Wilma Theater Announces Return To Live Performances With Regional Premiere Of MINOR CHARACTER: SIX TRANSLATIONS OF UNCLE VANYA AT THE SAME TIME

The Wilma Theater in Philadelphia will welcome back live audiences with the regional premiere of Minor Character: Six Translations of Uncle Vanya at the Same Time, a joyful and music-filled comedic kaleidoscope. Featuring the Wilma's HotHouse Acting Company, this warm-hearted yet bittersweet look at love, longing, and the limitations of language runs from October 5-October 24, 2021. A limited number of press tickets are available to the October 9 opening night performance.

"I am so excited about Minor Character because I feel like it's the perfect way to welcome back audiences into our theater," notes Co-Artistic Director James Ijames. "It is a delightful, music-filled expression of love, longing, and how to communicate with other people."

Vanya feels like he's wasted his life, and lost his chance at love. In this revolutionary new work, the classic character of Uncle Vanya gets reflected through the prisms of different translations and diverse performers. Six versions of Uncle Vanya, including Google Translate's hilariously nonsensical one, are blended together to make one wildly thrilling new show. Performers from the Wilma's HotHouse Acting Company play many characters - including different versions of the same character - who peddle bicycles, pick mushrooms, and pickle cucumbers while dreaming of better lives.

The original New York production of this play, which wowed audiences at The Public Theater, was created by New Saloon, co-founded by the Wilma's Co-Artistic Director Morgan Green. The Wilma's version is directed by Co-Artistic Director Yury Urnov.

The cast includes Ross Beschler, Keith Conallen, Sarah Gliko, Suli Holum, Justin Jain, Jered McLenigan, Campbell O'Hare, and Lindsay Smiling. Jarod Hanson is the Assistant Director/Choreographer, Kellie Mecleary is Dramaturg, Noelle Diane Johnson is EDI Officer, and Patreshetterlini Adams is Stage Manager. Set Design for Minor Character is by Mikhail Kachman; Lighting Design is by J. Dominic Chacon; Costume Design is by Ivania Stack; Sound Design, Music Direction, and Compositions are by Michael Kiley; and Leslie Rivera is the Video Designer.

This return to live performances at the Wilma comes after a groundbreaking and innovative digital 2020-21 season, featuring filmed captures of Will Arbery's Heroes of the Fourth Turning and James Ijames' Fat Ham. Loved by both critics and audiences alike, the New York Times declared that the Wilma had "perfected beautiful film-stage hybrids."

For more information on health and safety, visit https://wilmatheater.org/safety/

Single tickets to Minor Character go on sale to the public on September 1, 2021. Tickets run $25-$59. For more information, or to purchase tickets, visit wilmatheater.org.

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