ABSTRACT
Soviet drama since its beginning about 1925 has developed along paths quite different from those of Western European drama. The difference is not only ideological; it is in treatment as well as theme. The shape and structure of a stage-worthy play of any period are to some extent governed by the stage conditions of the time. Thus neither Elizabethan nor Soviet writers had to consider such factors as the need for a small cast to counterbalance high rents in London or high travel costs on tour, or the limited salary list of a provincial repertory theatre, as the contemporary capitalist playwright must do. Inadequate translation in the version published in English does not give the subtlety of speech-differentiation between the characters, and tends to read lifelessly and dull. But with the use of a creative imagination, some of the effect of the play can be caught none the less for that.
