For Ivory Aquino, an actor whose work has moved between television, Shakespeare and stories rooted in LGBTQ+ history, the latest milestone is an Off-Broadway debut in a new adaptation of Anton Chekhov’s “Ivanov.”
Aquino plays Anna in “The Real Ivanov,” a 100-minute adaptation written and directed by Chekhov scholar Laura Strausfeld. The world-premiere production opened Aug. 25 at the Lynn F. Angelson Theater in Manhattan and runs through Sept. 19.
The production condenses Chekhov’s first staged play into a tragicomedy about Nikolai Ivanov, a once-promising landowner facing debt, depression and a rapidly unraveling marriage. Sam Underwood plays Ivanov, while Aquino plays his wife, Anna, who is terminally ill and isolated after converting to Christianity to marry him.
Anna’s illness and isolation sit at the emotional center of the story. As Ivanov withdraws from his marriage and begins spending time with Sasha, a younger woman who believes she can save him, Anna is left to confront the personal costs of his despair.
Strausfeld’s adaptation does not treat “Ivanov” as a museum piece. Her streamlined production focuses on how people misunderstand one another when pain is hidden, and on the way depression, grief and exhaustion can affect everyone in a household.
The playwright and director has said Chekhov’s work changed her life after she saw Lincoln Center Theater’s 1997 production of “Ivanov,” starring Kevin Kline. She described Chekhov as an artist whose work gave her both a language for despair and a reason for hope.
For Aquino, the role adds an important stage credit to a career that has ranged across film, television and classical theater. She is best known for portraying transgender activist Cecilia Chung in the 2017 ABC miniseries “When We Rise,” an eight-hour drama about the modern LGBTQ+ rights movement.
Aquino, who was born in the Philippines and later moved to the United States, has previously performed Shakespearean roles with The Drilling Company’s Shakespeare in the Parking Lot. Her credits include Juliet in “Romeo and Juliet,” Desdemona in “Othello,” Mark Antony in “Julius Caesar” and Isabella in “Measure for Measure.”
Her work in “When We Rise” drew particular attention because she portrayed Chung, a prominent San Francisco transgender activist and advocate. Aquino has also appeared in “FBI: Most Wanted” and was cast as Alysia Yeoh in the unreleased “Batgirl” film.
“The Real Ivanov” places Aquino in an ensemble led by Underwood as Nikolai Ivanov. The cast also includes Sam Adegoke as Borkin, Elijah Guo as Dr. Lvov, Jordan Lage as Count Shabyelsky, Spencer Aste as Lebedev, Sarah Long as Zinaida, William DeMeritt as Kosyk, Soph Metcalf as Avdotya, Kimberlee Walker as Babakina and Amelia Mason as Sasha.
The production features set and lighting design by Jiyoun Chang, costumes by Ella Matza, and sound design and original music by Brandon Bulls. It is presented by Initiative Productions at the Lynn F. Angelson Theater, home of Classic Stage Company, at 136 E. 13th St. in Manhattan.
In his review, Tony Marinelli praised Aquino for bringing “genuine tenderness” to the role and for making Anna’s devotion and bewilderment especially affecting. He wrote that her performance gives the character a touching dignity, even when the production’s staging does not always allow its most intimate scenes to fully land.
