Liverpool Network Theatre presents Chekhov's Uncle Vanya

“If you think Chekhov is too posh or too miserable for you then think again,” is the message from the community theatre group behind a new production of Uncle Vanya being performed in the city next week.Uncle Vanya is the story of nine characters living on a country estate in 1890s Russia, struggling to come to terms with their own identities and the loss of social role, having regrets for the loves they never had and ambitions they never realised.From financial struggle, social change and environmental danger the play tackles familiar themes and issues which are relevant even today more than 100 years on.“The backdrop of social decline gives us the sense of a class of people struggling for purpose and even survival. It would all be completely unbearable if it wasn’t so funny,” say the members of Liverpool Network Theatre.You can see the show at the Lantern Theatre next week, from March 21 to 23. Tickets are £7/ £5 concessions, with all performances start at 7pm. Bookings can be made by calling 0151 703 0000 or online at lanterntheatre.co.uk.Liverpool Network Theatre Group, formally The Network, was founded in 1984 after the closure of the Merseyside Unity Theatre (part of a national leftist theatre movement, which in Liverpool did help to develop the Unity as we know it today). Its aim is encouraging and engaging the local community to participate in performance and new theatrical writing. It was born out of the idea of theatre as a political force, with the power to change society for the better.Today Network hosts weekly  informal workshops, open to all, teaching a variety of acting techniques; and stage three productions and a Christmas revue every year.For more information on what they do, visit their website at liverpoolnetworktheatre.org.uk.