The Chicago Theater-Makers Podcast

The Marriott Theatre was founded in 1975 and today the acclaimed theatre sells more than 400,000 tickets annually. In all, It has presented more than 180 productions to an estimated 11 million people! Earning praise from critics and audiences alike, they have received a record 599 Joseph Jefferson Award nominations. In addition to the presentation of classic American musical theatre, Marriott Thea...

Welcome to the Chicago Theater-Makers podcast! Each episode we’ll chat with actors, directors, choreographers, designers and producers shaping Chicagoland’s one-of-a-kind-theater scene! The aim of this podcast is to highlight theater-makers at every level: From high school drama clubs to community theater to storefront theaters to the big Union houses. New episodes drop every Monday, and in our fi...

Today’s guest has been a theater-maker for over 40 years. He’s an actor, singer and playwright whose first area bow was in Marriott Theatre’s production of "1776" nearly 30 years ago. Since then, he has been seen on many Chicago-area stages including the Goodman, Chicago Shakespeare Theatre, Drury Lane Theatre, First Folio Theatre, Oak Park Festival Theatre, and Porchlight Music Theatre...

Today’s guest has been seen on stages all over the Chicagoland as well as Broadway and National Tours for the last 40 years. He was most recently seen in "Translations" at Writers Theatre in Glencoe, and "Uncle Vanya" for the New Theatre Project. Past credits include Scrooge in Goodman Theatre’s perennial staging of "A Christmas Carol" , the National Tour of "Aladdin" on which he originated the ro...

In today’s 2 Act Episode, we’re going to chat with two community theaters in the Western suburbs both opening shows this coming weekend: City of Lights Cabaret and Theatre in Aurora, IL, producing "Pippin" from July 24th through July 27th, and Summer Place Theatre in Naperville, IL, producing "Legally Blonde" from July 25th through August 3rd. Tickets can be purchased at: https://www.cityoflightst...

This episode we chat with Artistic Director of the Oak Park Festival Theatre, Peter G. Andersen. Mr. Andersen is a graduate of Carnegie Mellon University’s MFA directing program and a graduate of Emerson College where he obtained his BFA in Acting. Formerly, he was the education manager at Writers Theatre in Glencoe. He has also worked at Steppenwolf Theatre Company as an Education Apprentice and...

Our very first episode features a husband and wife director/ choreographer team who have been seen on Broadway and National tours, but since 2013 have made Chicago their hometown and their creative home base. Justin Brill is an actor, singer, dancer and educator currently assistant professor of Theater arts at Illinois Wesleyan University. Shanna VanDerwerker is an actress, singer, dancer and chor...