Vanya is a bitter, sarcastic man, obsessed with his wasted years and what might have been. He has spent his life toiling for the benefit of the scholar, Serabryakov, who has turned out to be a charlatan. To make matters worse, Vanya has fallen in love with Serabryakov's beautiful, young, new wife, who does not return his ardor. In a 1987 Bookmark episode called A visit from Vanya, Oleg Efremov (director of the Moscow Art Theater on a visit to Oxford) rehearses and discusses scenes from Chekhov plays with director David Jones, and with Russian, British and U.S. actors & directors.