Tickets are $20.00
$ 35.00 for FACTORY BENEFIT GALA TICKETS
$5.00 Industry Night tickets with photo & resume
312.409.3247 for information and Gala Tickets only.
Synopsis
Meet Rodney Slickerston. He is a man who owns a high-end strip club.
Sound sleazy?
You be the judge. Rodney is the strip-club owner with the heart of gold. Elk and Faith are his loyal assistants. Grace Mannix is the overzealous Editor in Chief of a top women's magazine.....now. The Reverend Jimmy Caribou is trying to take over the strip club to tear it down and put up a Mall of Religion. Throw in strippers that range from a Ukrainian Goddess to a former NASA employee, and you’re on the Top Shelf... Top Shelf..., a romantic comedy courtroom drama with erotic dancing from the creators of the summer smash hit Toast of the Town!
Allison received her training at Carnegie Mellon University and Columbia College. She has worked almost exclusively on new work since 1990, in Los Angeles, Connecticut, Scotland and Chicago. She became the Artistic Director of the now defunct, Studio 108, after moving to Chicago (where she produced twelve new works, co-directing two of them) and has acted in a bunch of plays with various theater companies throughout the city over the past 14 years. A member of the Factory since 2000, she has been the Executive Director for the past 4 years. She is proud to, once again, be a part of a Scott OKen original and wishes to thank all of you who support Chicago theater.
Ernie Deak – (Nigel, Officer Rob Halford, Bailiff Ted)
Ernie Deak is proud to be a member of the Factory and is excited as hell to be in Top Shelf... Recently, he was sighted in Toast of the Town, which he also co-wrote. Boom goes the dynamite!
Matt Engle – (Al, Ralph Octopuslips)
Y'know, Matt really wanted to do this show so he can put "Octopuslips" on his resume. No shit. Well, that and the fact that Matt is a proud member of the Factory Theater and will accept any opportunity to work with such amazing people again and again. Some of his favorite roles include: Cy Curnin in Toast of the Town, Brian Nowlan in Being At Choice, and frat boy zombie, Grave Matthews in Among the Dead. He's also worked with various theatre companies around town (Steep Theatre, The Free Associates, Open Eye & Hi-Volt). And, here's a little known fact about Matt Engle: by day, he teaches the future of America to speak Pirate. Seriously.
Corri Feuerstein – (Starshine, Kelly Underweareyes)
In case you’re wondering what kind of nutjob plays a hippie waitress and a prosecuting attorney in a show about strippers, Corri would like to tell you that she is just that kind of nutjob. Corri is a Chicago native and is so thrilled to be working with the Factory that she could pee. But she won’t because she’s housebroken….now. She also serves as Artistic Director for Will Act For Food, a theater company she founded in 1997 that feeds Chicago’s hungry (and now Boston’s, too) through art and community service. Watch for them in their new home as residents at Chicago Academy for the Arts. Far from being exclusive, Corri has been seen canoodling with other companies like the Neo-Futurists, Open Eye, The Hypocrites, ImprovOlympic and loads of others she'll be happy to tell you about after you buy her a drink or twelve. She would like to tell the Reverend that he’s the swellest person alive and that she’s stupid for him. She would also like to thank some other people for stuff – thanks.
Laura McKenzie – ( Rhonda)
Laura was last seen as the kind of eccentric, kind of off-beat Arrabella C. Doyle in Toast of the Town. Other Factory credits include Menage a Trailer (co-writer and performer), Being at Choice and Chicagostyle. A native Texan, Laura has lived and performed all across the country, including doing her one woman show Laura McKenzie Feels Like Makin’ Love in Chicago, New York and Seattle. Other writer-performer credits include: Alice with the Neo-Futurists, Funk Cloud: Fight the Stank! and Waiting on Godot (co-written with Kate Hawley). Laura is a graduate of Northwestern University and does not have a job that offers health insurance.
Paul Metreyeon- (Elk)
Paul is overjoyed to play with the Factory again, this time, as a proud member of the ensemble! He was last seen as Wallington Smithington Silverston in Toast Of The Town, and for your viewing pleasure, will just do that role again in Top Shelf... Enjoy the show, and thanks for coming!
Janelle Mims (Shasta)
Janelle is pretty, black and has a humongous rack....or something to that effect. Originally a Southern Belle from Virginia, she's thrilled to call Chicago her new home. She's also thrilled to grace The Factory's stage in her first Chicago theater performance. Previous credits include Hair, Romeo & Juliet and Breath, Boom. She thanks everyone involved for making this a blast.
