title role in "man in a case," a multimedia adaptation of two short stories about love and loss by anton chekhov. let's take a look first at a scene from "man in a case," in which byelikov, a repressed schoolmaster, takes out his frustration by dismissing two students. >> i hope it does not reach the ears of the authorities. oh, i hope not in consulate. there could be trouble. it would be a very good thing if student were expelled from the second form. and student from the fourth. >> would that be a fair description of what you're doing here, experimental theater? >> well, it is sort of american avante-gardee. you know two directors, annie b. parsons and paul lazar are both known artists who are in the last 20-plus years sort of developing their style of presenting stories. they always look for a piece of literature which could be open let's say this is two short stories of chekhov. chekhov knows of his big plays like "cherry orchard," "seagull," et cetera. but it's probably just more difficult to adapt and to present something new in them. short stories, because they are so short, they allow di