Marking a third directorial outing for stage veteran Pu Cunxin, Beijing People's Art Theatre is preparing to premiere a youthful new version of Chekhov's classic play The Seagull.

For Chinese audiences, The Seagull is arguably the best known of Russian writer Anton Chekhov's works. It was adapted by the Beijing People's Art Theatre in 1991 with a translation by Chinese scholar Tong Daoming. Gathering a venerable cast of veteran Chinese actors, including Pu Cunxin, Xu Fan and Yang Lixin, the play was directed by Oleg Efremov, the chief director of Moscow Art Theatre. It was so well received that it still inspires Pu.

Now, Pu, these days plying his trade as a director, is working with the young actors and actresses of Beijing People's Art Theatre to deliver a new version of The Seagull.

From May 1 to 26, the play will be staged at the Cao Yu Theater, a new venue for the company, and one that is named after its first president and well-known Chinese playwright.

Originally premiered on Oct 17, 1896, at the Alexandrinsky Theatre in Russia, The Seagull dramatizes the romantic conflicts of four main characters: Arkadina, a fading middle-aged actress; her lover, Trigorin, who is a successful writer; her son, Konstantin, a young and ambitious playwright; and Nina, an aspiring young actress with whom Konstantin is in love.

"I played the role of Konstantin in 1991 when I was in my 30s. Now, in July, I am about to turn 70, and I am finally able to direct the play and present my understanding of it," says Pu, standing in the rehearsal room of Beijing People's Art Theatre.

"He (Pu) insisted on using young and new cast members, so actors like me had no opportunity to perform in this play," says veteran actor Feng Yuanzheng, who is the president of Beijing People's Art Theatre. "The Seagull is Pu's latest directorial work. He made his directorial debut in 2021 with The Thunderstorm, and followed that up with a production of Hamlet last year. For the latter, he also insisted on working with young and new performers, because he thinks it is necessary and important to train and prepare them for the future of the theater, which I very much agree with."

Actress Li Xiaomeng plays the role of Nina and actor Li Yue plays the role of Konstantin. On April 6, they performed the play's first act, which is set in a rural estate surrounded by the tranquil countryside. With a dozen leather suitcases, actors and actresses stand in a line facing the audience before they start to dance. Then the story begins, outdoors, nearby a beautiful lake, where the young and lively Nina arrives, ready to perform in Konstantin's new play. She talks about the beautiful surroundings and says that she feels like a seagull.

Li Xiaomeng rose to fame at 15 years old after appearing in director Huang Jianxin's movie, The Marriage Certificate, in 2000.

"Nina is one of Chekhov's best-known characters. Director (Pu) helped us read and understand the story and the characters," says Li Xiaomeng. "We had lots of discussions about the play, which I enjoyed and which allowed me to learn the views of the other actors and actresses. Those discussions made me think."

"They are versatile. One of them plays the piano onstage while singing an old Russian love ballad, which inspired me to use a live band onstage," says Pu, adding that the band features six musicians playing instruments such as the double bass, drums and the violin.

"The Seagull is one of the most performed plays in the world, staged by both professional theaters and amateur drama groups. The character (Konstantin) is a young artist who is desperate to prove his talent to the world. He is passionate and struggles in the face of his unrequited love for Nina and his desperate need for his mother's approval," says Li Yue, who joined Beijing People's Art Theatre after graduating from Shanghai Theatre Academy in 2019. "I was told I would play the role about six months ago and I even learned to play the bayan (a Russian musical instrument also known as "button accordion"), which I had never touched before. It was quite a rewarding experience."

Pu says that the idea to make this new version of The Seagull came to him over two years ago. Spending more time at home during the COVID-19 pandemic, he read The Seagull over and over again. He asked himself lots of questions, trying to find answers.

"It was like a decoding process when I read The Seagull. With the benefit of my own experience, I had a different understanding of it compared to my younger days. Many people view The Seagull as a tragic play about unhappy people. I saw something different in it. For example, there is a humorous, albeit bitter, satire, poking fun at the human condition," says Pu.

The Seagull is the second new theatrical production this year by the Beijing People's Art Theatre, which celebrated its 70th anniversary in 2022. In January, the theater staged its new version of Beneath the Red Banner, adapted from an unfinished novel by Lao She (1899-1966), who is among the best-known modern Chinese authors. Codirected by Feng and Yan Rui, established actors and actresses of the company, including Pu, Yang, Liang Danni and Yu Zhen, performed in the play.

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