Dear Uncle

Synopsis

I’m the only living thing without a life. Isn’t that terrible? With a past that was entirely wasted and a present bordering on the ridiculous. Marcus loves Eleanor although she’s already married and can never be his. His schoolgirl niece Sonya is secretly in love with David, the family doctor and confirmed bachelor, which in her heart of hearts she knows is probably all in vain. And to make things still more hopeless, as days go by, Eleanor and David appear to be developing an attraction which is surely unthinkable. As summer comedy grows into autumnal farce, things inevitably lead to winter regrets both for what has occurred and what might have been. Set in the Lake District in 1935, Alan Ayckbourn’s reworking of Uncle Vanya brings an affectionate English slant to Anton Chekhov’s classic love story.

Our Review:

Ron Simpson - 13 July 2011

The Independent has called Alan Ayckbourn “the Chekhov of our time.” Once it was the likes of N.C. Hunter who were branded Chekhovian, but we now have a more robust view of the Russian master and give him credit for being funny. Not that that precludes depth of emotion: the ending of Dear Uncle, Alan Ayckbourn’s version of Uncle Vanya, with two characters trying to summon hope from the long loneliness of life, is as moving as you could wish, with “Love is the Sweetest Thing” playing on the gramophone.

Ayckbourn’s adaptation is set in Ennerdale in the Lake District in1935, when Ray Noble’s great song was still pretty much the newest thing. It follows the original fairly closely, though with some unusual choices of name. Many of the women, known by their forenames, are essentially unchanged, but Serebryakov turns into Sir Cedric Savidge (good indication of status) and Dr Astrov is simplified to Dr Ash, very...

Read more of the review

Latest User Review

No reviews yet

Click here to add your review