Hampton Theatre Company's 'Vanya & Sonia & Masha & Spike' Opens on May 26

Christopher Durang’s Vanya & Sonia & Masha & Spike is, among other things, an homage to classic playwright Anton Chekhov. But don’t let the nightmares of having to read The Seagull in college turn you away—this screwball comedy is, according to Durang, the result of taking scenes and character from Chekhov’s work and putting them into a blender. Vanya & Sonia & Masha & Spike opens on May 26, presented by the Hampton Theatre Company.

Middle-aged Vanya and adopted sister Sonia live in their childhood home in Pennsylvania, lamenting the dreariness and lack of meaning in their lives. But when Vanya and Sonia’s actress sister Masha shows up, their lives are turned upside down. Masha, who financially supports her siblings, has brought her boy-toy Spike along. Masha fights with her siblings when she declares she wants to sell the house, dim-witted but sexy Spike flirts with anything that moves, and the siblings must deal with their long-held baggage.

The 2013 Broadway production of Vanya & Sonia & Masha & Spike won the Tony Award for Best Play and the Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Play. The original cast included David Hyde Pierce as Vanya, Kristine Nielsen as Sonia, Sigourney Weaver as Masha and Billy Magnusson as Spike.

A frequent Hamptons visitor, Durang is known for his absurdist plays. Vanya & Sonia & Masha & Spike has proven to be one of his most commercially successful, despite its Chekhovian roots.

The Hampton Theatre Company production stars Andrew Botsford as Vanya, Jane Lowe as Sonia, Rosemary Cline as Masha and Eduardo Ramos as Spike. Amanda Griemsmann plays aspiring actress Nina, and Smerelda Abel plays housekeeper/soothsayer Cassandra. Diana Marbury directs. Catch this looney evening of theater from May 26–June 12 at the Quogue Community Hall. For tickets and more information, visit hamptontheatre.org.