The theatrical and film adaptations of a literary work

The subject of the research is an overview of the foreign theatrical and film adaptations of The Cherry Orchard’s play written by A.P. Chekhov. The aim of the study is to analyze the adaptation of a literary work through non-verbal sign systems. In this regard, the following task is formed: how is the problem of equivalence reflected in the translation from the original language of a literary text into the language of screen images in the Canadian theatrical production and in the cinema of Sri Lanka. The investigation is based on Linda Hutcheon's adaptation theory, postulated that when literary text is transcoded in the process of adapting into any other form sich video game or a musical, this form of transformation is most likely to be seen as a secondary creation and certainly will not be as good as the original text. The question raises — can we give consideration to a theatrical or film adaptation as an individual creation in relation to the original text, despite its connection with it at different levels? Our conclusions are based on the fact, which a literary work in the secondary adaptation may not be inferior to the original and may even be better.