"To live one must have something to hang on to... In the provinces only the body works, not the spirit."

- Chekhov's Notebooks about Three Sisters

​

"And look here, don't put on a gloomy face, not in a single act. Angry, yes, but not gloomy. People who carry grief in their hearts and have become accustomed to it just whistle and sometimes become pensive. The way you often become pensive during discussions at rehearsals."  - Letter from Chekhov to Olga Knipper, actress playing Masha

​

"Vershinin's 'tram-tram-tram' should be like a question, and [Masha's] should be, as it were, in reply, and it should strike you as such an original thing to say that you utter it with a slight smile... You should say 'tram-tram' and give a little laugh, not a loud one, just a hint... Remember, your character is quick tempered, with a sense of humor." - Letter from Chekhov to Olga Knipper