Uncle Vanya — Anton Chekhov

Uncle Vanya is a play by the Russian playwright Anton Chekhov It was first published in 1898 and first produced in 1899 by the Moscow Art Theatre directed by Konstantin Stanislavski The play portrays the visit of an elderly professor and his glamorous much younger second wife Yelena to the rural estate that supports their urban lifestyle Two friends Vanya brother of the professor s late first wife who has long managed the estate and Astrov the local doctor both fall under Yelena s spell while bemoaning the ennui of their provincial existence Sonya the professor s daughter by his first wife who has worked with Vanya to keep the estate going suffers from her unrequited feelings for Astrov Matters are brought to a crisis when the professor announces his intention to sell the estate Vanya and Sonya s home with a view to investing the proceeds to achieve a higher income for himself and his wife