The Enthusiasts and El Bear's THE NINA VARIATIONS Begins Today

The Nina Variations, Steven Dietz's clever, fierce and heartbreaking tribute to The Seagull, returns to Chicago in a new co-production by El Bear Theater Company and The Enthusiasts Theater Company. In this fresh and exciting staging the famous final scene between Treplev and Nina in Chekhov's The Seagull breaks down and their thoughts are divided, rearranged, and pieced back together. Watch as they go on a fast paced tour de force to say all the things they've never said. We often wish we could go back and act differently at key points in our life, in this performance we give Nina and Treplev that chance.

Production

Performances are May 5 through May 28, 2016 at Charnel House located at 3421 West Fullerton Avenue, Chicago, IL running Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays at 8pm. Opening (Press) Night will be May 5th. Tickets are $15. To purchase tickets visit www.theenthusiasts.brownpapertickets.com.

Creative Team

Director: Nathan Bell

Stage Manager: Rauly Luna

Assistant Stage Manager: Matthew Gillis

Set & Prop Design: Nathan Bell

Costume Design: Bailey Neill

Lighting Design: Rauly Luna

Sound Design: Shaun Rosten

Marketing Team: Caroline Brogan, Matthew Gillis and Erika Vigen

Cast

Joshua Servantes & Shaun Rosten - Treplev

Rebecca Escobedo & Bailey Neill - Nina

About Steven Dietz

Since 1981, Steven Dietz's thirty-plus plays and adaptations have been widely produced at regional theatres across the United States, as well as Off-Broadway, and have won him several awards all over the world. When Dietz was approached to write a new adaptation of Chekhov's The Seagull, he was mesmerized by the final scene between Nina and Treplev. His passion for this scene and these two characters grew so strong that he finally granted them a second chance - or to be more precise, forty-three chances - to change the plot. Hence, The Nina Variations was born.

In 2011 Dietz was awarded the Ingram New Works Fellowship (following previous winners David Auburn and John Patrick Shanley) by the Tennessee Repertory Theatre. Recent premieres include the black comedy, "Rancho Mirage", and the thriller, "On Clover Road". Both of these plays received "rolling world premieres" through the National New Play Network.

About El Bear Theatre Company

Born in the Attic of a theatre festival during the summer of 2014, El Bear is a collective of theatre artists who work both on and off stage in all aspects of production to bring stories to life. They aim to use their skills to produce new and established works, and through their very practice create new models for the livelihoods of artists. El Bear's quest is to explore the human experience by viewing it through the lens of the fantastic.

About The Enthusiasts Theatre Company

The Enthusiasts Theatre Company, incorporated in early February 2014, was formed by a group of, you guessed it, theatre enthusiasts with an overwhelming passion for the performing arts. We are creating a theatre company that can grow and thrive amid Chicago's theatre landscape. Our mission is to tell meaningful stories that are universal yet diverse, provide an intimate theatrical experience and open up theatre to a broader audience - we want to make everyone a theatre Enthusiast!