Blondell Picks Alums for 'Cherry Orchard'

Several recent Westmont graduates return to Porter Theater to stage a new production of Anton Chekhov’s “The Cherry Orchard,” under the direction of John Blondell, Westmont professor of theater arts, Sept. 4-6, all at 7 p.m. Tickets to the Lit Moon Theatre production are $20 general admission, and $15 for students and seniors. To purchase, visit www.westmont.edu/boxoffice or call 565-7040.

“The play is a richly observed, sometimes heartbreaking, and often hilarious picture of a family and period in transition,” says Blondell. “I am interested in creating a rich, luscious, romantic staging of this play and fill it with an abundant sense of life. I want the stage to bubble with vitality and for the audience to be swept away by the deep longings and somewhat crazy idiosyncrasies.”

In the play, Lyubov Andreevna (Victoria Finlayson) returns from Paris to find that the family estate is in debt and must be sold. A local businessman, Lopakhin (Mitchell Thomas, Westmont associate professor of theater arts), has an idea to sell the estate along with the adjacent cherry orchard in order to develop the property for leisure homes. The ensuing action focuses on whether the estate will be sold and the implications for the family, servants and hangers-on.

“It presents a typical situation in early 20th-century Russia, depicting all the characters as deeply flawed, though imminently interesting and likable,” Blondell says. “This play resonates deeply with modern American times, especially the recent recession and accompanying mortgage meltdown.”

“The Cherry Orchard” features Lauren White ’14, Ben Offringa ’14, Paige Tautz ’14, Chris Wagstaffe ’14, Michael Bernard, Brian Harwell, Stan Hoffman, Jeff Mills, Nina Sallinen and Matthew Tavianini. Lighting design is provided by Jonathan Hicks ’04, Westmont theater department technical director. Music composition and performance is by Jim Connolly. The stage manager is alumna Elaine Galang ’11.