria Dizzia and Michael Shannon, Opens at Soho Rep June 17

By Adam Hetrick
17 Jun 2012

Maria Dizzia and Michael Shannon
Maria Dizzia and Michael Shannon
Photo by Julieta Cervantes

Circle Mirror Transformation playwright Annie Baker's adaptation of Anton Chekhov's  Uncle Vanya, starring Reed Birney in the title role, opens June 17 in an intimate staging Off-Broadway at Soho Rep.

Sam Gold (Circle Mirror…, The Aliens) directs the world-premiere adaptation that places the audience and the cast together inside a framed house constructed within Soho Rep. The production began previews June 7 and recently extended its run through July 22. 

Birney (Circle Mirror..., Blasted) is joined by Tony Award nominee Maria Dizzia (In the Next Room, Eurydice, Belleville) as Yelena; Georgia Engel (The Drowsy Chaperone, Middletown, "The Mary Tyler Moore Show") as Marina; Tony nominee Peter Friedman (Circle Mirror Transformation, Ragtime) as Serebryakov; Academy Award nominee Michael Shannon ("Revolutionary Road," "Boardwalk Empire," Mistakes Were Made) as Astrov; Matthew Maher (Orange, Hat & Grace) as Telegin; Paul Thureen (Buddy Cop 2) as Yefim; Rebecca Schull ("Wings") as Maria; and Merritt Wever (The Illusion) as Sonya.

Baker also designed costumes for Vanya, which has set design by Andrew Lieberman, costume design by Baker, lighting design by Mark Barton and sound design by Matt Tierney.

Baker earned an Obie Award for her Off-Broadway hit Circle Mirror Transformation. Her plays also include The Aliens and Body Awareness. Playwrights Horizons will produce her newest play, The Flick, in 2013.

For tickets visit SohoRep. Soho Rep is located at 46 Walker Street in Manhattan.