The play «The Last Summer» by director Danil Chashchin is based on the script «Kuokkala» by Anna Kozlova, a writer and the author of popular TV series such as «A Short Course in a Happy Life,» «The Garden Ring,» «The Mediator,» and «The Female Praying Mantis.» The action takes place during the First World War in a resort village with the Finnish name Kuokkala (modern‑day Repino, Leningrad Oblast). In the early 20th century, this village was a popular summer residence for residents of St. Petersburg.
The main character of the play, Anna, is an officer’s wife; her circle includes a neighbouring doctor, her teenage son, her husband, who suddenly returns from the war, other close relatives, and the servants. They spend their summer evenings in the spirit of Chekhov’s characters — they argue about the fate of the homeland, feel bored, engage in philosophical discussions, read aloud, and hold séances, trying not to notice that their idyllic world is being supplanted by a new, cruel era.
