Now and Then: Lit Moon Lights up Chekhov

During the lockdown period of the COVID pandemic, the Westmont College-spawned Lit Moon Theatre met online for nearly two years as an international collective of artists and actors. The 18-member group created online versions of Libby Appel’s translations of Chekhov plays: Uncle Vanya, Three Sisters,and Ivanov. This weekend, Lit Moon World emerges in person with a two-part presentation that pairs live performance of Uncle Vanya,preceded and followed by a curated display of the theater art pieces crafted by designer Yulya Dukhovny – backgrounds, collages, miniatures, objects, and videos – that served as the virtual version of set pieces for the online versions. Lit Moon founder John Blondell directs the cast that features Irwin Appel, Jim Connolly, Cierra Denning, Brian Harwell, James McCarthy, Vardan Mkrtchyan, Nina Sallinen, Matt Tavianini, and Mitchell Thomas at Porter Hall on the Westmont campus in Uncle Vanya, which they’ve concisely summed up as “In Chekhov, the heart aches, the dreams fade, but there’s vodka.” Showtimes are 7:30 pm on Friday and Saturday (May 12-13), and 3:30 pm on Sunday, May 14. Visit https://litmoontheatre.com.