Join us this weekend as we say αντίο to 'Mitera'

Mitera closes this weekend and you only have three more chances to catch this world premiere show.

Due to the intimate nature of this production, seating is extremely limited and tickets are going fast for closing weekend, so get your tickets in advance.

Mitera, an examination of love set amongst a small Greek community in Mississippi, concludes May 14. Remaining performances for this site-specific production take place at 7:30 p.m. on Thursday, Friday and Saturday at the North Mansion in Berger Park (6219 N. Sheridan Road) in the Edgewater neighborhood of Chicago.

Tickets are $18 and can be purchased in advance through Brown Paper Tickets or at the door. Discounts are available for seniors, students and industry members.

Set during the months preceding the Supreme Court's landmark decision on gay marriage, Mitera tells the story of the Sheridan sisters who discover their mother, upon her death, has left their entire inheritance contingent on the youngest sister marrying within a year. If she fails to do so everything goes to their oldest male cousin in Greece. Mitera examines the idea that sometimes the people we’ve known our entire lives are the people we know the least.

Mitera was written by Chicago playwright Maria Burnham and directed by Letitia Guillaud. It stars Allison McCorkle as Olga Sheridan, Holly Robison as Nitsa Sheridan, Lilly Apostolou as Dimitra Sheridan, Patricia Tinsley as Sharon Kaskalis and Michael Wagman as Dimitris Kokkinakis.

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. More on parking and transportation options can be found here.

Casting announced for world premiere of Mitera, opening at Berger Park's North Mansion in April

Casting has been announced for Strangeloop Theatre's world premiere of Mitera by Maria Burnham.

Directed by Company Member Letitia Guillaud, Mitera stars Allison McCorkle as Olga Sheridan, Holly Robison as Nitsa Sheridan, Lilly Apostolou as Dimitra Sheridan, Patricia Tinsley as Sharon Kaskalis and Michael Wagman as Dimitris Kokkinakis.

Set amongst a small Greek community in the American Deep South during the months preceding the Supreme Court's landmark decision in the gay marriage case Obergefell v. Hodges, Mitera tells the story of the Sheridan sisters who discover their mother, upon her death, has left their entire inheritance contingent on the youngest sister marrying within a year. If she fails to do so everything goes to their oldest male cousin in Greece. But the youngest sister is an unattached romantic who believes in marrying for love.

While the script is steeped in Greek-American culture and deals with the familial politics of same-sex relationships, Burnham said the script will be accessible to anyone who has ever disagreed with a family member, and especially to anyone who has ever been in love.

“Ultimately this is a story about love. Love between family members, the things people do for love, the bad choices people make in the name of love, the ridiculous lengths we go to out of love. That’s what makes all stories relatable regardless of setting,” Burnham said.  “It’s not the trappings of a play that make a story compelling or interesting to an audience, it’s the heart of the story being told.”

Burnham, who was raised in a small Greek-American community in Jackson, Mississippi, by her Greek mother and American father, said she pulled from her own life to create the characters in this play, but they are not based on any one person, and the story is completely imaginary.

“Although,” she added, “I could totally see my mom pulling something like this because she is really getting desperate for grandchildren.” 

You can find more backstory on Mitera via this blog or in this interview with the playwright from our fall fundraiser.

Mitera runs Thursdays through Saturdays April 7 through May 14 at 7:30 p.m. The site-specific production takes place at The North Mansion in Berger Park (6219 N. Sheridan Road, Chicago, IL 60660).

Tickets are $5 for previews and $18 for the regular run and are available in advance through Brown Paper Tickets.

Auditions scheduled for Strangeloop's production of 'Thinking Caps'

A scene from the original Thinking Caps short
play presented as part of Loopshop 2012.

Strangeloop Theatre announces auditions for its world premier production of Thinking Caps by Strangeloop Company Member Keith Gatchel. Auditions will be held from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Saturday, February 7, at DePaul University (2350 N Racine Avenue). Please see email address below to request an audition slot.

 

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.

 

We are casting 5 roles (3 men, 2 women). All ages and types encouraged to submit. For consideration, please submit your headshot and resume to casting@strangelooptheatre.org. If we are able to schedule you, we will contact you with a time slot. Please include any audition day time considerations with your email submission and we'll do our best to accommodate.

 

This is a non-equity production.

Time Commitment: The schedule will consist of four to six rehearsals per week during evenings and weekend days in late March and April, with the possibility of several readings and table work meetings beforehand. The final rehearsal schedule will be set after taking actor conflicts into consideration. 

The show will load in to The Charnel House (3421 W. Fullerton in Logan Square) on April 27, with tech and previews through opening on Friday, May 8. The show will then run at The Charnel House on Friday and Saturday nights with Sunday matinees until closing on Sunday, May 31.

 

Material To Prepare: Please prepare a 1-2 minute contemporary monologue.