Iranian theater troupe pays tribute to Anton Chekhov

Iranian theater troupe directed Parchin by Hamid Amjad paid tribute to Russian author and playwright Anton Chekhov (1860–1904) before their performance of “Three Sisters and Others” at Tehran’s City Theater Complex on Thursday evening, AVA Diplomatic reports.

“Three Sisters and Others” is an adaptation of one of Chekhov’s outstanding plays, “Three Sisters”.

Russian ambassador to Tehran Levan Dzhagaryan and a number of ambassadors from different countries including Spain, Pakistan and Ireland attended the honoring ceremony at the theater packed with a large audience that night, the Persian service of MNA reported.

Speaking at the ceremony, Amjad said, “There is no need to say that Chekhov belongs to a large country, which is not confined to a limited geographical area. He is a bright symbol of Russia and its culture, history and people, of course, but he has another land too, a land, which is even larger and richer, and is dominated by literature, art and plays.

“Tonight, representatives from the two lands are present: Ambassador Levan Dzhagaryan, who is the historical and geographical representative of Chekhov in this play, and on the other side, scholars and masters such as (actor and director) Akbar Zanjanpur and (composer) Loris Tjeknavorian,” Amjad added.

Levan Dzhagaryan, who was surprised to see such a large audience that follows works by Chekhov, expressed his delight that works by their beloved Russian author go on stage in Iran.

Zanjanpur for his part also said, “I am so happy that I am among a serious artistic group and I am watching a serious play.”

Afshin Hashemi, Reyhaneh Salamat, Masumeh Rahmani, Maral Atashi, Behnsuh Bakhtiari, Alireza Nasehi and Jamshid Jahanzadeh are among the main members of the cast.

The play will be on stage in August and September.