The Cherry Orchard

Anton Chekhov · 1860–1904 · Russia

Originally Vishnyovy Sad (Russian)

Why it matters

A family loses its ancestral orchard at auction to a merchant whose grandfather was a serf there, as the old aristocratic order gives way to money that actually works. Chekhov's last play, staged the year he died, insisted against all evidence that this was a comedy.

At a glance

Plain dialogue conceals a structure built on interruption, silence, and things left unsaid.