Even with the status and revelry that comes with Chekhov’s Three Sisters, Last Waltz Productions of the work at the Old Fitz Theatre feels little more than a third cousin twice removed.
The Prozorov Sisters have fallen into a deep melancholy – with the death of their parents still fresh, the sisters long for Moscow and the lives that they could have lived. As time slowly drags on, each clings to the hope of a better life as they fall deeper into the trappings of the mundane.
Chekov’s mastery is still felt strongly throughout Laurence Senelick’s translation – conversational dialogue beautifully hides the underlying truth, while scathingly passive aggressive language allows each character to cut through the niceties of everyday life and strike at the heart of the sorrow and loneliness lurking between the lines.
The direction by Clara Voda is completely at odds with the audience and at times, the conventions of theatre itself. There is a disconnect with the themes of the story, leaving an utter absence of stakes or artistic vision left to fill the void. Voda ignores the meticulously crafted blueprint that is the script, and instead allows the work to just become a slow moving vessel of hollow characters and painfully ego driven staging.
The ensemble of Matthew Alexander, Toby Carey, Faisal Hamza, Alfred Kouris, Madeline Li, Teodora Matović, Lập Nguyễn, Tessa Olsson, Cym, Ren Watson and Emma Wright do not just lean into the mediocrity of the direction, but seem to purposely work against crafting characters that are remotely three dimensional or poses any scrap of emotional depth. Audiences are left to watch performers with a bafflingly small regard for accent work, vocal integrity or the nuances of world building.
Ella Wilkinson’s set and Bronte Hunt’s costumes is the saving grace of this production – doing the heavy lifting to create a grounded tone and place. Exquisite detail and exceptional craftsmanship bring to the forefront, not just each designers eye for detail, but their wealth of talent.
Disappointment is all that this production of Three Sisters leaves for it’s audience. For a work that has so much potential to be handled in such a way is not just a missed opportunity, but rather it can only be described as a travesty.
Three Sisters
Old Fitz Theatre, 129 Dowling Street, Woolloomooloo
Season continues to 9 May 2026
Information and Bookings: www.oldfitztheatre.com.au
Image: Three Sisters – photo by Robert Miniter
Review: Gavin Roach