The key element of Trinity Rep’s production of Anton Chekhov’s tragicomedy is collaboration.

Artistic director Curt Columbus, an accomplished Russian scholar, has translated the script, bringing out the humor with some modern phrases, about a half-hour of careful cutting and a better understanding of the playwright’s language.

Handing the script over to director Brian McEleney gave the ingenious Trinity veteran the opportunity to work with both actors he has collaborated with for many years, in addition to some newer faces.

And then there are the actors themselves, all capable of following direction, but also skilled in taking their roles and making them their own.

The play, one of Chekhov’s earliest, could be a bit stilted and boring if done straight. The Trinity collaborators did not allow that to happen. The characters loosen up to the point of being outrageously funny and memorable.

We start with the title character. Ivanov is a Russian everyman. We meet him trying to relax by taking a quiet bath, only to be interrupted by a variety of characters. Right away we learn that he is deeply depressed, broke and married to a sickly woman with whom he has fallen out of love.

Stephen Thorne plays Nikolai Ivanov as a complex character filled with self doubt, frustrated by his situation, fed up with his friends and acquaintances and seeing no way out.

He lives in a world where destitute people pretend to be who they are not. Their lives are filled with trivia, gossip, despair and boredom.

“The flowers come out every spring,” his admirer Sasha (Marina Shay) tells him. “Can happiness ever come back?”

Sasha is the only character with a positive attitude … and it gets her in serious trouble.

The production, unlike many versions of Chekhov, is fast and furious, but always under control, thanks to McEleney’s direction.

While there is a plot to the play, the real enjoyment is in the incredible characters that the collaborators have created … reaching far above what Chekhov put on paper.

Leading the pack is Angela Brazil as the rich widow, Martha. With her shrill responses to phony suitors and buckteeth that sometimes get in the way, she has created one of the funniest comic characters ever seen on a Trinity stage. (Joyce had to check the program. She didn’t believe it was her.)

Timothy Crowe plays Pasha, Sasha’s father, who goes through the entire play in a state of bewilderment. “I haven’t a clue what is going on,” he says as the world seems to be whirling by him. He is tormented by his wife (Anne Scurria) who will also have you in stitches.

Fred Sullivan Jr. joins in on the fun as the uncle, and can get a laugh just with his facial reactions to what is going on around him.

And there’s a lot going on. Much of the action is aided and abetted by too much vodka being consumed, allowing characters to blurt out hurtful but hilarious comments.

Stephen Berenson plays a party guest who has to recall every hand he ever played, boring every person he talks to. Barbara Meek plays his frustrated wife. Joe Wilson Jr. also has a juicy role as the manager of Ivanov’s estate, always looking for an angle.

Rebecca Gibel plays Ivanov’s sickly wife, and she has a great dramatic moment near the end of the play. Joe Wilson Jr. animates his character, a man with a million ways to get the family out of debt. And poor Richard Williams is stuck with the heavy role in the drama, which he handles splendidly.

Put it all together and you’ll enjoy Chekhov like never before.

“Ivanov” continues at Trinity through Oct. 5. Call 351-4242 for reservations.