Theatre Rehearsal Takes a Turn

This story includes a scene from the play Uncle Vanya, by Anton Chekhov, translation by Paul Schmidt, with some injections from me as well. Full credit to a wonderful translation!

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In college I took an acting class. We studied some classic playwrights like Shakespeare, Chekhov, Ibsen, and Miller to name a few.

The class was mostly theatre majors with a few folks who were looking to get out of their comfort zone and had an interest in the text from a literary perspective. I was one of the latter. Theatre was something I enjoyed, but hadn't been involved in much.

When you think of a theatre major, you might think of a more hipster crowd, a little out there. Well, you'd be right. I was pretty much a hipster at the time. There was, however, one girl in the class you'd call preppy. Actually, just straight up WASPy. She was very thin, carried herself with poise, gave off rich-girl vibes, and was very pretty. Usually, this didn't translate to good acting. Actors tend to be less about being proper and more about being raw, honest, uninhibited. So when I met Kelsey, I figured she'd be a little too stuck up to let loose in a scene.

I was wrong. She was super talented. And she used her poise to great effect while acting. Where most hipster girls in the class couldn't pull off prim and proper, she could.

I was lucky enough to get paired with Kelsey for a scene from Chekhov's Uncle Vanya. I was playing Dr. Astrov, a jaded drunk with crazy predictions that one day, the planet's weather might be effected by all of the trees we are cutting down. (Chekhov predicted global warming in the late 1800's with this, by the way.) Astrov is considered a handsome love interest to Yelena, the wife of an old, sick professor with a bad temper. Their love is considered unfulfilled by most. They don't "wind up together" as it were. But they do share a final scene together before Yelena moves away with the professor. Astrov tries to convince Yelena to stay, as he has fallen for her, but she remains resolved to leave. While they have this brief moment of privacy, Astrov kisses her on the cheek goodbye. Yelena responds, "I wish you all the best. (Looks around.) At least once in my life...Why not? (Embraces his violently; then they both move away from each other.) Time to go."

It seemed pretty cut and dry to me; she, in a moment of inhibition, gives his a mere hug and then she leaves.

But this is Chekhov. And we are reading a translation with stage directions that may be up for interpretation, our teacher explains. Our professor suggests that while rehearsing, each actor take moments of stage direction in our own interpretation, without explaining to our scene partner first. This way, an organic moment might present itself in the scene.

After we received the scenes, Kelsey approached me.

"Hey, David. When do you want to rehearse?"

"Well...maybe in a few days? I'd like to get off-book first."

"Me too. Let's meet Thursday afternoon then, yes?"

Thinking ahead to the rest of my week, I thought that sounded doable.

"Sure. Here, let me give you my number so we can talk about a time and a place."

We exchanged numbers and Kelsey went on her way. I watched as she grabbed big sunglasses out of her small leather clutch, slide them on, and walk away in her cotton Burberry dress.

Over the next few days, I agonized over every line, wanted to be prepared for the scene as well as I knew she would be. She was always line perfect in a scene. And since I wasn't an actor, I didn't want her to be disappointed.

We picked a place and time to meet on Thursday, and before I knew it, there we were. Our rehearsal space was a small black box studio with some chairs and boxes that we could move around as rudimentary scenery.

I was early, pacing a little nervously as Kelsey walked in, right on time. She had on a soft camel colored sweater that looked like cashmere or...alpaca or something. She looked slightly red in the cheeks from the fall chill that was beginning to overtake our campus. She was glowing, really. She put her bag (a rattan box clutch this time) down on a chair, slid off her light trench coat, and walked over to me, no script in hand.

"Hi, David. You ready?"

"Yeah, let's do this."

"Wait, are you totally off-book?" She asked, surprised I wasn't holding my script. She could see it was open on the chair behind me.

"I think so."

She looked approvingly at me and without missing a beat, fed me the first line, "I'm leaving."

She held out her hand and said, "Goodbye."

Taken aback by how abruptly she began, I paused for a brief moment before looking her in the eye and uttering my first line, "Already?"

She continued, "The carriage is here."

Me, not playing her little game, responded cooly, "Goodbye, then."

Kelsey was Yelena. All I had to do was respond to her.

Yelena, disappointed by how casually she was being dismissed, pivoted nervously to keep the conversation going, "You promised me earlier you'd stop coming here."

