Nikkie S & Nyke on Chekhov's 'The Seagull'

Nikkie S & Nyke first met at Scouts in 1996. You probably think that is a funny joke that I made up. It isn't. It's the truth. Here they are, above, with Leezo from Newsround.



Nikkie: Well, this is, without doubt, Chekhov's finest hour.
Nyke: Come on, let's not turn this into a debate.
Nikkie: Nyke has always held a candle for 'The Cherry Orchard', you see.
Nyke: I just think, stylistically, it is more refreshing.
Nikkie: You plead with me not to turn this into a debate and then you come out with slander like that. What do you expect?
Nyke: Let's just get back to the play itself.
Nikkie: Okay, well I suppose the first question that needs answering when discussing 'The Seagull' is simply, 'is it a comedy or a tragedy?'
Nyke: A tragedy, of course.
Nikkie: What are your grounds?
Nyke: In terms of language, it is steeped in misery and despair. Trigorin may have a certain way with words that can be amusing at times - a fine example being his monologue in Act Two whereupon he notes that as a writer he cannot just simply sit back and enjoy the simple things in life-
Nikkie S: Yes, that wonderful line - using Frayn's translation - "I smell the scent of heliotropes. I make a rapid mental note: cloying perfume, widow's purple, put in when describing summer evening"
Nyke: Indeed, very amusing but ultimately, what he is talking about is tragic. And of course, any play which ends with the suicide of a young man can hardly be considered high comedy.
Nikkie S: Yes, well here we are surely entering into a much larger argument: namely, what is comedy? The Shakesperian standard by which you show such fervent dedication is long-outdated. I mean where do Moliere's comedies figure in this equation?
Nyke: Well, farce is an entirely different animal to that of standard comedy. A farce, by its very nature, is dark - take the dark marital comedy of Feydeau's 'On Purge Bebe!', for example. There is a murky, adulterous undertone, yes, but that is overlaid with much situation comedy, slapstick and, most importantly, wit.
Nikkie: Actually, Nyks, I just got a text. Two girls from West want sex.
Nyke: Right. Well, we'd better go.