Publishers Weekly - Audio
Chekhov’s complex drama about the fate of an aristocratic family in free fall is brought to life wonderfully by director Jenny Sullivan and an impressive cast that includes Tessa Thompson as Irina, Jennifer Westfeldt as Masha, and Sarah Zimmerman as Olga. The cast maintains its enthusiasm and energy throughout the production. Although listeners may initially find it challenging to distinguish voices and names without visual queues, this is easily overcome thanks to the quality of the performance and its distinctively rendered characters. Performed live, this audiobook includes audience laughter and sounds from the stage, which elevate the listening experience and highlight the theatrical nature of the production. The cast members are not standing in recording booths and reading into microphones—they have an audience engaged in their performance, and this sparks the listener’s imagination. (Aug.)
From the Publisher
We value [Chekhov] for his juxtaposition of comedy and emotional pain, his penetration into character and his understanding of the eternal truths of human nature.” —Telegraph
New Yorker
"Pevear and Volokhonsky are at once scrupulous translators and vivid stylists of English."
New Yorker
"Pevear and Volokhonsky are at once scrupulous translators and vivid stylists of English."
Library Bookwatch
Ivan R. Dee's excellent discussions are recommended.... Among the best of recent publications: a new adaptation of Mary Shelley's Frankenstein is provided by Dorothy Louise: while it remains faithful to her intentions, Frankenstein's new look tailors a play for performance and provides a strong plot suitable for contemporary drama. Similarly does Anton Chekhov's Three Sisters, with Curt Columbus providing the new translation and Nicholas Rudall and Bernard Sahlins working their editing magic on both productions.
Weekly Standard
Senelick . . . has done his job as scholar and translator nearly to perfection.
NOVEMBER 2011 - AudioFile
The full-cast performance of THREE SISTERS is a delightful and immediately rewarding experience. The listener vicariously enjoys the stage production along with the audience in the Skirball Cultural Center in Los Angeles, savoring sound effects that are enlightening and never overpowering. The performers contribute to the strong interpretation, achieving an ideal pace and lively interaction. Vibrant and educated Russian sisters long to escape the dull rural regions of the land and to return to the thrilling, animated life in Moscow. After their father's death, they achieve their desired relocation—with dire consequences—as the period's history proves. A.W. © AudioFile 2011, Portland, Maine
