Mitera: Cast and Crew Bios

Cast

Olga Sheridan:             Allison McCorkle+
Nitsa Sheridan:            Holly Robison^
Dimitra Sheridan:         Lilly Apostolou
Sharon Kaskalis:          Patricia Tinsley+
Dimitris Kokkinakis:      Michael Wagman^

Production Team

Playwright:                   Maria Burnham^
Director:                       Letitia Guillaud^
Production Manager:   Keith Gatchel^
Stage Manager:           Lisa Uhlig^
Production Designer:   Brad Gunter^
Dialect Coach:             Kate Jordan*
Costume Design:         Molly Mason
Marketing:                   Jean Burr+, Maria Burnham^
Graphic Design:           Mike Wozniak
Photographs:               Austin D. Oie

^Denotes a Strangeloop Company Member
+Denotes a Strangeloop Associate Company Member 
*Member of Actors Equity Association.

McCorkle plays the long game in her latest role — onstage and off

It’s rare that an actress gets to spend years developing a character, but Edgewater actress Allison McCorkle has done just that in her latest role as Olga in Strangeloop Theatre’s Mitera.

“I am so excited to take part in the sharing of this wonderful story,” McCorkle said. “I've watched this script develop for a while and it has been really cool to watch it evolve.”

Read more about Allison and her character development in the Lincoln Park Patch.

For Wagman, acting is personal

Michael Wagman always tries to find the personal in the characters he portrays.


But for his latest role as the conniving Dimitris Kokkinakis in Strangeloop Theatre’s Mitera, the Wicker Park actor has struggled to make that connection.

“One of my biggest challenges has been playing someone who thinks so little of the people around him that he literally gives them and their views no credence,” Wagman said. “I’ve always tried to keep an open mind, so playing someone who is so resolutely closed-minded has forced me to find those areas of myself – those few relationships where I became closed-minded – and exploit them to understand this character.” 

Read more about Michael, including how he brought his character to life, in the Bucktown-Wicker Park Patch. 

Good to know: Transportation options if you're coming to Mitera

Mitera, which started tech this week, takes place in Berger Park in Edgewater. There are two mansions and a coach house on this property. Our production takes place in the building to the north on the property (known as the Gunder House, at 6219 N. Sheridan Road). 

If you go to the south building — also known as the Downey Mansion — you'll wind up seeing Ulysses by our friends at The Plagiarists. If you go to the coach house, you'll be sad because the beautiful Waterfront Cafe doesn't reopen until May 16.  

Berger Park does not have public parking; however there is a cul-de-sac on Granville Avenue on the south side of the park, which allows for handicap accessibility drop-off. Metered Street Parking is available on Granville Avenue and also on North Broadway. Permit-free neighborhood parking is also available on the streets just west of Sheridan Road.

Public transportation, bicycling or utilizing one of the city's ride-sharing or taxi cab companies is greatly encouraged.  

Public transportation options include:

• Red Line Train: Granville stop. Exit station and walk three blocks east to the Lake.            
• Bus: 151 Sheridan. Stops right in front of the park at Granville Avenue and Sheridan Road

 Bike racks are also located throughout Berger Park.   

It actually is all Greek to Apostolou in her latest role

Lakeview resident Lilly Apostolou left behind her corporate job a few months ago to pursue a full-time career in the arts and immediately landed a role that seemed made for her in Strangeloop Theatre’s production, Mitera. 

Mitera really is an accurate depiction of Greek life, no matter where you live,” Apostolou said. “My parents are both from Greece and I was born in Chicago. These characters were raised in Mississippi, but I feel that same Greekness in the words of these characters, as it all stems from their mom – their Mitera.”

Read more about Lilly, including more about her role in Mitera, in the Lakeview Patch and in the Chicago Tribune. 

Robison balances accents, tradition and sisterhood in latest role

Actress Holly Robison is very much at home with period dramas, Shakespearean verse and English accents, but for her latest role she finds herself in less familiar territory – the Deep South circa 2015.

The Lincoln Square resident plays one of three sisters in Strangeloop Theatre’s production, Mitera, which premieres in April at the North Mansion at Berger Park in Edgewater. And while the Southern accent wouldn’t normally be a problem for Robison, her character Nitsa also tosses in a few Greek words for good measure.

Read more about Holly, including her thoughts on what audiences will like about Mitera, in the Lincoln Square Patch.