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Articles tagged with: Sophia Menendian

Role Playing: Sophia Menendian reached back (but not far) as plucky Armenian refugee of 15

May 26, 2015 – 6:03 am
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Interview: The most disarming, lovable character I’ve seen on a Chicago stage this season has to be 15-year-old Seta, refugee of the Armenian genocide and mail-order bride in Richard Kalinoski’s “Beast on the Moon,” played with big-eyed, open-hearted exuberance by Sophia Menendian, who’s all of 20. She says she captured Seta’s buoyancy by recalling her own unbridled spirit as an adolescent.

‘Beast on the Moon’ at Raven: After Armenian genocide, an improbable pair retool their lives

May 7, 2015 – 6:47 am
Seta (Sophia Menendian) is thrilled with the beautiful new mirror she receives as a wedding present from Tomasian (Mat

Review: Outwardly, Richard Kalinoski’s play “Beast on the Moon” is about a young man and a teenage girl, refugees from the 1915 Armenian genocide who have lost their families and embark on a new life together as immigrants in Milwaukee. But as Raven Theatre’s exuberantly funny and sensitive production so urgently telegraphs, this tragi-comedy is ultimately about the beast within – a fearsome creature of the mind spawned by terror, isolation and guilt. ★★★★

‘Good Boys and True’ at Raven: The fast track throws some curves into the path of privilege

Apr 2, 2014 – 4:00 pm
Brandon (Will Kiley, left) and Justin (Derek Herman) have forged a close bond. (Dean LaPraiie)

Review: One always comes away from a play performance, whether the staged work is new or familiar, with a single dominant impression. It may be a complex impression, but there’s always that ruling aspect, the starting point from which the conversation evolves. In the case of Roberto Aguirre-Sacasa’s “Good Boys and True” at Raven Theater, it is a sense of relentless circularity. ★★