Erin Myers - (Grace Mannix)
Erin had never before heard of most of the jams in this show and would like to thank Messrs. OKen & Digilio for this opportunity to broaden her musical horizons: one day, she'll be cool. This is Erin’s first Factory show; other places you might have seen her include Redmoon, Irish Repertory Theatre, The Hypocrites and Live Bait. She thanks you for coming to the show – yes, you!
Scott OKen – (Rodney Slickerston/Playwrite)
Scott OKen cranks the jams, loudly, there’s nothing like a good guitar solo…damn! He is pleased that he can give his bio in the third person. He is overjoyed to performing in his fourth written effort….like Sabbath Volume 4…..OKen takes his Wheels of Confusion to perform a Cornucopia of Snowblind St. Vitus Dances……Goddamn! Even in the Bio he can’t stop referencing stuff! OKen has written or co-written Repair Guys,Surface Dwellers, Toast of the Town, and now Top Shelf…OKen has attempted to act in such Factory shows as..Clean, Urban Legends, Sabotage, Preying Manthis, White Trash Wedding and a Funeral, Win, Place or Show, Escape From the North Pole, Surface Dwellers, Factory Match Game, EndZone, Here Comes the Regular, Being at Choice, Menage a Trailer (as a member of the now legendary GuzzlerZ), and Toast of the Town….Most of those directed by Nick Digilo…wait! That means, if Digilio is John Ford….OKen must be John Wayne! Cool!...NO Wait! If Digilio is John Woo…OKen is Chow Yeun Fat!...naw…..more like Samo Hung…..hehe….he said “Hung”……where’s my treadmill?.....
Eric Thomas Roach – (The Doctor)
Eric is a proud member of the Factory Theater and excited to be in this show as the one and only Doctor! You may have seen him in other Factory productions such as Menage A Trailer, Lab Rats, Medea, School For Scandal, and Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf? He would like to dedicate this play to the past version of himself, Single Roach. Hey, remember strip clubs buddy? Yeah, you won't be doing that again. He also wants everyone to know that he just married the wonderful and amazing Angelina Martinez on October 1st, who is cool enough to let him be in a show about naked dancing right after their wedding. Angel, you gets all my love.
Sara Sevigny - (Jeannie)
Sara Sevigny likes the women. and who doesn't honestly? good, we're all in agreement. thanks to all of you reading this cause that means you're here...which of course is where we want you...being here that is. done lots of stuff which you can always ask me over a tasty beverage across the street, friggin thrilled to be working with the Factory, and co-founded open eye productions where I've also done many things...but there's no nepotism, or couch of any kind...we do have a loveseat tho. kisses to ms. gehr for just being spunky and, as always, to Jon for still finding me amusing after 14 years. I LOVE YOU PIMPY! mex3
Noah Simon – (Bill, Judge Torishiro Mifune)
Noah has been a Factory ensemble member since 2001 and was their Artistic Director from 2002 to 2004. He has done a litany of shows with them including but not limited to Captain Raspberry, Poppin & Lockdown (as the infamous Lou Jewison), and Goooo Speech Team. He's also worked with Strawdog, Defiant (R.I.P.), Collaboraction, Zeppo, The Hypocrites and Open Eye Productions for whom he directed the Jeff Recommended Tomfoolery. Noah's been away for a year and a half installing cabinets in the Arizona desert, but returned immediately upon being offered a part in a play that's
set in a Strip Club. Aw Yeah.
Manny Tamayo – (Officer Donald)
Manny is a proud member of the factory ensemble. He hails from Joliet.
Holly Thomas - (Cozette)
Although, perhaps not the most mountainous, Holly has great tits. Acceptable ass, but great tits. Yeah, she's done six years worth of shows and stuff around chi-town, member of Trap Door Theatre, but, really, its all about the tits. Before this production, Holly was a 29year old virgin to Factory Theater; she welcomes the pop. And so do her great tits. She raises a nipple to her Chicago family, loyal pals, corrupt co-workers, and her favorite Penguin-duo.
Anthony Tournis – (Dom)
TSG marks Anthony's second show with the Factory. You might remember him as Thurston Debladderhorn in Toast of the Town, The Schmuz in Empire Builders with The Right Brain Project, and Major Domo in Leonce und Lena with The Hypocrites. You think you have seen him somewhere else? Ask him! He hates writing about himself in the third person. Thanks to Family, Friends, Dawgs, and Stacie.
Heather Tyler – (Lucia)
It was a chilly night at Chief O'Neill's when Heather first implored writer, Scott OKen, to let her choreograph the final scene in TSG: "Please, oh puhleeaasse!!!..." she begged over his Guinness. A few months and many drafts later, she was surprised at a) truly being asked to step back into the dancer's shoes and b) the mini-disk she was being handed with the choices of Opening Number dance songs...Motley Crue? Silvertide?? Uriah Heep???...such is the plight of new Factory ensemble members. Heather is tickled to be a part of this cast and to have made them dance the most ridiculous of all dance moves...Come see her at Crunch where she can personally train you - body & soul. Love to matao, and tonight's performance is dedicated to Liliya.
