One modern author describes an Anton Chekov play as people saying hello and goodbye and your heart is breaking.

Although now regarded as a classic Russian masterpiece, The Seagull was poorly received at its premiere in 1896. Nevertheless over the years there have been frequent revivals and even a few film adaptations as producers, directors and performers try to capture every nuance of the text.

It is text rich with possibilities, and of course we are hearing it in translation. Crucial to the success of any production of this play is a top-notch ensemble cast, and that, Stage Centre Productions delivers in spades.

Like many of Chekov’s plays, The Seagull is all about creating a mood on stage. In the play’s fi rst scene, the light-hearted banter between the lovestruck young Konstantine and his Uncle Sorin doesn’t even hint at the aching sadness of the scenes to follow.

Brad Emes is the tormented young man, hopelessly in love with young Nina, played with gentle sadness by Amber Steinman. He tries to showcase her in the play he writes but when performed it is met with derision.

Leading the way is his mother, a celebrated actress who is used to less avant-garde pieces. The dynamic between mother and son is not the only allusion to Shakespeare’s Hamlet to be found in this play.

Judy Gans has another of those roles in which she excels, the larger-than-life actress who doesn’t want to face the fact that time is passing her by. Edward Karek plays her new lover with smarmy smugness, and Roger Kell plays the ailing Uncle who in one of the play’s most poignant lines blames all the mismatched lovers on the moon.

The moonlight is ever-present in L. Garth Allen’s stage design. The set enhances the sombre mood of the piece, ingeniously suggesting outdoors and indoors as needed. He has directed the piece to flow from one stage area to the next in a way that one moment feels claustrophobic and just moments later the characters are in pools of lonely isolation.

The characters in this piece make choices in a desperate attempt to connect to one another. We have a stage full of people who are searching for happiness, and that is heartbreaking to watch.

Stage Centre Productions presents The Little Foxes at Fairview Library Theatre, 35 Fairview Mall Dr., until March 22. Tickets are $25, $20 for seniors and $15 for students and are available by calling 416-299-5557