The Only Tallest Trees On Earth

The Only Tallest Trees on Earth — A New Production of Ivan Vyrypaev’s Play

Starring Chulpan Khamatova, Maria Mashkova and musician Vasily Zorky

Bold, brazen, harsh, funny and tragic, The Only Tallest Trees on Earth marks the first collaboration between Chulpan Khamatova, Maria Mashkova and Vasily Zorky and one of Europe’s most acclaimed playwrights, Ivan Vyrypaev. His plays have been translated into more than 30 languages and staged at dozens of theatres around the world.

In a deliberately simple staging, the three performers engage in a dialogue where humour meets unease, cynicism and dismissiveness sit alongside religion, the everyday meets the philosophical, and hope gives way to its collapse.

The staging itself becomes a way of asking difficult and unsettling questions that audiences face in their own lives but may hesitate to voice. Paradoxical metaphors, provocative statements that come close to crossing the line, and contemporary dramaturgy take the production far beyond conventional theatre. What unfolds onstage becomes a meditative experience that stirs a wide range of emotions. The Only Tallest Trees on Earth provokes sharply divided reactions and leaves no one indifferent.

Using the very structure of language as a theatrical tool, Vyrypaev makes the act of speaking an integral part of the performance. It draws the audience into the playwright’s world, reveals the characters’ inner lives layer by layer, and leads gradually to the central questions of faith and the search for meaning in life.

Director — Mykola Mishyn
Cast — Chulpan Khamatova, Masha Mashkova, Vasily Zorky
Producers — Alexandrina Markvo, Maxim Volkov

A joint project by the Teal House Foundation and Bird&Carrot Productions.

**Warning. Contains frequent strong language. Ages 18 and over.