FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Press Contact:  Keith Sherman & Associates, keith@ksa-pr.com 

Arlekin’s Zero Gravity (zero-G) Virtual Theater Lab & Cherry Orchard Festival Foundation

present

chekhovOS /an experimental game/

A Live and Interactive Virtual Theater Experience

Starring Jessica Hecht

With Anna Baryshnikov,

Anna Bortnick, Darya Denisova, Jeffrey Hayenga, Melanie Moore,

Nael Nacer & Mark Nelson

And Mikhail Baryshnikov

as Anton Chekhov

Conceived and Directed by Igor Golyak

May – June 2021

Tickets and information at:

www.zerogravity.art 

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Arlekin Players Theatre today announces spring dates: May 23 – June 24 for chekhovOS /an experimental game/, the latest production from (zero-G), Arlekin’s Zero Gravity Virtual Theater Lab. 

chekhovOS /an experimental game/, is a multi-media interactive theatrical experience from Arlekin Players Theatre’s founder and director Igor Golyak, who has been a leading innovator of virtual theater. Golyak’s latest work fuses theater, film, video game technology, and live interactivity to create a new experience where viewers are able to interact with the performers. chekhovOS /an experimental game/ is produced by Igor Golyak and Sara Stackhouse of Arlekin’s Zero Gravity (zero-G) Virtual Theater Lab.

Inspired by Anton Chekhov’s The Cherry Orchard and drawing from recordings of Chekhov’s letters and dreams, this new show portrays all of Chekhov’s characters as they are trapped inside Chekhov’s worldview, his psyche, his “operating system”. Audiences start receiving messages via email and text from the characters before the play begins online, leading viewers to a secret video where the characters beg them to “vote the right way” during the show.

The performance schedule is: Sunday, May 23 at 8:00pm EST, Thursday, May 27 1:00pm EST, Sunday, May 30 at 11:00am EST, Sunday, June 6 at 8:00pm EST, Sunday, June 13 at 8:00pm EST, Sunday, June 20 at 8:00pm EST, and Thursday, June 24 at 8:00pm EST. 

Tickets are free and must be reserved by visiting: www.zerogravity.art. Donations to Arlekin’s Resilience Fund or special charities are encouraged.

Of Arlekin’s previous production of State vs. Natasha Banina, The New York Times raved, ““The verdict is in: the virtual can, in fact, be an effective new stage for theater,” and Vulture cheered, “a transfixing, virtuosic piece of performance.” 

When the show begins, audience members are taken inside the “virtual operating system” on their computers, arriving in an interactive space where Natasha Prozorov from Chekhov’s Three Sisters can see and interact with them. 

Chekhov’s letters are accessed and appear on screen and the scenes take place on top of virtual cherry trees, hanging in the air, and walking on the ground as it cracks beneath them.  The characters search for happiness and escape.  In this mix of theater, film and gaming, the audience is invited to interact and vote on the outcome. Audiences vote via remote control on their phone, are seen on the walls of the virtual space, can unmute to choose what scene is seen next or guess a password, and are active in a lively chat throughout the show. Will the characters be trapped once again in their beautiful, broken world as it devolves to game over? 

The cast of chekhovOS /an experimental game/ features Tony-Nominee Jessica Hecht, who performs the iconic role of Ranevskaya. The presentation also features Anna Baryshnikov (Apple TV+’s Dickinson) as Varya; Darya Denisova as Natasha Prozorov; Anna Bortnick as Charlotta, Jeffrey Hayenga (The Elephant Man) as Fiers; Melanie Moore (Finding Neverland, So You Think You Can Dance) as Anya; Mark Nelson (Angels in America, The Invention of Love) as Gaev; and Nael Nacer as Lopakhin. Baryshnikov Arts Center Founder and Artistic Director Mikhail Baryshnikov makes a special appearance in the role of Anton Chekhov. 

This marks the first time that Mikhail and Anna Bayshnikov have performed in the same production together.

“Through this enhanced virtual theatre, we are finding out how humankind can find each other in the virtual while continuing to treasure the in-person encounter, making a new kind of site-specific theater,” said director Igor Golyak. “I find myself in constant dialogue with The Cherry Orchard -during a time of loss and recovery, as it helps us explore connection, transition, and the human yearning for happiness. We are grateful to our co-presenters for sharing this internationally with a broader audience and for the opportunity to do so on the incredible .ART platform. It is thrilling to be developing work in this new genre with these visionary partners.”

chekhovOS /an experimental game/ was developed and filmed, in part, at Baryshnikov Arts Center in January, 2021 with strict adherence to COVID health and safety protocols.

Conceived and directed by Golyak, chekhovOS /an experimental game/ has virtual performance technical direction by Vladimir Gusev, game engine & interaction design by Will Brierly of Snowrunner Productions using his platform, “The Soft Layer”, narrative by Tom Abernathy, virtual set and environment design by Anna Fedorova, web development by Anatoly Krivonos, music composition by Jakov Jakoulov, and properties by Irina Vilenchik. The show runs on over 10 pieces of software and is powered by Aximmetry, the official software provided for Zero Gravity.

“We are pleased today to announce our new partnership with Arlekin’s Zero Gravity (zero-G) Lab. As the world shut down a year ago in the midst of the global pandemic, artists and the creative community, especially the ones in the live arts such as theatre, dance and music, had to reinvent themselves,” said Ulvi Kasimov, Founder of .ART and nominee of Observer’s ART POWER 50. “Arlekin Players Theatre didn’t shy away from the occasion. Instead, they converted their black box space into the Zero Gravity (zero-G) Virtual Theater Lab and they are now a world leader in digital theater innovation.”

