Passion, rage, desperation, love and a rollicking good time! These are the things you’ll find if you venture into the unknown world of the underground drama scene here at Stanford University. “Chekhov is for Lovers” is an event put on by an independent production group on campus under the direction of Jeff Norman ‘10.

An appropriate title for a rendition of Anton Chekhov’s plays “The Proposal” and “The Bear,” as these two pieces present the tension involved in the passionate struggle of romance. Not overtly sentimental, the plays depict the fury of passionate love and the humor that stems the battle of the sexes.

Love and frustration seem to be an underlying theme for many theatre companies and productions; the whole process involves such a deep commitment and ardor, but the frustration at Stanford can often come from the lack of an outlet for this fervor for the arts. Norman commented on the lack of a forum at Stanford for the kind of theatre he wanted to do.

Sure, Ramshead produces Gaieties and One-Acts, StanShakes does, well, Shakespeare and the Stanford Drama Department presents all sorts of avant-garde productions, but where is the Shaw, the Ibsen, the O’Neil or Odets?

It is true — Stanford seriously lacks this kind of theatre and it is possible that this is due to the lack of funding for such ventures. “You can’t get funding if you are not an official Stanford student group,” Norman said, and the process for becoming such a group can be quite drawn out and torturous.

Providing a “unique service” and being able to sustain the group’s activities for enough years to display longevity are just a few of the requirements for student groups. This may not sound particularly challenging, but at Stanford, a world where everyone is competing for space and performance time, just finding a place that will let you perform can be very difficult.

“We had to fight really hard to get this space,” Norman says of the room in the Elliott Programming Center where the show will be held. “It wasn’t easy at all.” But one could say that nothing worth doing ever is.

And was it worth it? Norman remarked that his favorite part of the production process was the opportunity the theatre gave him, an only child, to experienced th brotherly and sisterly love he missed out on growing up. “Just being able to develop close personal relationships, building something, growing together...” make the production process worthwhile for this director.

And speaking of building something together, the cast and crew of “The Bear” and “The Proposal” have created something incredibly delightful. The night is one full of highs and lows and ups and downs that keep the audience on the edge of their seats. Packing two of Chekhov’s shorter plays together, the whole night is expected to take a mere 65 minutes — including an intermission — but the entertainment packed into that one hour is immense.

A few highlights of “The Proposal” include the mother-daughter unit played by Jessica Jacobs ‘08 and Jasmin Yu ‘10. Taking some liberty with the genders of the play as written by Chekhov, the character who was once the father Stephan Stepanovich Chubukov is now “Stepania.” The switch works well though — Jacobs is able to maintain that air of authority combined with an elegance that would otherwise be lacking onstage.

Both her character and the character of her on-stage daughter, Natalya, are simply hilarious when paired together, each one feeding off the energy of the other and providing the audience with an amusing portrayal of this family relationship. And the man who brings the conflict and love into the scene is Ivan Vassilevich Lomov, played by Rico Roque ‘09. The physical comedy he brings to the scene keeps the action going at a steady pace and affords the viewer many laughs.

“The Bear” also has a cast of three characters, Elana Ivanovna Popova, played by Maria Carolina Roeller ‘10; Grigory Stepanovich Smirnov, portrayed by Sam Alimi ‘11 and the servant, Luka, with another gender switch performed flawlessly by Sarah Guerrero ‘11. Guerrero’s rendition of Luka is done seamlessly; physically and vocally, her performance is flawless and a true delight, the epitome of how an actor can take a “small” role and make it something really worth watching. The weeping widow played by Roeller is also absolutely charming — the character’s arc of development is presented in a way that is quite believable and interesting.

Then there is “the Bear” — burly, brusque, mean and angry. Alimi’s portrayal is right on the money. And while the chemistry between his character and the widows is unexpected upon first entering the scene as the two are at such odds with each other, this tension makes the final romantic embrace a cathartic and amusing one.

All in all, this night of underground theatre is one you won’t want to miss! “Chekhov is for Lovers” opened Thursday, May 8, and runs through Saturday, May 10. It is showing at the Elliott Programming Center and starts at 8 p.m. Admission is $5.