PORTLAND — Snowlion Repertory Company will debut the world premiere of “A Cherry Orchard in Maine… ” April 20-29 at the Portland Ballet Studio, 517 Forrest Ave.

“A Cherry Orchard in Maine…” by M.K. Wolfe is based on the definitive literal translation by Columbia professor Ronald Meyer of Anton Chekhov’s classic comic play “The Cherry Orchard.”

An ancestral farm with a unique cherry orchard in mid-coast Maine is about to be auctioned off for tax debt, and the soon-to-be-displaced family and their friends are at loggerheads as to what to do. Develop the land? Abandon the property? Throw a party and forget about it? Twelve characters come together to determine the fate of the cherry orchard, and in the process, find out where they fit — or don’t fit — in the changing face of Maine.

In this timely updating of the play, issues of surprising contemporary relevance are given new life and focus, such as the effects of gentrification, the burgeoning homeless problem, shifting family dynamics, progressive politics, gender identification and the clash between old and new money, old and new values and old and new ways of living in a rapidly changing society.

The show is directed by Al D’Andrea. The production stage manager is Grace Eddy. 

Performances are: April 20 and 21 at 7:30 p.m.; April 22 at 2 p.m., April 26, 27 and 28 at 7:30 p.m.; and April 29 at 2 p.m.

Tickets are $20 and can be purchased at www.snowlionrep.org or by calling 207- 518-9305. For more information, visit www.snowlionrep.org.

The cast includes David Arthur Bachrach of the Actors Equity Association, Holly Brown, Andre T. Demers, Kim Gordon, Tom Handel, Christopher Horton, Laura Houck of the Actors Equity Association, Meredythe Dehne Lindsey, Jonathon D. Raines, Mary Randall, Casey Turner and David Lee Vincent.

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