THE ORCHARD

Julia Emelin's performance places listeners in the heart of the Soviet Union during the 1980s, a time of tumultuous change. Anya and her teenage friends are approaching the end of school and facing uncertain futures. They spend their days listening to contraband Western music and dreaming of love. Anton Chekhov's famous play THE CHERRY ORCHARD, echoed in the novel's title, is framed here as a family apple orchard that faces possible destruction by a developer. The coming-of-age plot may be familiar, but the inevitable Soviet collapse and its impact on the families' lives are consistently engaging. Emelin captures so much of the environment and the four young characters that listeners will feel the cold Moscow air, taste the borscht, and experience the rising tension. S.P.C. © AudioFile 2022, Portland, Maine [Published: MAY 2022]