Visa problems nix '1001 Nights' in Chicago

Due to delays in visa processing for some actors from Egypt, Syria and Iraq, Chicago Shakespeare Theater has indefinitely postponed its planned engagement of “1001 Nights,” which was to have opened June 25 on Navy Pier and will not now travel from Canada to the United States.

“1001 Nights,” the latest project of the acclaimed and globally oriented British theater director Tim Supple, was commissioned by Toronto’s Luminato Festival of Arts + Creativity, where the epic six-hour piece premiered last weekend, after an commission from the Canadian government-supported festival that exceeded $1 million. “1001 Nights” is to be a centerpiece of the Edinburgh International Festival in Scotland this August.

Chicago Shakespeare was to present its U.S. premiere.

In the piece, which has attracted international attention, a large ensemble of actors from throughout the Arab world interpret “The Arabian Nights,” the familiar collection of ancient stories. The show, which has a raw, earthy quality far removed from the western stereotypes of Sinbad or Ali Baba, is performed in a variety of languages, reflecting the diversity of the Arab performers.

The project, which has endured a gestation buffeted by world events, originally was gathering in Egypt but had to move its rehearsals after trouble erupted in that nation earlier this year. After a last-minute scramble, the production rehearsed instead in Fez, Morocco. According to Supple, most of the U.S. visas for his company of about 30 have been approved. But six applications are still under a lengthy further review. And with the company scheduled to travel to Chicago on Monday, time has simply run out.

“We are all very disappointed,” Supple said, “no-one likes not to come and do a show. The company wanted to come to Chicago very much.”

According to Roy Luxford, the producer of the show for Supple’s company Dash Arts, the company did not apply for its visas in Morocco because it was advised by the U.S. authorities to apply for visas as a group in Toronto (Canadian visas were granted in Morocco without incident). Speaking before a performance here Tuesday night, he said that various last-minute entreaties were being made to those with influence who might rush processing for those actors whose applications had gone under further review. But after several days on tenterhooks, the plug was pulled late Wednesday night.

“It reflects tight times,” said Supple. “I’d like every country to embrace every artist I am working with.” In this case, of course, Supple, whose last project (a version of “A Midsummer Night’s Dream”) involved actors from India, is working with actors from countries whose nationals often come under extra scrutiny when they apply for entry into the U.S.

 “My desire,” said Luminato artistic director Chris Lorway, explaining his decision to make a major investment in the piece, the center of this year’s Luminato, “was to shake up the perception of the Arab world as a homogenous place.” Criss Henderson, the executive director of Chicago Shakespeare, said the Chicago company had waited as late as possible to make the decision but had been left with no choice and the need to notify its subscribers. Henderson said he hoped that the production could be rescheduled at the earliest opportunity” and expressed his “undiminished commitment” to the project. Supple said a world tour was planned, including an extensive tour of the Far East, and that he would aim to come to Chicago as part of the U.S. leg of that tour, currently slated for 2012.

“The United States welcomes legitimate travelers,” said a State Department official on Thursday morning. “The Department of State regrets that the performer’s cases could not be processed in time for the performance."

As things now stand, the company will leave Canada on Monday, or thereabouts, and reconvene in Scotland later this summer. In Chicago, ticketbuyers can either get a refund or bank their ticket for the rescheduled performance. On Wednesday night in Toronto, the company performed the second three-hour segment of the piece, not yet knowing that their U.S. premiere was not going to happen.