Seagull: True Story at Marylebone Theatre
Seagull: True Story makes its way from New York to London’s Marylebone Theatre.
It’s February 2022, and Kon, a young director, is taking his actors through the final rehearsals of The Seagull by Chekhov before they open at the grand Moscow Arts Theatre. Then war breaks out. Censors cracked down on the play. Kon’s creative vision is destroyed, and he is forced to flee Russia to have any hopes of salvaging it.
This is a story partly based on the true events that happened to the show’s real creator and director, Alexander Molochnikov and his friends in the Russian theatrical scene after the war started.
Although it tells a clear 21st-century story, the show mirrors the 19th century The Seagull in many ways. Certain characters and scenes are adapted straight from Chekhov’s seminal work. Kon is a reflection of Konstantin Treplev, the playwright character who longs for freedom and who suffers from unrequited love and unfulfilled dreams.
Seagull: True Story is a perfectly balanced show, from incredible blast-you-off-your-feet emotions to laugh-out-loud comic relief, the latter usually provided by the phenomenal Andrey Burkovskiy, whose comic timing is flawless and whose unique brand of cheekiness and mischief is a joy.
Stella Baker as the love interest, Nico, and Ingeborga Dapkunaite as Kon’s mother, both put in genuinely powerful performances. But Daniel Boyd playing Kon is a truly special moment and worth the ticket price alone. The way he captures hope and naivety and dread and fear and pain is wonderful to watch.
The generally simple set allows the cast to really shine and play with the whole space of the Marylebone theatre. A couple of bigger visual treats do occur, and the sound design plays a heavy supporting role, but there’s still a feeling of purity in this show.
Seagull: True Story is, by all measures, a brilliant production. Molochnikov manages to create a beautifully artistic and heavily referential piece while still keeping it perfectly accessible and entertaining to a mainstream audience.
Jim Compton-Hall
Photos: Mark Senior
Seagull: True Story is at Marylebone Theatre from 9th September until 12th October 2025. For further information or to book, visit the theatre’s website here.
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