Andrew Scott in Vanya. (Photo: Julieta Cervantes)

Vanya

By Deirdre Donovan

Andrew Scott takes on the Herculean task of performing a one-man production of Anton Chekhov's 1898 tragicomedy and succeeds in turning it into a mesmerizing virtuoso performance. Directed by Sam Yates, and created by Scott, along with Yates, Simon Stephens, and Rosanna Vize, Stephen's adaptation in modern vernacular with anglicized names retains all of the roles from Chekhov's Uncle Vanya and closely follows its story, although it takes liberal poetic license along the way. This new version is immensely entertaining, inventive, and has great one-liners to boot.

Take Helena's supercilious remark to Ivan as he tries to start a conversation with her early on in the play: "Ivan, whenever you start to speak, I drift off completely."

The familiar Chekhovian themes are intact: midlife malaise, climate damage, unrealized dreams, lives in stasis, and of course unrequited love. But at the core is the love quadrangle that involves the beautiful young wife of the aged Alexander (here a film-maker instead of a scholar), his daughter Sonia, the doctor Michael, and the eponymous Vanya.

Andrew Scott in Vanya. (Photo: Julieta Cervantes)

Scott delivers performances that capture the quintessence of each character. Of course, it helps to know Chekhov's masterpiece if one is to follow Scott's lightning-quick changes from one character to another. He's like a circus juggler keeping eight balls in the air, slipping into the skin of one character, and then the next, in rapid succession.

Then there's the bigger challenge of performing two or more characters in conversation, which he does with subtle shifts of vocal tone, physical posture, and facial expression. Of course it gets even trickier with the romantic episodes. But Scott surprisingly pulls off one scene of passion between Michael and Helena with steamy realism. Although it's only a kiss between them, the manner in which Scott rips off his shirt with primal instinctiveness, suggests that Helena is, as her name suggests, a modern-day Helen of Troy.

The characters are ingeniously distinguished by symbolic tics: Vanya is a swashbuckling type who shows up in sunglasses. Helena is a stylish woman who fiddles with her necklace. Michael is the hot doctor who bounces a tennis ball like a highly-strung player at a Wimbledon match. This stage business allows the audience to identify each character quickly in any scene and discern his, or her, personality with more depth and insight.

Scott tugs a laugh-a-minute from the audience as he leans into the comic elements of the play. What might well turn into another example of the Reduced Chekhov Company soars into the stratosphere with Scott's comedic acting. Case in point: the physician Michael, in conversation with the old nanny Maureen, offers a disturbing observation that is funny for its candidness: "The people here are lunatics, Maureen. Every single one of them. And when you surround yourself with lunatics after a while, you become a lunatic too."

Sonia, in particular, is rendered with pathos and psychological depth in whatever scene she enters. Consider Sonia's profound disappointment when she learns from Helena that Michael isn't romantically interested in her. Scott registers this by flattening his voice to a monotone, echoing the ebb of happiness from Sonia's life: "You're shaking. Helena. Oh, I understand. He won't be coming back here, will he? He won't, will he?"

Scott is like a gymnast on the balance beam executing one amazing feat after another during the show. In fact, he doesn't just perform his characters, he disappears into each, allowing their souls to speak in their own unmistakable accents.

Andrew Scott in Vanya. (Photo: Julieta Cervantes)

This Vanya is to be commended for its genuinely radical approach to Chekhov. With so many revivals of Chekhov's plays springing up all over the globe each season, this one-man production stands out for its inventiveness. For example, rather than the play being set on a country estate in rural Russia, it is transplanted to a potato farm in Ireland. This reimagining of Chekhov's work to a different country and era with no loss of its dramatic richness underscores its universal nature.

Vize's minimalist set relies on wooden boxes and props strewn around the performing space. This Spartan look allows Scott to create his imaginary world with no special effects or distractions. And he does so to fine effect.

This production comes to Off-Broadway following its sold-out run at the Duke of York's Theatre in London's West End in 2023. Similarly, the current production at the Lucille Lortel is playing to full houses, a continuing testament to Scott's thrilling update of the old classic.

No question that Vanya is a showcase for the charismatic Scott. Best-known for his performance as James Moriarity in the BBC series of Sherlock Holmes and his role of the priest on Fleabag, his current star turn in Vanya puts a new feather in his acting cap.

Vanya

Through May 11

At the Lucille Lortel Theatre, 121 Christopher Street, the West Village

For more information, visit www.lortel.org

Running time: 1 hour; 40 minutes, no intermission