There is no heroic central figure, merely the hard-working, well-intentioned but blundering Vanya, demeaned by the ageing and patronizing label of ‘Uncle’. As in the Three Sisters very little happens (as Tolstoy commented: ‘Where's the drama? The play treads water’). Uncle Vanya was based on Chekhov's earlier failed play The Wood Demon (Leshy), premiered in Moscow in 1889, in which the figure of Astrov, then called Khrushchev, is the ‘wood demon’ committed to ecological concerns. Despite her unhappiness, she remains positive about life.ĪT: Uncle Vania August A: Anton Chekhov Pf: 1897, Russian provinces Moscow, 1899 Pb: 1897 Tr: 1912 G: Drama in 4 acts Russian prose S: Serebryakov's estate, rural Russia, 1890s C: 5m, 4f Vanya, having contemplated suicide, now settles down to the estate accounts with Sonya. Serebryakov and Yelena leave, and Astrov goes off to his work. Vanya, frustrated over Serebryakov's ingratitude and selfishness, fires a gun at him but misses.

Serebryakov announces that he intends to sell the estate so that he can live in town. She asks Yelena to sound out Astrov's feelings about her, and Astrov imagines that Yelena is attracted to him. Yelena rebuffs Vanya's advances, and Sonya tries to make Astrov understand that she loves him. Soon Vanya, who is disillusioned about Serebryakov's achievements, falls in love with Yelena, as does Mikhail Astrov, an idealistic doctor.

Serebryakov arrives with his young new wife Yelena. AT: Uncle Vania August A: Anton Chekhov Pf: 1897, Russian provinces Moscow, 1899 Pb: 1897 Tr: 1912 G: Drama in 4 acts Russian prose S: Serebryakov's estate, rural Russia, 1890s C: 5m, 4fIvan Voinitsky (Uncle Vanya), with the help of Sonya, his niece, manages the estate of his brother-in-law Aleksandr Serebryakov, who is a celebrated retired professor of art.

Uncle vanya mamet