10 on Tuesday...with Matt Crowle

1) Show you first auditioned for (and did you get the part) I was 7 years old and it was for the the Marshall Civic Theatre production of Annie Get Your Gun, for the role of "3rd little indian boy". And as fate would have it, I GOT IT!! I've been hooked ever since.

2) Where Are You From? Born and raised in Marshall, Michigan.

3) Currently Working On / Recently Closed? Currently playing Leo Bloom in The Producers at Mercury Theater Chicago. Just closed Bye Bye, Birdie at Drury Lane Oakbrook, where I played Albert Peterson.

4) What's your dream role/production? I've been super fortunate to get to play a number of my dream roles, including Bert in Mary Poppins and Cosmo Brown in Singin' In The Rain. I guess, one remaining role on my bucket list would be the Scarecrow in The Wizard Of Oz, while I still have the legs to do it.

5) Favorite post-performance haunt? The Hopleaf for an ice cold draught beer and THE best fries in Chicago!

6) Living or dead, who would you drop everything to see perform? Probably Tom Waits.

7) Who's your biggest inspiration? My parents. They raised me to believe that I could do and be anything. Their support and encouragement has always been the reason I've had the courage to weather the brutal ups and downs of showbiz.

8) Describe the Chicago community in three words. Home, sweet home.

9) Fill in the blank: "If I could change one thing about theatre in Chicago, it would be ..... " More livable wages. I know there is only so much money to go around, and I'm not ignorant to the cost of producing theatre. And I'm aware that, even in the best economies, theatres struggle to stay in the black. This is STRICTLY a fantasy, a "dream world" scenario. I have had to great fortune of working in some of the greatest theatres in Chicago. Some pay wonderfully, because they are bolstered handsomely by thriving subscription bases. But then there are the smaller theatres that work on shoestring budgets and continue to produce lovely theatre because they are staffed by selfless, committed artists. I am always humbled and in awe of the non-union actors I have worked with in my years in Chicago, who are up at 6 a.m. to work an 8 hour day-job, and then ride their bikes to the rehearsal studio for a 4 or 5 hour evening rehearsal. My hat is off to them. They are lion-hearted and exemplify the true meaning of living for your craft. And THEY are whom I refer to about livable wages. Because if their salary were equal to the work and passion they commit to their productions, they'd all be millionaires in my opinion. The true heroes of Chicago theatre.

10) Fill in the blank: "The thing I'd never change about theatre in Chicago is ....... " The divine variety of theatre this city offers. It's beyond inspiring, what you can find to watch, experience, and lose yourself in.