Toby Jones talks to Simon Mayo about the UK cinema premiere of Chekhov's 'Uncle Vanya'
Uncle Vanya was filmed at the Harold Pinter Theatre and premieres on 27 October 2020
Last updated 26th Oct 2020
This week sees the UK-wide cinema premiere of the London production of Anton Chekhov’s Uncle Vanya. Toby Jones leads an all-star cast including Richard Armitage, Roger Allam, Rosalind Eleazar, and Aimee Lou Wood, in a new adaptation by Conor McPherson.
The production has been filmed at the Harold Pinter Theatre in London in a unique style which puts the viewer at the heart of the dialogue on stage.
Toby Jones spoke to Simon Mayo on Scala Radio earlier this morning.
“We opened in January, and we played exactly 70 performances, in front of packed houses. Towards the end of that run, I suppose they weren't quite as packed because of rumours of pandemic were beginning to affect audiences a bit. We were due to do 140 performances due to end in June. And then like everyone else, we stopped, and we wondered whether we'd ever do it again. And then it became increasingly apparent, it was going to be a very long pause.”
The production was filmed in four days earlier this year.
“Do you act differently knowing that you're on stage,” asked Simon, “compared to when you know you’re being filmed?”
“I think something happens to me intuitively, when there are cameras around. When you’re on-stage you go to the audience, you're trying to show all these different viewpoints. You're having to signal to them what is going on. On film the camera does all of that work for you. It comes to you.”
Just as orchestras are using digital concerts to reach out to audiences unable to experience live performance, so cinema screenings of current stage productions help theatres try to do the same.
“I think things are so desperate at the moment,” said Jones. “I think people are trying all different kinds of things.
"The play itself is so relevant. Vanya talks about an outbreak of cholera. The characters are sealed off from it to a certain extent - they're sealed off from life itself … in a way it’s a play about emotional and actual lockdown. Filming is quite an expensive option and that’s why that I hope audiences will go out and enjoy it.”
Uncle Vanya premieres across the UK on Wednesday 27 October. Book tickets via the Uncle Vanya website.
Listen to Simon Mayo’s interview with actor Toby Jones via Listen Again.
You can hear Simon Mayo on Scala Radio from 10am Monday to Saturday.