From Act 1 of Chekhov for Children – Angus, who played the role of Vanya: "We weren't coddled by him [Phillip] and that was cool."

From Act 3 of Chekhov for Children – New York in the 1970s – “It was a dream that couldn't last forever."

Mylan as Elena & Slim as Astrov in Uncle Vanya

Phillip Lopate in the 1979 student film “Dole Man”

Still from the animated student film “Heaven & Hell”

Class photo, P.S. 75
1979

Mylan as Elena, Angus as Vanya & the filmmaker, 1979

“Uncle Vanya with P.S. 75”
Symphony Space Theater, June 1979

“A moving, honest exploration of the nature of childhood...and a celebration of the joyous possibilities of arts education...[this] unexpected and charming film transcends simple nostalgia to explore deeper, more complex emotional terrain."

Student Film (Amy Taubin)

“Challenges current standardized, exam-oriented public school education. It also deserves to be in the collection of any serious performing arts library.”

An ‘Uncle Vanya‘ Kids Can Get
“Waters Freyer’s film tells a good story, one that includes kids grappling with many of the same themes that [today’s] youth are experiencing.”

Free Press Houston
“The film has a way of being both a people-throughout-their-life film, like the British 7 Up series, as well as a meditation on great theater.”

SELECTED PRESS

CLIPS

Burlington Examiner
“Chekhov for Children makes a fascinating case that what Lopate describes as the “hidden agendas” lurking beneath Chekhov’s dialogue were mirrored in the crushes and puppy love affairs of the young actors that brought their personal lives to the stage.”

Orlando Weekly
“Insightful if somewhat nostalgic, it is a fascinating exploration of growing up.”

DOWNLOAD HI REZ STILLS

SELECTED INTERVIEWS

The Leonard Lopate Show interview with Sasha Waters Freyer, Phillip Lopate and Angus Johnston, Oct. 18, 2010
Interview HERE

Director of “Chekhov for Children” Revisits Her Past and Finds Chekhovian Parallels in the Present
Interview HERE