Windmill Arts adapts a Chekhov classic, with a twist

Image from Windmill Arts Play
Zhopa (Pascal Portnoy) and Dostoyna (Megan Poole) are passionate about different things in Windmill Arts presentation of Butterfly. (Courtesy of Andie Knudson)

Windmill Arts, run by Atlanta’s Sam R. Ross, is putting on its first original production entitled “Butterfly.”

The play is a brand new adaptation of Anton Chekhov’s short story, “The Grasshopper,” which follows a decaying marriage that ends in tragedy as the main character spirals down a hole of celebrity obsession and misled ambition.

Adapted and directed by Ross, the modern “Butterfly” re-contextualizes these timeless themes for a more phone-obsessed era, bringing about a searing indictment of celebrity culture and the emptiness of online vanity.

The play is currently showing at Windmill Arts in East Point, and is set to run through Feb. 4.