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Opening

This run marks a new chapter. After a successful production of An Enemy of the People, Duse Productions presents its second work: three Chekhov comedies performed as one complete evening. Our focus remains on clarity. On listening. On allowing a classic work to unfold without force. We believe the most urgent plays of our time were written hundreds of years ago, and that our task is not to reinvent them, but to stage them with care, precision, and trust. These performances are an opening gesture - an invitation into the work, and into what may continue beyond this room. Thank you for being here.

Duse Productions is a New York–based theatre company dedicated to the clear and truthful staging of classical works. Our practice begins with listening to the text, to the actors, and to the room itself. We observe reality and heighten it just enough to reveal what is already present. We value process as much as product, and presence as much as polish. This work is built through trust, rigor, and shared attention.

OUR LINEAGE

Our work is guided by artists who believed that theatre does not need excess to be powerful, nor volume to be heard - and whose ideas actively shape how this production is made.

Eleonora Duse sought truth through restraint, natural presence, and deep humanity. From her work, we take a commitment to acting that is lived rather than performed - where the actor does not play for the audience, but allows the audience to witness something real. This commitment is why we chose to name the company in her honor, as an acknowledgment of her lasting contribution to theatre and to humanity.

Yevgeny Vakhtangov embraced theatricality without abandoning sincerity, allowing imagination and realism to coexist - what he called fantastical reality. From this lineage, we permit play, scale, and contradiction, while remaining grounded in truthful behavior.

Anton Chekhov wrote comedies that refused to announce themselves as such. He placed people in rooms, gave them needs they could not name, and trusted the audience to recognize the humor and the ache beneath it. These three short plays - written quickly, written young, written to survive - are among the most alive things he ever made. In staging them, we follow his example: no excess, no instruction, only the encounter.

NOTE

Chekhov wrote Swan Song, The Proposal, and The Bear within a concentrated two-year period(1887-1888) in his late twenties - comic vaudevilles dashed off to support his family, just before his major works arrived. They are not minor Chekhov. They are Chekhov before he knew how major he would become. This evening is offered in that spirit: urgent, alive, and not yet finished becoming what it is. We are grateful for your attention, and for the time you bring with you tonight.

Cast

Creative Team

Meet the Company

Luna Vintner

Svetlovidov/Natalya/Popova

Luna Vintner (Dolunay Kocabağ) is a legally blind actor and multidisciplinary artist born and raised in Turkey, currently based in New York. Her theater credits include Petra Stockmann in An Enemy of the People and originating the role of Sally in Lily Camp’s All Eight with the Third Year Company at the American Academy of Dramatic Arts. Other stage work includes Shakespeare’s The Tempest and William Inge’s Picnic. She made her film debut in Lifetime TV’s A Scream in the Dark and has collaborated with Amazon Fire TV on their accessibility-focused commercial campaign. Luna has also worked with Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts to support audio description and accessibility for several productions. In addition to performing, Luna releases original music as a singer-songwriter-producer and scores music for movement-based work and her own short films. She trained at the American Academy of Dramatic Arts and holds a B.Sc. in Psychology with a minor in Music from York University. Outside of performance, she enjoys pole dancing, salsa, and reading literary fiction. Check her out on Spotify.

Damian Cruces

Lomov/Smirnov

Damian is a Texas native now based in NYC. Classically trained, he enjoys biting on the classics and getting down and dirty with experimental theatre. When he’s not onstage, he’s in front/behind the camera archiving life in the city and being part of his communities. He’s very grateful to Sanio & The Actors Temple for the opportunity to share in a wonderful night of comedy.

Jake Goldbas

Nikita/Chubukov/Luka

Jacob Goldbas was a Production Assistant for Art Market Productions for 8 years. In that time, he was a background actor for very many television shows and movies, appearing in the Timothy Chalamet Bob Dylan movie in 2025. For fun he performs standup comedy at Fear City in the Lower East Side.