This production constitutes Phase One of a larger hybrid (live/virtual) chekhovOS project on track for a production in New York in 2022, and is made possible with generous support from producing sponsor .ART, ArtsEmerson, Baryshnikov Arts Center, BroadBand Collaborative, Cherry Orchard Festival Foundation, Fooksman Family Foundation, Meghan Coleman, Robin Hanley, ZiphyCare, gifts from Arlekin’s Zero Gravity Kickstarter Campaign and Aximmetry Technologies Ltd., the official software provider for Arlekin’s Zero Gravity (zero-G) Lab.

chekhovOS/an experimental game/ is co-presented from May to June by local, national, and international partners from the worlds of theater and gaming, including ArtsEmerson, BostonFIG, UCLA’s Center for the Art of Performance (CAP UCLA), Cherry Orchard Festival Foundation, International Online Theatre Festival (IOTF)/Theatre Times, Portland Institute of Contemporary Art (PICA), ShowOne Productions (Canada), Snowrunner Productions, with special charity screenings in Europe and the US in partnership with the US and UK charitable foundation Gift of Life / Podari.Life founded by Russian actress Chulpan Khamatova, all hosted on www.zerogravity.art.  

The performance schedule at a glance:

Sunday, May 23 at 8:00pm EST
Co-presented by UCLA’s Center for the Art of Performance (CAP UCLA Portland Institute of Contemporary Art (PICA)
Followed by live talkback with Jessica Hecht (Ranevskaya), Kristy Edmunds (Artistic & Executive Director, UCLA (CAP)), Igor Golyak (Director), Sara Stackhouse (Co-producer)

Thursday, May 27 1:00pm EST
Co-presented by Gift of Life (UK and Europe)
Followed by live talkback with members of the cast & creative team

Sunday, May 30 at 11:00am EST
Co-presented by International Online Theater Festival/Theatre Times
Followed by live talkback with members of the cast & creative teamModerated by Magda Romanska, Editor-in-Chief, TheTheatreTimes.com

Sunday, June 6 at 8:00pm EST
Co-presented by ArtsEmerson
Followed by live talkback with cast members Anna Baryshnikov and Jeffrey Hayenga, and director Igor Golyak
Moderated by Rob Orchard, Founder & Creative Consultant, ArtsEmerson

Sunday, June 13 at 8:00pm EST
Co-presented by Podari.Life US
Followed by live talkback with members of the cast & creative team
Moderated by Joyce Kulhawik, Emmy Award-Winning A & E Critic

Sunday, June 20 at 8:00pm EST
Co-presented by Cherry Orchard Festival Foundation & ShowOne Productions
Followed by live talkback with with cast members Anna Baryshnikov and Mark Nelson, and director Igor Golyak

Thursday, June 24 – 8:00pm EST
Co-presented by Cherry Orchard Festival Foundation & ShowOne Productions
Followed by live talkback with members of the cast & creative team

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Arlekin Players Theatre, founded by Artistic Director Igor Golyak, was created in Boston in 2009 and has since toured to New York, Chicago, and Hartford, as well as to international festivals in Russia, Armenia, Ukraine, and Monaco. It’s production of State vs Natasha Banina has received world-wide acclaim, including the New York Times Critics’ Pick. Arlekin has received multiple awards for its work including four 2020 Elliot Norton Awards from the Boston Theater Critics Association for its recent productions of The Stone and The Seagull. Arlekin takes strong pride in their emphasis on self-identity; they are a company of immigrants performing works that play on the ideas of cross-culture, home, and traditions, challenging the idea of nationality, and finding common themes that unite us all. In 2020, Arlekin launched it’s Zero Gravity (zero-G) Virtual Theater Lab to explore new theater possibilities for a new time. The company makes its home in Needham, MA. For more information, visit www.arlekinplayers.com and ZeroGravity.ART.

.ART is the art world’s digital domain of choice. Not bound by geographical location or industrial constraints it aims to support, empower and generate value for the creative community. It is also intending to be an innovation activator with its own solutions as well as promoting the ones of others creative community members. .ART is a space where artists, institutions, professionals and creative can register a clear and concise website address that reflects their passion, occupation and belonging to the art world.

Cherry Orchard Festival Foundation (www.CherryOrchardFestival.org), a registered 501c) (3) arts organization, is a leading independent international arts organization with a solid reputation for presenting musical performances, theatrical productions, multidisciplinary performing and visual arts attractions by a stunning array of global artists to audiences in the US. Founded by executive producer Maria Shclover and artistic director Irina Shabshis in 2012, the festival has presented over 60 unique world class events, concerts, and theatrical performances to over 150,000 audience members across the US. The presentation of “Cherry Orchard” at the Baryshnikov Arts Center will be the second collaboration between the Festival and Arlekin Theatre, after the successful online run of The State vs. Natasha Banina in 2020. The ongoing mission of the Cherry Orchard Festival is to introduce and promote global cultural activity and exchange of ideas, aiming to enlighten and engage audiences through educational entertainment programs and events. For more information about the festival, please visit cherryorchardfestival.org. 

For more information about

chekhovOS/an experimental game/

and to arrange tickets, please visit: 

www.zerogravity.art