BBC Radio 4, 26 January 2010
This adaptation of a Chekhov short story focused on the agonies of a
would-be writer Kovrin (Nicholas Boulton) tormented by a Black Mask (Jasper Britton), who may or may not be a product of Kovrin's
fevered imagination. Perhaps it didn't matter: suffice to say that Kovrin's creative impulse was entirely lost, and it began
to affect his personal life too, as he gradually began to question whether he should pursue his relationship with Tanya (Zoe
Waites). Tanya's father Yeger (Philip Voss) acted as a voice of conscience, but all to no avail. The story ended with the
suggestion that, by choosing the profession of a writer, Kovrin had in a sense sold his soul to the devil - in other words,
dedicated himself so much to the solitary life that he had become a social outcast.
As with many other works - whether fictional or dramatic - "The Black Mask" concerned
itself with one of life's losers, who could not adjust to present realities. However Chekhov (Michael Pennington)
refused to criticize him for it; this was simply a consequence of Kovrin's opting to become a writer. Perhaps this was also
true of Chekhov himself; but that remained a matter for speculation only.
