Birch trees are swapped for purple skies, the samovar for rum punch and 19th-century provincial Russia for wartime Trinidad in Mustapha Matura's play, which owes its inspiration and skeleton to Chekhov, but its detail to the vivid personalities and humour of the people of Trinidad.
Trinidad in 1941 is still part of the British empire and playing a crucial role in the war effort. In their large, dilapidated house, the Rivers sisters - Alma, Helen and Audrey - have fallen on hard times but try to keep up appearances. They dream of the time they spent in England and long to return. Instead, they must make do with the company of the local British army battalion, and watch helplessly as the promise of their brother Peter fades as the result of his disastrous marriage. Disappointment fills the air as Alma realises that she is on the shelf, and Helen - caught in the trap of an unhappy marriage- embarks on an affair with a British army captain.
This is Matura's second assault on Chekhov's play (an early version played at the Tricycle in the late 1980s) and it is a splendid act of creative vandalism, even if it sometimes feels a little rushed, and doesn't quite capture the collective ache of hearts that makes Chekhov's drama so sublime. Does this matter? Probably not, as many of the audience will be unfamiliar with Chekhov's play anyway, and Matura's version has its own energy. The sisters' snobbishness is delicately pointed and the humour is wicked. "I couldn't keep up with the dresses," wails Peter about his cheating, shopaholic wife.
Paulette Randall's production looks exquisite and elicits good performances, particularly from Brigid Zengeni, Nicola Alexis and Lorraine Burroughs as the sisters, and from David Michaels as the stiff-lipped captain who, you know, will never return for Helen.
· Until Saturday. Box office: 0121-236 4455. Then touring.
