Seagull: True Story – May 16-June 1
ABOUT
Kon, a director at the Moscow Art Theatre, stages a bold, free-spirited production of Chekhov’s The Seagull—until Russia’s 2022 invasion of Ukraine casts a shadow of censorship. His once vibrant reimagining, rooted in freedom, is reduced to an empty shell of his vision. Determined to save his play, Kon flees to New York, hoping to bring his true vision to life. But the American dream proves cold. His important and symbolic theater production finds littles welcome, and he faces loss and rejection. Like Treplev, he teeters on the brink of suicide but refuses to give up. Torn between his Russian roots and an elusive American paradise, Kon must redefine himself as an artist and survive. Inspired by real events.
Alexander Molochnikov (Director), a theater and film director, spoke against Russia’s 2022 invasion of Ukraine and moved to NYC. His acclaimed works span drama, ballet, opera, and film.
MART Foundation, a U.S. nonprofit, produces and supports global performing arts, recently co-producing Our Class at BAM/CSC. Through inventive programming, MART showcases top contemporary theater, music, and dance.
En Garde Arts, founded by Executive Artistic Director Anne Hamburger in 1985, is the award-winning pioneer of New York City’s site-specific theatre movement.
CREDITS
Creator & Director: Sasha Molochnikov
Writer: Eli Rarey
Set Designer: Alexander Shishkin
Costume Designer: Kristina Kharlashkina
Lighting Designer: Brian Scott
Assistant Lighting Designer: Sam Saliba
Composer: Fedor Zhuravlev
CAST
Kon: Eric Tabach
MC: Andrey Burkovskiy
Olga: Zuzanna Szadkowski
Anton: Elan Zafir
Ivan: Quentin Lee Moore
Nico: Stella Baker
DANCERS
Dmitry: Ohad Mazor
Pickle: Keshet Pratt
Additional Credits
Executive Producer (MART Foundation): Sofia Kapkova
Creative Producer (En Garde Arts): Anne Hamburger
Production Manager/General Manager: Ruth E. Sternberg
Associate General Manager: Anastasia Gudkova
Associate Production Manager: Maria Kovalenko
Company Manager: Olga Akueva
Stage Manager: Mary Kate Baughman
Assistant Stage Manager: Alina Kozlova
Sound Operator/ Administrative Assistant: Sandro Gurdzhua
Original Choreography: Dan Safer
Choreography adapted by: Ohad Mazor
Original casting: Stephanie Klapper/ Klapper Casting
BIOS
Alexander Molochnikov is a Russian filmmaker and theater director who has been actively working in Moscow for the past decade and relocated to New York in 2022. At the age of 22, he directed 19.14 Cabaret, an anti-war play about World War I at the Moscow Art Theater of Chekhov. This production was nominated for Russia’s prestigious theater award, the Golden Mask. From 2014 to 2018, he produced two more significant works at the MAT. One of these, 19.17 The Bright Path, served as a commentary on the totalitarian regime, the revolution of 1917, and contemporary Russia. His debut film, Myths, featured some of Russia’s most renowned actors at the time, including Ivan Urgant, Fedor Bondarchuk, Ksenia Rappoport, and Sergey Bezrukov. His second film, Tell Her,an autobiographical family drama, filmed in St. Petersburg and LA, was nominated at the Seattle International Film Festival (SIFF) and the Kinotavr festival in Sochi, receiving an enthusiastic response in theaters. From 2018 to 2021, he worked at the Bolshoi Theater, where he directed Carlo Menotti’s opera Medium and the ballet The Seagull, which won the Golden Mask award for “Best Ballet of the Year.” Just before the outbreak of war, he began filming the series The Monastery, which he both wrote and directed, that ultimately became the highest-grossing series of the year in Russia. While filming, Molochnikov publicly denounced the Russian military invasion of Ukraine, which now prevents him from returning to Russia. In 2024-2025, he plans to direct Crime and Punishment at the Gesher Theater in Tel Aviv and to shoot a short film about political prisoner Sasha Skochilenko.
Photos by Emma Kazaryan
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