I, brokenhearted behind a stony exterior reply, "I haven't forgotten. I'm leaving right now."

Yelena doesn't move. I, noticing she's still there, feel a shift in the air. I ask, "Are you still frightened? Was it all so terrible?"

We are speaking to, and not past, each other now.

"Yes." She replies.

Feeling bold, I ask. "Then why not stay? Hm? And come see me tomorrow."

Now that I've taken her bait, she can spurn me once again. "No. I've made up my mind. That's why I can look you in the eye like this, because I've made up my mind to go. There's just one thing I'd like to ask. Will you try to believe I'm really a good person? I want you to respect me."

Her nerve. To act to fucking cavalier around me. Like if she left just then, it would hardly mean a thing. When here she is, needing me to paint her in colors of her own choosing.

Giving in to the frustration and impatience, "Oh, come on! Why not stay?" Feeling like there is nothing left to lose, Yeléna on the cusp of leaving, I speak only the harsh truth, hoping to reel her in. "Look, your life is empty, you have no goals; you must realize that. You've never had a chance to use your mind, and sooner or later you're going to give in to your feelings. You can't avoid it. And instead of Hárkov, wouldn't it be better to do it out here in the bosom of nature? Why not?" I challenge. "That'd make a kind of poetry out of it. Beautiful fall weather, lots of trees, rickety old country houses, just like a Turgénev novel..."

I wait for her to pick up where I've left off.

"What a funny man you are." She delivers like a stab to my heart. Is she avoiding understanding because she is afraid of the truth, or is she too daft? I think she's smarter than she lets off. It hurts more that way. "You make me angry, but still...You're completely original. I intend to remember you with pleasure." I never see her express much of a feeling to anyone. I make her angry? I make her feel something! She takes a beat. "We'll never see each other again, so why hide anything? I was attracted to you...a little. So let's shake hands and part friends, shall we? And please don't hate me."

Yeléna is telling me that this is the end of what never began. Yet, I can't help but be encouraged and enraged. At that moment, she reaches a hand out to shake. She needs to feel my touch before leaving, this handshake a gesture too thick with implication. I grab it tightly.

"Yes, you should definitely go." I look at her and she has need in her eyes for my approval. I shouldn't give, but I do, "You probably are a good person, but there's something strange about you, about your entire existence. You and your husband show up here one day, we're all busy working away at our little jobs, we get things done, and all of a sudden we have to drop everything and spend all our time taking care of you and your husband's gout." I'm getting more angry, and frustrated, still holding her hand in mine. She listens to my harsh words and all she gives me is an inscrutable look somewhere between hurt, longing, and confusion. She stares at me, not dissenting, not agreeing, just staring. "You and your husband--the pair of you, you do nothing and you infect us all." I stop myself, fearing I'll go too far. I melt a little at this beautiful woman, not pulling away from my hand, who keeps staring at me, more and more like a child. "I fell hard for you, you know that. I haven't done a thing for over a month, and there are a lot of sick people out there, and the goddamn cattle are eating up my seedlings..." But I can't help but get pulled back into reality. Yeléna is leaving. "Wherever you and your husband go, you destroy." It's harsh. I realize she's correct. And maybe she's letting me figure that out, right here in front of her. We cannot be together. "It's funny too: if I did stay, I know what would happen. Complete and utter disaster. I'd never survive it, and you...it might not be too much fun for you either. All right, you're leaving, just go. Finita la commedia."

My outburst ends. The air is thick. Yeléna removes her hand from mine and takes one of my pencils off the table.

"I'm taking this pencil with me. As a souvenir."

"Funny, isn't it? We got to know each other so well, and now all of a sudden we'll never see each other again. That's the way it goes, I guess. There's no one around, no Uncle Ványa with his bunch of flowers, so let me...I want to kiss you goodbye. All right?" Nervous, I step towards Yeléna, half expecting her to recoil. She held my hand and wasn't that enough after all? But she stays and waits for me as I approach. I will her cheek, sweetly. "There. That was nice."

This is it. I relish in the last moment I have with her, knowing it will stay with me as long as I live. I've already said enough harsh words. I want to think back with a modicum of fondness.

