Giorgio Strehler - Notes on The Cherry Orchard

Patrick Baliani recently reminded me of an essay written by Giorgio Strehler. It is simply called "Notes on the Cherry Orchard." In it Strehler says the problem,or challenge, of Chehkov is what he calls "The Three Chinese Boxes." I won't attempt to explain the entire essay or premise here. I certainly recommend reading it though. Strehler describes the play itself as being like a serious of boxes nestled inside one another, the second containing the first, etc. For Strehler the first box is "reality." The second box is "history." And the third box is "life." Each box he says has it's own aspect and it's own danger. For example, the first box holds the danger of pedantic minutiae, the second box has the danger of isolating the characters as historical symbols, and the third would risk being merely abstract. A "correct" production of the play he says should stage all three perspectives put together, sometimes giving a close up of a hand or heart, sometimes letting history pass before our eyes, sometimes questioning us about the destiny of our humanity.