A south Asian heritage cast will bring to life the world premiere of a new sci-fi adaptation of Chekhov's The Cherry Orchard.
Reimagined by award- winning Vinay Patel (True Brits, Murdered By My Father, Doctor Who), it opens at The Yard Theatre in London (September 5) before moving north to HOME Manchester from November 2-19.
An old starship travels through space, searching for a home billions of miles from earth. Like their ancestors before them, crew members were born on the ship; the voyage is all they've ever known. And then a planet is spotted. Will they leap into a new future, or stay stuck on the journey forever?
The cast includes Chandrika Chevli (Hopeless Romantics, Not Going Out, Holby City; Neil D’Souza (Much Ado About Nothing, Midnight’s Children, Eastenders, Friday Night Dinner; Aaron Gill (a recent graduate of Guildhall School of Music and Drama); Anjali Jay (Midnight’s Children, Night at the Museum 3).
Patel said: “I adore these actors. They're sharp, open-hearted and effortlessly funny - everything you need to make The Cherry Orchard sing: I reckon Chekhov would be delighted!
"The most exciting aspect for me is that heritage isn't a point of difference on our spaceship. These are simply complex people... especially the ones that are robots.”