Louisville's Chamber Theatre Announces 2017/18 Season

Louisville’s Chamber Theatre has announced its 2017/18 season, which will include two productions: “Tales from the Hills” and “All People Sneeze.”Martin French is the co-artistic director of the company.“At The Chamber Theatre, one of the things we really want to do is to explore some of the early modern theater classics,” French says. “The likes of Ibsen, Strindberg, Chekhov -- these late 19th-century, early 20th-century authors we don’t feel get enough coverage in the theater world here in Louisville -- and see them with new eyes.”In early November, the company will produce “Tales from the Hills,” a two-part production which features WB Yeats’ verse tragedy “Deirdre,” and J.M. Synge’s raucous, gossip-fueled comedy “In The Shadow of The Glen.”For the second production, “All People Sneeze,” co-artistic director Polina Shafan has chosen short stories by Russian writer Anton Chekhov and adapted them for the stage.“He wrote at least 200 of those stories and they, in my opinion, offer a great look into people’s lives and are full of nuances,” Shafran says. “So I have been wanting to do that for a long time and now have the opportunity.”Both Shafran and French say there is an emphasis this season on narrative and commonalities between cultures.“One of the things about ‘Tales from the Hills’ in tandem with ‘All People Sneeze’ is that it’s a great opportunity to explore storytelling,” French says. “And that’s what we want to do this time around -- look at plays, look at stories and how they are told.”“All People Sneeze” will be performed in March; both productions will take place at Hope Community & Coffee at the Mellwood Arts Center.