Mercury Theater Chicago Will Present SHEAR MADNESS

L. Walter Stearns, Executive Director of Mercury Theater Chicago, announced today the cast and creative team of the upcoming SHEAR MADNESS, running on the main stage from February 7 through March 29. The press opening is Sunday, February 16 at 7pm. This hit comedic murder-mystery has slayed the hearts of audiences around the world for more than 40 years, following a mysterious murder above the Shear Madness Salon - leaving it to the audience to catch the killer among the actors. SHEAR MADNESS will be directed by the Jeff Award winning Warner Crocker.

SHEAR MADNESS was originally written by Paul Portner and was adapted into a rollicking comedy by Marilyn Abrams and Bruce Jordan. The cast of Shear Madness includes Ed Kross as Tony Whitcomb, Brittany D. Parker as Barbara DeMarco, Joe Popp as Nick Rossetti, Mary Robin Roth as Mrs. Schubert, David Sajewich as Eddie Lawrence and Sam Woods as Mikey Thomas. The creative team includes Warner Crocker (Director), L. Walter Stearns (Executive Producer), Eugene Dizon (Managing Director), Ben Lipinski (Set Designer), Kristi J. Martens (Production Stage Manager), Kristof Jarezic (Lighting Designer), Rachel Boylan (Costume Designer) and Carl Wahlstrom (Sound Designer).

SHEAR MADNESS - Chicago's Hilarious Whodunit! - this wildly popular interactive comedy keeps audiences laughing as they try to outwit suspects and catch a killer. A murder is committed, and the audience gets to spot the clues, question the suspects and solve the funniest mystery in the annals of crime. The outcome is never the same, which is why many audience members return again and again to the scene of the mayhem. New clues and up to the minute improvisation deliver a different show every night.

A Chicago favorite, SHEAR MADNESS previously played at the Blackstone Hotel for 17 years. Voted Best Comedy of the Year seven times by the Boston Globe and recipient of the title Best Play of the Year by both the Chicago Sun-Times and the Philadelphia Enquirer, SHEAR MADNESS has also received the Raven Award from the Mystery Writers of America and has been inducted into the Comedy Hall of Fame, the first play ever to receive that accolade.
SHEAR MADNESS runs from February 7 through March 29. The press opening is Sunday, February 16 at 7pm. The performance schedule is Wednesdays at 8pm, Thursdays at 8pm, Fridays at 8pm, Saturdays at 3pm and 8pm and Sundays at 3pm. Individual tickets range from $40-$80 and are available online at www.MercuryTheaterChicago.com, over the phone at 773.325.1700, or in person at the Mercury Theater box office at 3745 N. Southport Avenue, Chicago.

About the Cast of SHEAR MADNESS:

Ed Kross (Tony Whitcomb) is thrilled to be appearing at Mercury Theater Chicago for the first time. Credits include West Side Story (Lyric Opera Of Chicago), Hazel (Drury Lane Oakbrook), The Jungle Book and Animal Crackers (The Goodman), I Love Lucy: Live Onstage (Broadway Playhouse), as well as productions at Chicago Shakespeare Theater, Second City Theatricals, The Royal George, Peninsula Players, and American Blues Theater (where he is a 22-year ensemble member). On the small screen, he's appeared in over 75 commercials and had guest roles on Fargo, Chicago Fire, Patriot, Sirens, and Boss. On the big screen, he has shared one-on-one scenes with Tom Hanks in Road To Perdition and George Clooney in Ocean's 12. He is a proud union member of Actor's Equity Association, SAG-AFTRA, and AGMA. He can be found at www.edkross.com.

BRITTANY D. PARKER (Barbara DeMarco) is ecstatic to make her Chicago theater premiere at Mercury Theater Chicago! A Minneapolis native by way of Philadelphia, Brittany has performed across the country with musical theater productions, stand-up and improv acts. Regional theatrical credits include: Children's Theater Company, Park Square Theatre, Ordway Center for the Performing Arts, History Theater, Stages Theater Company, Artistry Theater, Walking Shadow Theater, Yellow Tree Theater, Troupe America, Old Log Theater, Imagination Stage and Hennepin Theater Trust. Film credits include: In an Instant (ABC), The Rug (a Catalyst Film festival & TCFF selection), the recently filmed mini-series "Breakdowns", and over 35 regional and national commercials. Brittany is a proud member of AEA.

