The Present

Cate Blanchett and Richard Roxburgh succumb to the intoxicating power of lust and obsession in the Sydney Theatre Company’s production of The Present. A new adaptation of Platonov, Anton Chekhov’s first play, The Present unfolds over the course of a raucous weekend birthday celebration in the Russian countryside. Old flames ignite in this passionate and bitingly comic work. Performed by 13 of Australia’s finest actors, The Present is adapted by Andrew Upton, who — along with Blanchett — led Sydney Theatre Company in an acclaimed five-year tenure that included such watershed productions as A Streetcar Named Desire (BAM, 2009) and Uncle Vanya (Lincoln Center Festival, 2012). John Crowley (Fox Searchlight’s Brooklyn) directs.