Steve Walker (Rev. Jimmy Caribou)
Steve thinks he's a good actor when he's hungry. He would like to add that he wishes the Factory went with the original title of
this show: "Cunty McSnatchmo and the Labia Sisters: In
Praise of Poonani".
The Crew
Nick Digilio (Director) is the Artistic Director of Factory Theater and has been bopping around the Chicago theater scene for about 13 years now having been involved in over 30 shows. He is obsessed with "Gilmore Girls", so don't you dare call his apartment between 7 and 8pm on Tuesdays. He also watches the Food Network way too much, and currently has a huge crush on Giada De Laurentiis (and not because her grandfather produced "Dune"). Nick's heterosexual man crushes: Jeff Bridges, Colin Ferrell, Matthew McConaughey, Peter Sarsgaard and Dave Matthews. Drinking and laughing are his two favorite things to do, and he has a framed poster of the movie "Strange Days" hanging above his computer at home. His cats are named Jackass and Bangs, and they sleep with him every night (even when he crashes on the couch). Nick loves The Fixx, has seen every episode of "Being Bobby Brown" at least twice and he eats Spam on a regular basis. Oh yeah, he has acted in, written and/or directed (or any combination of the three) the following: Alive, Win Place or Show, The Vinyl Shop, White Trash Wedding and a Funeral, Preying Manthis, Among the Dead, Dick Danger: DJ Crimesolver, Rapid Fire, Speed the Play, Menage a Trailer, Being at Choice, and most recently he directed a show that he is still laughing at called Toast of the Town but he has a huge soft spot in his heart for one particular play called Here Comes a Regular. He has a radio show on WGN, listen to it, it's kinda funny. He thanks you for coming and hopes you enjoy the show.
Jason Lubow (ASM) originally agreed to lend his talents because he thought it would mark his TWENTIETH production with the Factory! Jason likes round numbers. Then he actually counted, and realized that it would only be his 19th...but by then it was far too
late. Dammit. OOPS! I SWORE! DEAD KITTY!
Wade Nachtigall (Set Design)
Bio coming soon!
Ziggy Olson (Props) Charlie "Ziggy" Olson walks dogs during the day and spends his evenings counterfeiting currency to use in this production. He once got drunk and passed out in the Air & Space Museum in Washington, DC, our nation's capitol.
Carrie J Sullivan (Stage Manager) is a proud member of The Factory. She ran sound on Among the Dead, stage managed for Being at Choice and for The Factory contributions to the Abbey Hoffman Festival for the past 2 years. She shed her cloak of secrecy for a moment last year and rocked the bass with the now-legendary GuzzlerZ in Menage a Trailer. She would like to remind everyone to try not to get worried; try not to turn on to problems that upset you…Ted was the best one, don’t listen to OKen.
Dan Tamarkin (Technical Director) loves the Factory. Dan loves women, too. So it was only natural that he drooled a little looking up at Top Shelf. In between swinging cats, playing strings with Nutmeg Slim & the Uptown Motherpluckers (available for all your jugband needs), bicycling & climbing, Dan runs Why A Duck Theatrical Productions, a design and rental service for Chicago theater. Thanks and praise to everyone at the Factory, to Saga, to Jean, and to women everywhere. Mmmmm, women.
C.W. van Baale (Lighting Design) has worked on several shows here in the Chicagoland area since his arrival in 1997. Ranging from the Oriental Theatre to the offest of Off-Loop shows and high schools, he has been seen both back stage and on. He is Resident LD for Open Eye Productions, as well as that company's Technical Director. After coordinating rentals at Designlab for 7 years, he now teaches science and math at the Chicago Academy for the Arts to pay the bills. Feel free to give him $20 if you see him.
Chas Vrba (Sound Design) Top Shelf marks a return to working behind the scenes for Chas after appearing in the last four Factory shows. Chas insisted on a nude role if he were to be cast in Top Shelf. Everyone involved in the production wasvehemently against that, so you won't see him in tonight's performance. He's sure you'll enjoy the show anyway.
Jennifer Zelinsky (Costume Designer) Costuming strippers! What a ride! Before the fun of working with the factory theatre other costuming credits include Pyewacket theatre (The Conversation),Theatre-Hikes (Sleepy Hollow) and Village Players Theatre (Broadway Snapshots). She currently does wardrobe for the Blue Man Group.