"I wish you all the best." She replies before looking around her to see if anyone is there. "At least once in my life...Why not?" And Yeléna wraps her arms around me tightly, as if clinging on for life, pressing her breast against me, putting her head on my chest and holding me. As quickly as it happened, she lets go, "Time to go."

The rage comes back out as she takes what she wants and leaves me behind!

"Then go! The carriage is here; just get in it and go!"

And she leaves quickly.

The air settles after a few moments, and I remember rehearsal. And Kelsey walks back into the room.

"David."

"Kelsey."

"David, that was good."

"Thank you--I mean. Uh, yeah, thanks. You're really good. It's easy--I mean it's not easy, it was just easy with you as a scene partner..." I trail off, too nervous to finish the sentence but hoping she understood what I meant.

"We should do it again."

And she launches into the scene again. We get to the ending where she had embraced me, emotional as before. But after uttering, "Why not?" Kelsey leaned up to me and kissed me. Hard and passionately. Like a woman who was taking something she wanted for the first time. I, stunned, looked down at her, hungry for more, before she said, cruelly, "Time to go."

I threw my last lines at her as she left, not even looking back at me.

Damn, this scene was...interesting.

"That was better. How did that feel for you?" Kelsey asked as she reentered the room.

"Really good, yeah. You?" I said, hoping she'd want to do the scene again.

"It was good. I want to keep tweaking though, if that's ok with you."

"For sure."

When we did the scene next, Kelsey began to bite her lip as I berated her for ruining everything. When she came to embrace me, she kissed me harder and longer. Since she had the next line, I was at her mercy to decide how long or short this moment was. And Kelsey kept kissing me, this time slipping her tongue into my mouth and gently sucking on my lips before moving her mouth down to my neck, sending chills down my spine. Her body was pressed up to mine and I felt myself getting hard. I broke character in my head because I didn't think this was her intention, but I was too nervous to break the moment away from Kelsey, so I let her kiss me more and more. On her tiptoes, she brought her mouth up to my ear and began to kiss and nibble, giving me more goosebumps and making my hard on unmissable. When it was hard enough to feel, Kelsey pulled back and looked at me. I looked back at her with a look of fear and apology, but she never broke the stare. Without looking away, she took one of my hands and brought it slowly to her waist, placing it there and challenging me to figure out what to do next. My dick pressing lightly to her belly, I felt lust take over and I moved my hand down to her tight ass covered by flattering Madewell jeans. I dug my fingers into her ass and pulled her harder against me as she brought her lips back to mine.

I couldn't tell if this was Kelsey or Yeléna, but I didn't care. I moved my hand up her back to her sweater and felt a bra clasp under the cashmere. My hand moved down her back and under her sweater as I felt her smooth, warm skin. I moved my right hand slowly up to her bra, taking the sweater up with it. I reached my left hand around her back, meeting the right as I quietly unclasped her bra as we kissed, our tongues dancing, tasting greedily. She grazed her right hand slowly down my torso, working her way to my belt. She slowly unclasped the buckle as though she were challenging me for unhooking her bra. My cock was struggling to get out of my pants, now uncomfortably tight. I moved us slightly apart as I removed my right hand from her back and brought it to her chest, pressing my palm into her elegant and perky B-cup over the sweater before sliding it up under the sweater, letting her bra fall away. I felt her breast in my hand her small nipple erect on my palm as she began to moan lightly.

She quickly pulled my belt from the loop and her fingers ran to my zipper and button, seemingly not able to get my pants undone fast enough. She pulled down my fly, her mouth open slightly before she looked up at me, lust in her eyes. I lightly played with her nipples while she reached her right hand into my pants, reaching through the fly of my underwear to fell how big and hard my cock was for her. She popped my cock out and urged my pants around my ankles with a light tug. She was greedy with my cock, holding it with both hands, rubbing lightly up and down the shaft. I brought my hands down to her jeans, slowly undoing button by button until I could slide a hand down her warm vulva and feel how wet she was already, her thin, lacy white panties getting soaked through.

"Still want to go, Yeléna?" I whispered.

"Yes." She said, quietly trying to convince herself.

"You're lying." I said, tracing circles around her clit over her panties as she squeezed sticky precum out of the tip of my cock.

She looked up at my, biting her lip again, and fell to her knees. She opened her mouth and got millimeters away from my cock with her full lips, but not putting it in her mouth yet. She stuck her tongue out and pretended to run it from the base to the tip, driving me near mad.

