French With Me 6: The Inexhaustible, Unpredictable, Amaranthine Shadow Circus

Ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls, children of all ages! Welcome to the Inexhaustible, Unpredictable, Amaranthine Shadow Circus. Prepare to be amazed, astounded, mesmerized! 

Here at the circus that always was and always will be, two people walk a dangerous tightrope known as love. Haunted by the circus itself, Edgar (Tim Lee) discovers that to win his beloved's heart, he only has to give up his soul.

Created by Strangeloop Company Member Maria Burnham, The Inexhaustible, Unpredictable, Amaranthine Shadow Circus is: The Ringmistress (Stefanie Johnsen); The Enchanting Empress of Elevation, Eliana (Ellen DeSitter); The Great Bela Ignato (Brian Rohde); The White Clown (Richie Schiraldi); The Red Clown (Orion Lay-sleeper), The Black Clown (Nicole Jordan) and The Clown Possibly Not Appearing In This Production (Casey Kells).

The circus rolls into town as part of French With Me 6: Le Salon at 8 p.m. on Saturday, February 13, at Vagabond School of the Arts (4001 N Ravenswood Ave #504, Chicago, IL 60613). Tickets are $25 in advance or at the door, and are available now through Brown Paper Tickets.  

French With Me 6 Bio: Ellen DeSitter

Ellen DeSitter (The Enchanting Empress of Elevation, Eliana) is an actress, movement performer, and visual artist. She studied theatre at Northern Illinois University and also studied performance abroad at the Moscow Art Theatre. Over the past few years, she has had the pleasure of working with Chicago companies Steep Theatre, Manual Cinema, Redmoon, Strangeloop Theatre, Collaboraction, Navy Pier, Suitcase Shakespeare, Cave Painting Theatre, The Windy City Players, and Starlight Radio Dreams. To learn more about Ellen, check out her webpage at ellendesitter.com.

DeSitter contorts her way onto the stage and into the virtual world

Thinking Caps actress Ellen DeSitter was featured in this story on The Chicago Tribune.com.

 Get to know Ellen and then come see her work, May 8-31 at the Charnel House.

For a girl who can stilt walk, make small talk in Russian, draw, paint and contort herself into pretzel-like poses, bringing a dragon to life is all in a day's work. 

Actress Ellen DeSitter, a Lisle native, pulls from all her various skills to craft honest portrayals of multiple characters - from the personification of a what a four-month old would imagine her adult self to be, to a television host, to a dragon - in her latest production, Strangeloop Theatre's Thinking Caps.

Read the full article here, including her thoughts on what she loves about playing Emma Cusick.

Thinking Caps Bio: Ellen DeSitter

Ellen DeSitter (Emma Cusick, Moderator, Becky) is very excited to be working with Strangeloop Theatre for the first time. Her most recent performance credits include the Fool in Queen Lear, the Genie in the Windy City Players touring production of Aladdin and Lula in Manual Cinema's touring production of Lula Del Ray. Other companies she has had the privilege of working with include: Steep Theatre, Suitcase Shakespeare, Navy Pier, Redmoon and Side Project Theatre.

Announcing the cast of Thinking Caps

A scene from the opening of Thinking Caps,
which was part of our Loopshop short play
series in 2012.

We are officially cast for Thinking Caps!

Though the show is still several months away, work has already begun on this production and we're getting excited to build this new world within a brand new play just for you.

And we start by announcing our cast. The cast for "Thinking Caps" is:

• Charles Cusick: Drew Wancket
• Maggie Cusick : Laura Stratford
• Kim Ayers: Jaclyn Jensen
• David Scrab: Casey Kells
• Emma Cusick: Ellen DeSitter

Written by Strangeloop Company Member Keith Gatchel and directed by Maria Burnham, Thinking Caps runs May 8-31, at 8 p.m. on Fridays and Saturdays and 2 p.m. on Sundays at The Charnel House, 3421 W Fullerton Ave. in Chicago.

What is Thinking Caps, you ask?

The near future. Websites and the internet are dead. Telepathy and Headsites are the new reality. Everyone who is anyone has a Thinking Cap and they live in a semi-virtual, semi-real world where imagination is the key to success. But how far is too far when it comes to technology? Thinking Caps explores the upsides and downsides of virtual reality technology in the near future.

Tickets are $18 for general admission and are available in advance on Brown Paper Tickets or at the door. Discounts are available for students and seniors.