When we went to watch Platonov there was a few features that stood out for me that I think relates to our performance of The Cherry Orchard. One of them was the background noises. Throughout Platonov they had recorded sounds of birds chirping which helped set the atmosphere of them living in the countryside and there was singing and music coming from the house that could be heard when the scene was set outside in the garden. I felt that these constant noises helped create the atmosphere but it also made the play more natural as in life there is always some noises that can be heard. I felt this related to our play because we also use some backstage noises in order to build the atmosphere. In the opening two characters are waiting for the return of the family and as they arrive there are noises off stage of the family getting their bags and preparing to enter the house for the first time in 5 years. I now feel that our backstage noises will make our performance seem more realistic to the audience as it will bring a general hubbub to the scene and it will break up the silence.
Another similarity is through the characters. In Platonov there is a character called Anne who is the owner of a large house that is having to be sold because she is in huge debt. She hides behind a happy demeanour and she is only holding on to false hope but she will not accept her failure. This is also very similar to my character, Lyuba. She is also a landowner who is having to sell her land and orchard due to debt from the huge change in Russia. She starts of by putting on a brave face but she is more court up in her memories that she doesn't want to except her present. She does hold on to false hope but unlike Anne, Lyuba excepts her defeat and ends up maturing because of it. I find it interesting that Chekhov would write 2 strong female characters with such similar stories as it makes me think that he based these characters on some one he might have known and it therefore makes me see my character as more truthful than before.
Probably the most effective part of The performance of Platonov was the supporting characters. At the end of the play Platonov is shot in front of everyone and everyone reacted in there own way. Fro example the one who shot him collapsed to the floor and was crying and the other main characters were reacting with cries or looking away. However what drew my attention was the 3 servant ( who didn't have mainly line throughout the play) who all stood on stage right and were preying for Platonov but we're all frozen. I felt this was really effective as the death was very fast paced and the sudden freeze from the servant broken the structure of the play. It created this cold atmosphere as it was such a change to the rest of the play. There was also a scene where a merchant was cruel to an old man servant in which he push him to the floor. The scene then persisted to carry on but the old man slowly got up and steadied himself on a log. This actor took all the time in the world to finally leave the scene that it made it seem more realistic as he wasn't rushing and he stayed in character the whole time he tried to get up. I therefore feel that responding to the events that happen to the scene (even if they didn't happen to their character) brings an element of truth to the performance as it means people are aware of the surroundings and they are committed to being their character.
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