Fan Casting Yermolai Alexeievitch Lopakhin in The Cherry Orchard

A merchant. Lopakhin is by far the wealthiest character in the play, but he comes from the lowest social class, since his father was a peasant and his grandfather was a serf. This contrast defines his character: he enjoys living the high life, but at the same time, he is uncomfortably conscious of his low beginnings and obsession with business. He is often portrayed on stage as an unpleasant character because of his greedy tendencies and ultimate betrayal of the Gayev family, but nothing in the play itself suggests this; he works strenuously to help the Gayevs, but to no avail. Lopakhin represents the new middle class in Russia, one of many threats to the old aristocratic way of life.