AustLit

'The Seagull is Chekhov's attempt to put life itself on the stage so we can see it for the accidental, nonsensical and achingly beautiful muddle that it is. It's a play in which nobody gets what they want (however desperately they crave it) and meanwhile everyone keeps picnicking and drinking and seeing the summer out, with the odd home-made play for diversion.

Kostya longs to be a groundbreaking writer and hankers after the full attention of his neighbour, Nina. He is desperate for his mother to like his play but she finds it tedious and talks the whole way through. Nina aspires to be an actress and for the richness of a creative life, tantalisingly located beyond her fingertips. Trigorin is a prolific writer but he desires to be a good one. Masha is continually conscious of Kostya and pours spirits down her throat to stifle the love that he doesn't even notice.' Source: /www.belvoir.com.au/ (Sighted 17/06/2011).