DIRECTOR Helen Wilson will hold auditions for York Settlement Community Players' autumn production of Anton Chekhov's The Cherry Orchard on May 6 and 10.

The first will take place at 7.30pm in The Fleeting Arms in Gillygate; the second at 2.30pm at Clementhorpe Community Centre, Lower Ebor Street, York.

Anyone unable to attend either, but still keen to audition, should contact Helen on 07714 435092 or by emailing helensallywilson@aol.com for details of a potential third audition.

Helen is seeking five women and seven men for Chekhov's Russian characters with an age range of 17 to 87 – for Firs, the venerable family servant – for her production run from September 24 to 27 at Friargate Theatre, Lower Friargate, York. Intense rehearsals will start in mid-August with "some work" for cast members before then.

"It will be completely open casting, so anyone auditioning won't have to prepare anything, though they could familiarise themselves with the text, as it would be good if they had some knowledge of the play," says the director.

The Cherry Orchard will be York director, actress and teacher Helen's second Chekhov production for the Settlement Players, having directed The Three Sisters in a sold-out run at the York Theatre Royal Studio in March 2010.

She will be using Michael Frayn's adaptation of Chekhov's 1904 play. "I used Frayn's version for The Three Sisters too because he absolutely understands the humour in the writing, when so many people have misconceptions about Chekhov being grim," says Helen.

"It has a wonderful role for an older actress, Ranyevskaya, which I'd describe as 'the Judi Dench part'; she's a wonderful creature. We'll be doing it 'in period' with a set design by Mike Rogers, because its themes are universal, so I don't think its look and costumes need to be updated, as everything is there already."

Helen promises that working on the production will be a fun experience for all involved. "This is one of the top 20 plays on actors' To Do lists and it's many people's favourite Chekhov play," she says. "Directing The Cherry Orchard is a return to my first love too."