The Elder Son (Part 1)

Available for 34 days

By Alexander Vampilov Translated from the Russian by Jan Butler Adapted for radio by Tom Wainwright On a cold winter night, two young men miss their last train back home and find themselves stranded in the suburbs. To keep warm until morning, they talk themselves into the home of complete strangers by pretending that one of them is the illegitimate son of the head of the household, a kind-hearted but naïve musician. So far, so good. But the young men have arrived at a tumultuous time for their new-found family - the daughter is on the verge of marrying a dreadful bore and the son is in the midst of a self-esteem crisis. As morning rolls around, the visitors become so entangled in the family's drama that it will prove harder to leave than it was to concoct the lie in the first place. The Elder Son (1967) by Alexander Vampilov is a classic of Russian theatre and has been adapted in two parts for BBC Radio by Tom Wainwright. During his lifetime, Vampilov was at the forefront of the 'new wave' of Russian dramatists and was often compared to Anton Chekhov. His plays present a devastating and hilarious portrait of life in Brezhnev's Russia. At one time, The Elder Son ran simultaneously in 44 theatres in the Soviet Union. It has also been filmed several times. Tragically, Alexander Vampilov's life was cut short when he died at the age of 34 following a boating accident in Lake Baikal. Volodya . . . . . . Stewart Campbell Silva . . . . . Ian Dunnett Jnr Sarafanov . . . . . Tony Turner Nina . . . . . Elinor Coleman Vasya . . . . . Aaron Gelkoff Natasha . . . . . Lauren Cornelius Kudimov . . . . . Hasan Dixon Neighbour . . . . . Nicholas Murchie Music arranged and performed by Ian Dunnett Jnr. Image by Ben Hollands. Directed by Sasha Yevtushenko.