Three Sisters, an English translation of the Russian writer and playwright Anton Chekov, is set to begin staging on Friday at the premises of Kunja Theatre, Baneshwor, here in the Capital. Considered one of the most celebrated works of Chekov, the play tells the story of a family feud in a small Russian provincial town. The feud takes its root in the opening act, in which a birthday celebration of one of the sisters is about to take place.

“In the process of adapting to the Nepali audience, we stripped the Russian cultural connotation so that the universal human appeal of the play becomes apparent,” said Rose Schwietz, the director of the play, during a press meet organised on Tuesday, “The play will see an ensemble cast of 16 people, and every single character has depth even if that person only has a line or two.” In order to provide a better context, the play which originally depicts life in the 19th Century has been reframed in a modern setting, according to the director of the play.

She also informed that the Paul Schmidt’s English translation is being used for the play, which “preserves the vivacity of the original in a simple and poetic English language, that will easily be accessible to somebody with a rudimentary knowledge of the language.”

Also, speaking at the press meet, Rajkumar Pudasaini, who plays one of the leading roles, said that the play reminds him of a Nepali family who lived  near the premises of now-dismantled Gurukul Theatre, and added that the depiction of family life would be the hook for the Nepali audience. Along with the Schweitz and Pudasaini, the actors playing the titular roles, namely Kavita Srinivasan, Kurchi Dasgupta and Sampika Gautam were present  at the press meet.

The play will be this year’s first major production of One World Theatre, a non-profit English language company that is “dedicated to presenting intercultural, social justice productions.” It was also revealed that the play has been produced with a budget of approximately Rs 500,000—a staggeringly high budget for a theatre production in Nepal. The director, along with the actors promised that the high investment in the play will be reflected in the quality of the production.

The staging will begin on March 9 from 5:15 onwards.