Chekhov's thoughts as he was writing this play, and the considerations that came up while it was in production, are discussed in his letters. Long out of print, there is a new edition of Anton Chekhov's Life and Thought: Selected Letters and Commentary available from Northwestern University Press. There is also much about The Three Sisters in Dear Writer, Dear Actress: The Love Letters of Anton Chekhov and Olga Knipper, translated by Jean Benedetti.

The actors who presented this play during Chekhov's time for the Moscow Art Theatre were under the direction of the legendary director Constantin Stanislavsky. Readers can find out more about the acting method these performers followed in Stanislavsky's three books, An Actor Prepares, Building a Character and Creating a Role. All three are available in reprint editions from Theatre Arts Books.

In addition to his fame...