The Elaborate Entrance of Chad Deity, a hilarious, incisive satire that takes on the world of professional wrestling—while, in the process, powerbombing racism, xenophobia, and the American appetite for spectacle—runninng through May 8 at TheatreSquared . Tickets range in price from $20-$54 and can be purchased by calling (479) 777-7477 or by visiting theatre2.org.
Think pro-wrestling is all outrageous masks and pyrotechnics? Think again—there's so much more in this fresh, funny, and high-octane Pulitzer Prize finalist that transforms the West Theatre into a wrestling arena. This smackdown of a play brings a championship tale into the ring to create an invigorating theatrical experience you can't find on pay-per-view. In wrestling, as in life, behind every winner lies the story of a really excellent loser.
Dexter J. Singleton directs the production. He is T2’s Director of New Play Development, and recently directed The Royale for TheatreSquared, as well as Among the Western Dinka and Black Book in the 2018 Arkansas New Play Festival and The Kennedy Center/American College Theatre Festival.
"I've always wanted to direct this play—it’s a dream come true,” says Singleton. “As a longtime superfan of professional wrestling, I am more than excited to bring Kristoffer Diaz's most well known play to Northwest Arkansas audiences. Told in a beautifully unique way while merging the worlds of theatre and sports entertainment, this production will superkick its way into people's hearts."
Kristoffer Diaz is a playwright, screenwriter, musical librettist, and educator. The Elaborate Entrance of Chad Deity was a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize in Drama, a National Latino Playwriting Award winner, received the Obie for Best New American Play and has gone on to more than thirty productions nationwide. Other full-length titles include Hercules (adapted from the Disney film for the Joseph Papp Public Theater's Public Works program), Welcome to Arroyo’s, #therevolution, The Upstairs Concierge, and The Unfortunates.
Diaz told T2 he's excited about the prospect of his show being seen in Northwest Arkansas.
“I know that there are people of color everywhere, and I know that there are little kids, who might be little Puerto Rican kids, or Latino kids, or Indian-American kids who might come in and say, ‘Oh yeah! I didn’t know people were making stuff like this. I didn’t know this was out there. I didn’t know I could do this. I didn’t know I could see myself on stage until this moment,’” says Diaz. “You hope that happens."
T2’s production also features performances by Cedric Leiba Jr. (Rent and Miss Saigon) as Macedonio Guerra and Shon Middlebrooks (T2's The Royale) as Chad Deity, with Ruchir Khazanchi as newcomer Vingeshwar Paduar and Vince Teninty (T2’s The Royale and Detroit) and as Everett K. Olson, the owner of ‘THE’ Wrestling League. Professional wrestler Alexander "Xander" Gold completes the company as a series of ‘bad guys’.
The creative team is Baron E. Pugh (Scenic Design), Ruby Kemph (Costume Design), John D. Alexander (Lighting Design), Beth Lake (Sound Design), CJ Barnwell (Projection Design), Scott Russell (Fight Choreography), Alexander "Xander" Gold (Wrestling Coach), Brodie Jasch (Props Manager), and Emely Zepeda (Production Stage Manager).
Tickets
Performances of The Elaborate Entrance of Chad Deity are scheduled from April 13 to May 8, with 7:30pm performances Tuesday through Saturday and 2pm matinees on Saturday and Sunday. The play is in the West Theatre at TheatreSquared, 477 W. Spring Street in downtown Fayetteville, Arkansas. Tickets range from $20-$54. All fees are included, with no additional charges at checkout.
Subscription packages for TheatreSquared include full seven-play packages starting at $119, with four-to-six-play flex packages starting at $89. Benefits for season ticket holders include savings of up to 20% on every show, free unlimited exchanges, discounted reserved parking, and same-day discounts in The Commons Bar/Café and other T2 Restaurant & Hotel Partners.
Through T2’s Lights Up! For Access program, supported by the Walmart Foundation, SNAP benefit recipients can purchase $1 tickets, while students and patrons under the age of 30 can purchase $10 tickets. Fully subsidized, free tickets are also available for clients of a number of local community service organizations. For more information, visit theatre2.org/lights-up.
Subscription packages and single tickets can be reserved by calling TheatreSquared at (479) 777-7477 or by visiting theatre2.org/subscribe.
About TheatreSquared
TheatreSquared’s signature offering of bold new plays in an intimate setting has driven its growth to become the state’s largest theatre, offering more than 350 performances annually in two intimate spaces and online. The playwright-led company is one of mid-America’s leading laboratories for new work, having launched more than 60 new plays. Notable collaborators have included Bryna Turner, Anne García-Romero, Pulitzer Prize finalist Lisa D’Amour, Qui Nguyen, Mona Mansour, Tony Award nominee Lee Blessing, Amy Evans, and many others. TheatreSquared’s remarkable expansion—with a twentyfold increase in audience in just the past decade—parallels the emergence of its home region in the northwest corner of Arkansas as a booming population center and destination for American art. Offering far-reaching access and education programs and an open-all-day gathering space, The Commons Bar/Café, TheatreSquared remains rooted in its founding vision, that “theatre—done well and with passion—can transform lives and communities.”
Major funding for the TheatreSquared Season 16 is provided by The Walton Family Foundation, Inc.; the Walmart Foundation; the Arkansas Arts Council, an agency of the Department of Arkansas Heritage; the Tyson Family Foundation, the John & Robyn Horn Foundation, the Shubert Foundation, the Windgate Foundation; the National Endowment for the Arts; the Willard and Pat Walker Charitable Foundation, Inc; Bob and Becky Alexander; Jane Hunt; Margaret and Dick Rutherford; Frances Lee Scott Estate; Barbara Shadden; Simmons; and Todd Simmons and Melissa Hall Simmons.
Marketing support for TheatreSquared Season 16 is provided by Experience Fayetteville, the Northwest Arkansas Democrat-Gazette, Fayetteville Flyer, 3W Magazine, CitiScapes, KUAF, and MailCo USA.