The Simple Actor's Guide to Pronouncing Chekhov's Names

Does it matter how actors pronounce Russian names when they are acting Chekhov's plays in English? I think it does, and that's not just because I'm a Russian speaker or a pedant (or possibly both).  Nobody minds how the names of characters in Shakespeare or Brecht are pronounced, but Chekhov's plays are different.  Not only are they firmly anchored in the theatrical tradition of late 19th century naturalism, but the characters Chekhov created are universal because they are so tied to time and place -- Russia on the eve of the 1905 revolution, with its rapid social change and class upheavals.  In this context, I think it's right for actors who don't speak Russian to try to get the names to sound authentic by getting the stress on the correct syllables.  Russian is a beautiful language, and jars on the ear when it's mispronounced.  When even actors as cerebral as Simon Russell Beale struggle to get it right during celebrations of Chekhov's anniversary, then I think there's a need for a handy guide.

Broadly speaking, Russian names can be pronounced as they are transliterated, though there are one or two pitfalls for the unwary.  In The Seagull Konstantin's surname is sometimes written Treplev, but it's pronounced Treplyov.  Another character is Semen Semenovich, but the first name and patronymic are pronounced Semyon Semyonovich. What's a patronymic?  For men and women, it's a middle name based on the name of the father.  Every Russian has one. So Anna Pavlovna is Anna, the daughter of Pavel.  Chekhov was Anton Pavlovich. First name and patronymic are the normal mode of address between people who know each other but aren't intimate friends or close relatives. Translators of Chekhov often drop the patronymic altogether, but I like to hear it used.  I think the different ways his characters address each other help signifythe degree of social and emotional distance between them. Without the patronymic, it's sometimes hard to get the tone right. A surname on its own can be too formal and a Christian name on its own too intimate.

The key to pronouncing Russian names is getting the stress on the right syllable -- which is much more pronounced in Russian than in English or French.  Russian dictionaries and language textbooks give stress marks, though they aren't normally printed anywhere else.  There few firm rules about stress, though getting it wrong can change the meaning of a word.  When you learn Russian, you pick it up as you go along.  One reason it's important is that unstressed vowels sometimes change their sound.  The Russian word for Moscow is Moskva, with the stress on the second syllable, but the actual pronunciation is Maskva.  One name that's hard to get right for English speakers is Boris, pronounced Baris with the stress on the second syllable -- NOT as in Boris Johnson.

So here is a stress-free stress guide to the characters' names in Chekhov's major plays -- The Seagull, Uncle Vanya, Three Sisters and The Cherry Orchard.  The next time I watch a Chekhov play I shall be listening hard to see who gets it right.

THE SEAGULL -- Irina Nikolayevna Arkadina (formerly Treplyova), Konstantin Gavrilovich Treplyov (Kostya), Pyotr Nikolayevich Sorin, Nina Mikhailovna Zarechnaya, Ilya Afanasyevich Shamrayev, Polina Andreyevna, Masha, Boris Alekseyevich Trigorin, Yevgeny Sergeyevich Dorn, Semyon Semyonovich Medvedenko, Yakov

UNCLE VANYA -- Aleksandr Vladimirovich Serebryakov, Yelena Andreyevna, Sofiya Alexandrovna (Sonya), Mariya Vasilevna Voinitskaya, Ivan Petrovich Voinitsky (Vanya), Mikhail Lvovich Astrov, Ilya Ilyich Telegin, Marina

THREE SISTERS -- Andrei Sergeyevich Prozorov, Natalya Ivanovna (Natasha), Olga Sergeyevna, Mariya Sergeyevna (Masha), Irina Sergeyevna, Fyodor Ilyich Kulygin, Aleksandr Ignatyevich Vershinin, Nikolai Lvovich Tuzenbach, Vasily Vasilyevich Solyony, Ivan Romanovich Chebutykin, Aleksei Petrovich Fedotik, Vladimir Karlovich Rode, Ferapont Spiridonovich, Anfisa

THE CHERRY ORCHARD -- Lyubov Andreyevna Ranyevskaya, Anya, Varya, Leonid Andreyevich Gayev, Yermolai Alekseyevich Lopakhin, Pyotr Sergeyevich Trofimov, Boris Borisovich Semyonov-Pischchik, Charlotta Ivanovna, Semyon Panteleyevich Yepikhodov, Dunyasha, Feers, Yasha

Comments

[John Morrison]

My Moscow friend says the stress should be on the final syllable. It's Chubukov not Chubukhov by the way.

[John Morrison]

Martin I am checking for you with an expert in Moscow...

[martin lorenz]

In 'The Proposal' is it
'ChuBUkhov' or 'CHUbukhov' ?
(or even 'ChubuKHOV')

help soon please as well into rehearsals

thanks

martin

[Russian native speaker]

Wrong - it`s Anto`n, not A`nton.
Ilya` Ilyi`ch - not I`lya I`lyich.