An early interest in the plays by Anton Chekhov led me to Olga Knipper, the actress who played Checkhov's great roles in premiere performances. I read biographies and letters of Chekhov and Knipper, and found in these are an engaging relationship which invited a dramatic exploration. I noticed that their life together paralleled in form and substance a Chechovian drama was as if they had shared the experience of four movements which like the four acts of his major plays, could be labelled "Morning," "Banality Rising," "The Storm," and "Enduring it All." I've gathered selected moments of their six years to construct, in four short acts, a fictional portrait of their buoyant romance and mutual admiration. While I was writing, other characters emerged to offer their support, including Anton's sister Masha, his friend Ivan Bunin, the poet, his publisher, Souvorin, and key members of the Moscow Art Theatre. In due course, their voices were absorbed in the exchanges between Olgan and Anton, but I was always aware of the larger world that surrounded these two artists and of the exceptional forces which shaped their lives.... Richard Epp
Produced at the state of the art recording studios of the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation with sound effects and music.
Performed by John Neville, and Lucy Peacock
Music composed and arranged by Alan Laing
Approximate Duration 1 Hour