"You fucking tease." I growled.

"What? You want me to do more?" She asked, teasing me further.

"Put my fucking cock in your mouth." I ordered. And she grabbed it with one hand, pressing her cheek into the shaft, rubbing it all over her face but not putting it in.

"Maybe if you ask nicely." she laughed a little.

"Please, suck my fucking cock. Please." I begged. And Yeléna stuck her tongue out, licking from the base to the tip before engulfing my cock in her mouth, sucking greedily getting every inch wet.

"Fuck, that feels so good." With one hand on the base of my shaft and the other reaching around to grab my ass, pulling me in closer to her, Yeléna had finally let go, a woman taking what she wanted.

She ran her tongue in circles around the tips, licking up any precum that made its way out before I knew I was reaching the end. But this was not where I was going to let our final goodbye end.

I pulled her off her knees and kissed her hard, feeling how wet her mouth was after sucking me off.

Her jeans still on, I picked her up and whirled her around to a chair where I sat her down and pulled off her pants. I took a moment to look at her, so beautiful, lithe, wet, clean, smooth...she was a feast I couldn't wait to eat. I pulled down her panties to look at her beautiful pussy, waiting for me to taste. I moved in on my knees, holding her toned but soft legs and spread them open a little wider. She was breathing heavily in anticipation. I brought my mouth to her pussy lips, looked up at her, and pretended to run my tongue up and along her whole slit. "You can't do that to me, doctor." She moaned. And I did it again, kissing her mound as she wiggled her ass on the chair, needing my tongue. "Please, fucking eat my pussy already." I looked with a grin before finally tasting her sweet nectar. She had a floral musk, light, sweet and a little earthy. I licked every inch of her labia, working my way up to the clit where I performed several motions, feeling for which one she liked best. When I worked in quick circles, her breathing became faster. "Doctor, that feels so good."

I could sense she was reaching her climax, but I wasn't done with her yet. I backed off, just before I felt her cum.

"Does it feel good being teased like that?" I asked.

"Damn you. Come here." She commanded.

I leaned over her, my hard cock grazing her pussy and flat stomach as I brought it up to her tits, slightly hidden under her sweater. With both hands I lift the sweater off her as she brought her arms in the air and she was naked before me. I grabbed my cock and smeared precum over her tits as I felt how soft and delicate they were with the head of my dick. I ran my cock over her cheek again and she opened her mouth to put it in. I guided it to her mouth as she got my shaft wet again, readying it for what was to come next. When it was slick and warm, I slowly guided my cock down to her pussy, teasing her folds, rubbing the tip on her clip, slowly, the quickly, teasing her closer to orgasm again.

"Please just fuck me now." She begged.

I was shaking in anticipation, about to penetrate this woman so beautiful, elegant,and proper, who was completely open to me, needing me.

I slowly put the head in, keeping it just there, trying to savor the sensation. I brought my right thumb to her clit and began moving it in circles as I finally sunk the whole shaft deep into her.

She began to moan louder and louder as I could feel her walls tighten around me, milking me. There was no way I could hold on much longer, but I wanted to cum with her. So I held on.

"Keep going you're gonna make me cum." She moaned. I kept up the same tempo, moving around her clit and methodically thrusting in and out, trying to feel every inch of her, wanting her to feel every inch of me.

I felt my orgasm building, unable to hold on much longer.

"I'm can't hold on any longer." I managed to get out, before reaching the cliff.

Yeléna began to quake as an orgasm ripped through her. I felt a hot jet fill her up as I leapt off the cliff. Another jet before I took my cock out of her and thrusted it over her wet labia and clit as more ropes of cum began soaking her perfect body. For leverage, ymy right hand grabbed for her tit, covered in hot cum as I kept thrusting more and more, her body still shaking in ecstasy. I was still hard as I felt my orgasm dying and I put my cock back inside of her, fucking and fucking until I couldn't any more.

I fell back onto the floor. When I raised my head, Kelsey was breathing heavy, still slumped in the chair, with cum leaking out of her pussy onto the black box floor. She looked down at me with fire in her eyes. My cock, shiny and wet still semi-hard as this sight. We stared at each other, terrified how the moment swept us up and both praying it could happen again.