Play Aimed at Fans of Chekhov : Theater: Play inspired by Chekhov’s life will entertain admirers of his work but will probably miss with others in the audience.

Full of misunderstandings and missed opportunities, the life of Anton Pavlovich Chekhov spoke of longing and regret, of tangled feelings and shifting perspectives in which one man’s tragicomedy is another’s comic tragedy.

There were also love affairs--either observed or lived--most of which occurred or never happened for all the wrong reasons. And always, as the backdrop, the oncoming Russian Revolution.

At least, that’s the take of playwrights John Driver and Jeffrey Haddow in “Chekov in Yalta.” (The authors spell Chekhov without the customary “h”).

The San Diego premiere of this fictionalized imagining of three days in Chekhov’s life plays at the North Coast Repertory Theatre through April 4.

But be forewarned:

Despite a nicely directed and well-acted production, you have to be interested in Chekhov and his contemporaries (writer Maxim Gorky, director-actor Konstantin Sergeievich Stanislavski, actress Olga Leonardovna Knipper, later to become Chekhov’s wife), to be drawn in by “Chekov in Yalta.”

The writers draw compelling parallels between Chekhov’s life and work that will no doubt intrigue fans of “Uncle Vanya,” “The Three Sisters” and “The Cherry Orchard.” But except for some still-relevant cracks about theater companies and artists--and a reminder that financial difficulties in the theater did not commence in the 1990s--this is a play with a very limited palette.

The plot propelling the piece is a visit by the Moscow Art Theatre to Yalta in April 1900, to beg Chekhov to allow them to do his new play, “The Three Sisters.” Without this new play, the company, already on the brink of ruin, is afraid it will close.

Talented local actress Rosina Widdowson-Reynolds, quickly developing into one of San Diego’s more promising new directors, directs here with a deft hand, gracefully navigating an ensemble of 11 on the North Coast’s narrow stage, shifting with dexterity from small, intimate scenes to large, boisterous ones brimming with song and dance.

The company, not unusual for North Coast, provides a blend of polished and raw, unfinished talent. Providing the backbone for the show is the fine North Coast veteran Ron Choularton, who delivers another inspired performance as the acerbic Chekhov, sparring with Stanislavski (who kept presenting his plays as dramas instead of the comedies Chekhov insisted they were), his sister, his friends--indeed, everyone who crosses his path.

Newcomer Angelene Hernandez proves a treasure as Fyokla, the unapologetically dense maid who aspires to be an actress--and does a fabulous, show-stopping turn of bad acting for Stanislavski. Michelle Napolitano lends dignity and strength to the cliched part of Lilina, Stanislavski’s wife who plays second fiddle to the great man’s art. And while it can be argued that Robert Larsen overdoes it as Stanislavski, the overacting adds to the humor, coming as it does from Stanislavski, the man purported to be the ultimate acting coach.

Marty Burnett provided the cozy Yalta set, awash in foliage and gently lit by Ocie Robinson. John-Bryan Davis did the handsome costuming, giving the women an authentic look from elegant hair to the trail of their gowns. Michael Shapiro designed the sounds of sea and birds that begin the play. Director Widdowson-Reynolds, however, seems to have missed a joke by not having the sound design continue throughout the play; especially since that’s just the kind of theatrical device Chekhov deplores several times during the course of the story.

Part of the fun of this show comes from the literary name dropping. The action starts with Chekhov chuckling over the night he just spent talking to Tolstoy. Not more than a few minutes pass before Maxim Gorky and Ivan Alexeivich Bunin (a popular writer of the time) burst in with a mock duel. And then, of course, the Moscow Art Theatre follows close upon their heels.

The rest of the show’s pleasures stem from insights into Chekhov: In real life, Chekhov’s own sister, Mariya (nicknamed Masha in the play) gives up her life to take care of her brother only to lose the purpose for sacrifice when he marries after 40. Chekhov may well have modeled the unmarried women in “Uncle Vanya” and “The Three Sisters” after his sister, with the men (presumably inspired by himself and his bohemian artist brother, Nikolay who died of tuberculosis, the same disease which would later kill Chekhov), coming off as selfish, thoughtless fellows.

And then there was his own bittersweet love affair with actress Olga Knipper whom he married three years before his death; they lived apart every winter as she preferred acting in her husband’s plays in Moscow rather than tending the dying man in Yalta.

But the overall effect is like a precocious graduate student’s take on Chekhov and his times--a thesis rather than a drama that stands on its own. Still, if you are fascinated with Chekhov, who knows--it may just be your shot of vodka.

‘CHEKOV IN YALTA’

By John Driver and Jeffrey Haddow. Director is Rosina Widdowson-Reynolds. Set by Marty Burnett. Lighting by Ocie Robinson. Costumes and wigs by John-Bryan Davis. Sound by Michael Shapiro. Fight director is Martin Katz. Choreography by Johnny Warriner. With Shelley Stolaroff, Angelene Hernandez, Ron Choularton, Mark Taylor, Tim West, Lauren Hamilton, Don Loper, Michael Pieper, Scott Coker, Michelle Napolitano and Robert Larsen. At 8 p.m. Thursday-Saturday and 7 p.m. Sundays with Sunday matinees at 2 through April 4. Tickets are $12 Thurs/Sun, $14 Fri/Sat with $2 discount for senior, students and military. At Lomas Santa Fe Plaza, Solana Beach, 481-1055.