Birds of a Feather

Maggie Gyllenhaal, Zoe Caldwell, Olympia Dukakis, Oscar Isaac, Sam Rockwell, Steven Van Zandt, and Louis Zorich join Kristin Scott Thomas, Peter Sarsgaard and company on the opening night of The Seagull.

By Joseph Marzullo,Brian Scott Lipton • Oct 3, 2008 • New York

Ian Rickson's acclaimed revival of Anton Chekhov's The Seagull opened Thursday night at the Walter Kerr Theatre with Olivier Award winner Kristin Scott Thomas giving an absolutely magnificent performance as Arkadina.

American film and stage star Peter Sarsgaard makes his Broadway debut as Arkadina's lover, Trigorin.

Sarsgaard's companion, Maggie Gyllenhaal -- who starred in this summer's megahit film The Dark Knight -- was among the opening night crowd.

Zoe Kazan, who does a wonderful job as the mournful Masha, partied after the show with boyfriend Paul Dano.

British actress Carey Mulligan is simply splendid as the aspiring actress Nina.

MacKenzie Crook, another member of the show's original British cast, portrays the gloomy Konstantin.

Oscar-winning playwright Christopher Hampton provided the new translation.

Stage actor Oscar Issac, who will bow on the big screen next week opposite Leonardo DiCaprio and Russell Crowe in Body of Lies, was among the first-nighters.

Four-time Tony Award winner Zoe Caldwell played Arkadina in a 1978 British television production of The Seagull.

Here's British-born actor Forbes March, who is best known for his role as Nash Brennan on ABC's One Life to Live.

Sam Rockwell has earned rave reviews for his work in the recently released film Choke.

Tony-winning choreographer and director Rob Ashford recently returned from Seattle, where he worked on the Broadway-bound musical Shrek.

Former Sopranos star and rock musician Steven Van Zandt came to the performance.

Oscar-winning producer Harvey Weinstein was on hand for the opening.

Finally, here's real-life couple Louis Zorich and Olympia Dukakis, who co-starred in Williamstown Theatre Festival's beloved 1974 production of the play.

For TheaterMania's review of The Seagull, click here.