Giorgi Chuchulashvili

Townsperson/Stagehand

After a lifelong passion for theater, cinema, and literature, Gio made the decision to step beyond the audience and become an active participant. This production marks his debut both on stage and behind the scenes in theater. He is currently a third-year student studying Mathematics and Computer Science at Columbia University. Despite a demanding academic schedule, he remains a dedicated supporter of our theatre and is deeply motivated to improve as an artist.

Sanio Kurtesevic

Director

Sanio is a New York–based actor, director and producer, AEA-affiliated, with nearly a decade of experience in film and theatre. Born and raised in Bosnia and Herzegovina, he brings a deep respect for language, ensemble, and classical storytelling to his work. Sanio has studied the Lee Strasberg Method since 2018 under the guidance of David Gideon in New York City. His recent stage credits include Black Sheep at Theater for the New City, The Trojan Women at Jersey City Theatre Center, and An Enemy of the People at American Theatre of Actors, where he also served as director and producer. He subsequently directed An Enemy of the People at Theater for the New City. Sanio is the founder of Duse Productions, dedicated to clear, truthful productions of classic plays that speak directly to the present moment.

Nilton Emilio

Stage Manager

All the world is a stage for this multi-hyphenate Artisté. Nilton stays active on and off the stage, working multiple productions at various venues throughout New York City. Prior works include: Black Angels Over Tuskegee; The Book of Mermon; Friends The Musical; Frankenstein A New Musical; Cowboy; Oz into the Amazon; Medea The Musical; Santasia The Musical; Ode To The Wasp Woman, Ruthless!, A Pirate's Life, The Pitch, and many more.

Daniel DeMello

Press Representative

Photos

Multimedia

A NIGHT OF CHEKHOV To Play Off-Broadway At Actors Temple Theatre

Duse Productions will present the Off-Broadway limited engagement of A Night of Chekhov, a 90-minute program featuring three short plays by Anton Chekhov.

Directed by Sanio Kurtesevic, the production will run May 16 through June 28 at Actors Temple Theatre, with an official opening night set for May 26.

The production will include Swan Song, The Proposal, and The Bear, offering a condensed look at Chekhov’s shorter works. The evening will run approximately 95–110 minutes, including one intermission, and will explore themes of connection, conflict, and human vulnerability through both comedic and dramatic storytelling.

Swan Song follows an aging actor reflecting on his life after a final performance, while The Proposal centers on a marriage proposal that devolves into escalating disputes. The Bear concludes the program with a confrontation between a widow and a creditor that shifts unexpectedly in tone.

The cast will feature Luna Vintner, Tom Shane, Damian Cruces, and Gene Morgan, with stage management by Nilton Emilio.

“This is a Chekhov experience with slapstick and wacky comedy audiences have never seen before,” said director Sanio Kurtesevic. “They are plays rooted in love with genuinely happy endings, something that feels especially important right now. I want to give people a reason to come together, to go out in real life, sit next to each other in a theatre, and walk away inspired, ready to forget the ills of the world for 80 to 100 minutes and feel less alone.”

Performances will take place Thursdays at 8:00 p.m., Saturdays at 3:00 p.m. and 8:00 p.m., and Sundays at 3:00 p.m. Tickets range from $60 to $90, with balcony seating available at $65 when open.

Closing

Thank you for being here tonight.

This evening marks the next chapter in the life of Duse Productions, and it exists because of the care, trust, and generosity of many people.

We are deeply grateful to our cast and creative team for their rigor, patience, and commitment to the process. To our collaborators and supporters for believing in the work at its beginning.

And to our audience - thank you for sharing your attention, your time, and the room.

With Gratitude

Duse Productions extends heartfelt thanks to Edmund Gaynes and Actors Temple Theatre for their generosity and partnership in making this production possible.

This work continues beyond tonight. We look forward to what comes next.

-Duse Productions