Joe Popp (Nick Rossetti) is thrilled to make his Mercury Theater Chicago debut with Shear Madness, and is so excited to be working with two of the greatest people in the Chicago theater industry, Walter Stearns and Warner Crocker! Joe is a Shear Madness veteran, having performed this one-of-a-kind masterpiece of comedy and theater for decades in Chicago, Washington DC, and Milwaukee. He also recently directed a record-breaking production of the show in Lancaster, PA. Not only is Joe a member of a small group that has performed all four of the male roles, but he has also been lucky enough to have worked onstage with the two creators of Shear Madness, the uber talented Bruce Jordan & Marilyn Abrams. Other selected Chicago area credits include: The Rocky Horror Picture Show, Love, Sex & The IRS, Miracle On South Division Street, and numerous children's productions. For over 20 years, Joe has traveled the world using his acting skills in the business world as a spokesman, presenter, and emcee with MakeYourMessagePopp.com.

Mary Robin Roth (Mrs. Shubert) is thrilled to return to the Shear Madness salon after appearing in productions at the Blackstone Theatre, Chicago Theatre, The Kennedy Center and San Francisco companies. Chicago credits include: Gypsy (Mama Rose), Hello Dolly (Dolly Levi), Mame (title role), Sister Act (Sr. Lazarus), Follies (Carlotta; Jeff Award and After Dark Award winning) and A Streetcar Named Desire starring Renee Fleming. Regional credits include: Cabaret (Fraulein Schneider), The Full Monty (Jeanette), Chicago (Mama Morton), Spitfire Grill (Hannah), Arsenic and Old Lace (Abby), Nunsense 1 & 2 (Sr. Robert Anne) Unnecessary Farce (Mary Meekly). Tours include: National and International companies of Evita and the Toronto company of Sunset Blvd. (Norma Desmond understudy). Broadway credits include: The Mystery of Edwin Drood & Senator Joe (Jean McCarthy). "MR" is a proud member of SGI-USA, an organization dedicated to world peace through culture and education.

David Sajewich (Eddie Lawrence) is excited to be returning to Mercury Theater Chicago after just appearing in their productions of Spamalot and Little Shop of Horrors, as well as in the Venus Cabaret Theater's inaugural production of Company. Working throughout the Midwest, some select credits include: A Wonderful Life and All Shook Up (Theatre at the Center); The Pajama Game (The Music Theatre Company); Oklahoma and Mamma Mia (Stages St. Louis); A Wonderful Life, All Shook Up, Disney's Beauty And The Beast, Once Upon A Mattress, and Legally Blonde (Fireside Theatre). David also appeared as Ash in the National Tour of Evil Dead: The Musical. He can be found at www.davidsaje.com.

SAM WOODS (Mikey Thomas, u/s Tony) is thrilled to be back with Mercury Theater Chicago where he last appeared as the puppeteer of Audrey II in Little Shop of Horrors and in Spamalot as the understudy for Lancelot. Other credits include: Nureyev's Eyes (Bluebarn Theatre), Legally Blonde: The Musical (Paul Bunyan Playhouse), Peter and the Starcatcher (Great Plains Theatre). When not in the theatre, Sam can be found performing all around the city with his improv team LIAR, or writing his next sketch show.

Warner Crocker (Director) is delighted to return to Mercury Theater Chicago where he has previously directed The Man Who Murdered Sherlock Holmes and Bunny Bunny. Recent projects include Shear Madness at Circa '21 Dinner Playhouse, Peter Pan, Junk, The Bridges of Madison County, Snapshots, Pinocchio, Mama Won't Fly, Diamonds and Divas and The Seven-Per-Cent-Solution as well as work with The International Voices Project. In past lives he has served as Artistic Director of the Wayside Theatre, New Tuners Theatre, Pegasus Players and the Absolute Theatre Company, which he founded. He is the recipient of a number of Chicago's Joseph Jefferson Awards and other awards for his work as a director and designer. He is the author of Robert E. Lee and John Brown: Lighting the Fuse. With composer and lyricist Steve Przybylski he has written the musicals Southern Crossroads, Southern Crossroads: New Orleans, and musical version of A Christmas Carol, and a musical adaptation of The Three Musketeers with composer and lyricist Gregg Opelka that had its world premiere in Omsk, Russia.

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