Novosibirsk State Academic Drama Theatre - Timofey Kulyabin

The Three Sisters
by Anton Chekhov


Timofey Kulyuabin, a rising star of Russian theatre, tackles Chekhov’s iconic play. In this otherwise realist yet poetic performance, the director has the cast perform in sign language. As a result of this, the slightest move, the faintest look, the creaking floor, a door being shut, everything is invested with a special meaning. Paradoxically enough, far from being obstructed, communication between the characters is facilitated and enhanced, precisely due to the lack of spoken language. The characters’ difficulty to communicate with each other, an intrinsic aspect of the play, evaporates when no words can be uttered aloud. Silence, a new condition of being, brings the characters closer together, while simultaneously isolating them from the rest of the world.

In Russian sign language, with Greek and English surtitles