The Cherry Orchard

Synopsis

Liúbov Ranyévskaya returns to her Russian estate after five years in Paris, following her son’s death. But her family is ridden with debt, and their home and beautiful cherry orchard will be auctioned off at the end of the summer. Lopákhin grew up on the estate, the child of former serfs, and has become a wealthy merchant. He suggests they build vacation homes where the orchard sits. The income would save them, but Liúbov and her brother won’t even consider it. They—like the cherry orchard—are a relic from another time: beautiful, but now fruitless. Summer comes to a close, and the Ranyévskayas must leave—with the sound of axes coming from the orchard.