How Does Arkadina Change Throughout The Play

In group three’s presentation adapting of Anton Chekhov’s play The Seagull, group members took turns playing Irina Arkadina in order to show the many facets of a character that was portrayed as fairly one-dimensional within the original play. The actor playing Arkadina was represented by donning the identifying costume pieces which include a scarf and a pair of sunglasses. Each shift in characterization was shown by changing the actor and the placement of these pieces on their body. In their portrayal of the exchange between Arkadina and Konstantin in the middle of act three, the costume became an active prop that Arkadina removed from her body. This transformed it from a superficial item to one of caring which was used to clean Konstantin’s bullet wound. Arkadina’s removal of a protective layer of clothing showed the complicated nature of her character in a very literal way as she removed the signification of her status as an actress in order to attempt a motherly relationship with her son while simultaneously showing
vulnerability. The action of removing the scarf to aid her son changed the audience’s perception of Arkadina from a one-dimensional character into a real person as she chose to shed her superficiality, revealing a more complex and vulnerable character. In the performance, group three arranged various scenes from the original text, playing them out of order.
The scenes were reordered in a non-chronological manner to focus on Arkadina’s transformation as a character. This reorganization seemed to move from a negative portrayal of the character as a superficial stick character to a positive representation of a complicated woman. Each scene change was marked by switching who played Arkadina which was shown through passing on Arkadina’s costume to another member of the group. Each actor portrayed Arakadina in a different way, which was highlighted by changing the positioning of the costume pieces on their body to reflect the character’s personality at the time of the scene. While both the scarf and the sunglasses were removed in order to mark a shift, Arkadina only chooses to remove an accessory in the middle of the scene once, which she does in order to mop blood from Konstantin’s
brow. The decision to use a visual representation of Arkadina’s character through something as superficial as clothing was instrumental in conveying meaning within their performance, as their presentation seeks to read beyond the surface of the character. The scarf and sunglasses not only helped the audience to differentiate who was playing this character in each scene, but the choice of costuming also hints toward a stereotypical view of Arkadina, as it highlighted her identity as an actress by invoking the image of an old Hollywood starlet. Using clothing as an identifying feature also works to highlight a consumerist and superficial personality which was shown in other scenes of the play. In particular, the scarf is an item of both adornment and protection. This makes Arakdina’s removal of the scarf particularly significant, as she removes her own protective layer in a bid to help her son. Taking off the scarf was seen as a stripping down of the character’s facade. The removal of the scarf shows Arkadina’s conscious decision to step away from her identity as an actress in order to attempt a motherly position in a very visual way. It also revealed vulnerability and caring as Arkadina removed an item of clothing that is traditionally seen as protective and placed it onto her son. While it was clear in the play that Arkadina did not understand her son, this moment showed affection in an uncharacteristic way, suggesting that while Aradina did not understand her son, she did love him more than she loved herself. This was emphasized by her lack of concern when the scarf was sullied and her humble denial Konstantin’s kind words about her. This moment supported the group’s desire to emphasize different facets of the character in the original text, and it also created a more naturalist approach to the portrayal of the character, as it was a moment that was caused by complex psychology. While the desire to show a more complicated character was achieved throughout the presentation, this moment portrayed the most contrast from the way Arakadina was portrayed in the text. By turning her scarf into a cloth, wiping Konstantin’s blood, she abandoned the performativity of the previous scenes and her small gesture conveyed great meaning. As this was the final scene in the presentation, this action shows Arakdina at her best and the many reasons behind such a simple action allow the character to become a naturalist representation rather than a stock character. Group three’s presentation was fascinating because it differed from the other two performances in its focus on Arkadina, a character that tends to be viewed as a secondary character. The presentation showed Arakdina’s significance in the plot of the play and revealed that she was a more rounded character than she appeared to be on the surface.