COMPANY

CREATIVE TEAM

L. WALTER STEARNS (Director) As Executive Director of Mercury Theater Chicago, Walter is a champion for Chicago artists and productions and has overseen the physical and cultural revival of Mercury Theater Chicago as well as opening a revolutionary and state-of-the-art cabaret theater space, Venus Cabaret Theater, with this production of Company. He has directed over 30 musicals including his Jeff Award winning productions of The Addams Family and Ragtime as well as the Jeff Award nominated productions of Mary Poppins, The Producers, The Addams Family, Avenue Q, The Color Purple, Barnum-The Circus Musical, The Christmas Schooner, Nine the Musical, Ragtime, Gypsy, The Secret Garden, Sweeney Todd, Company, A New Brain, Into the Woods, Merrily We Roll Along and Falsettos. He is pleased to produce The Man Who Murdered Sherlock Holmes, which was awarded the Jeff Award for New Work. Walter has received the Jeff Award, BroadwayWorld Award, After Dark Awards, the Larry Sloan Advocate Award (for his support of Season of Concern), the first Guy Adkins award for his contributions to the art of musical theatre and the Franny Award as a distinguished alumnus of the University of Illinois at Chicago.

EUGENE DIZON (Musical Director) is so proud to open this new venue with his husband, L. Walter Stearns, with one of his favorite shows, Company. Eugene has been musical directing for over two decades garnering 6 Jeff Awards (Ragtime, Sweeney Todd, Amadeus, Company, Into the Woods, Merrily We Roll Along), as well as Jeff nominations for A Grand Night for Singing, Candide, Nine the Musical, Closer Than Ever, A Little Night Music, Passion, Colette Collage, and Falsettos; 4 After Dark Awards (Ragtime, Sweeney Todd, A New Brain, Merrily We Roll Along), a BroadwayWorld Award for Mercury’s Avenue Q and BroadwayWorld nominations for this past season’s Hair and Mary Poppins, as well as The Color Purple. Additionally, he has musical directed seven seasons of The Christmas Schooner, The Producers and Barnum at the Mercury. Eugene is honored to have been inducted into the Chicago Filipino Hall of Fame. Eugene has co-produced 5 “Season of Carols” CD’s (with the amazing Cory Goodrich) which features some of the brightest talent in Chicago theater today, for which Season of Concern awarded him the Larry Sloan Advocate Award (2013). This spring, Eugene received the Larry Sloan Legacy Award (2018) as a trailblazer in the Chicago theater community on behalf of Season of Concern.

AUBREY ADAMS (Choreography) is very excited to a part of this inaugural season at Venus Cabaret Theater! She is a Chicago performer and choreographer, who recently received a Jeff Award for her choreography for BoHo Theatre’s production of Urinetown. Other recent credits include: Associate Choreographer for Trevor: The Musical at Writers Theatre, Choreographer for Bonnie & Clyde at Kokandy Theatre Company; Assistant Choreographer for Mamma Mia and A Christmas Story at The Paramount Theatre. Thanks to Walter and everyone at the Mercury for this opportunity!

DUSTIN L. DERRY (Lighting Design) is excited to return for his second project with Mercury Theater Chicago after recently working on The Christmas Schooner. A proud Chicago native, Dustin has been bringing his unique blend design style, love for new technology, and passion for his artistry to the dance and theatre world of Chicago and beyond for the past 15 years. He is the co-founder and CEO of Stonewolf Studios, production design and management company serving the Chicago Dance communities as well several national touring companies. In the dance world, 'D', has been increasingly active with companies like Ensemble Español, Inaside Chicago Dance, Deeply Rooted Dance Theatre, the Moscow Ballet, and many more. Dustin's work often will blend together conventional lighting with LEDs, Lasers, and Projection to create richly colorful and dynamic worlds around performers on stage. Finally, Dustin would like to ask you to please, “Be the Change You Wish to See In the World.” 

Robert Kuhn (Costume Design) is pleased to be returning to Mercury Theater Chicago, where he previously designed Bunny Bunny: Gilda Radner, a Not So Love Story, Hair and The Man Who Murdered Sherlock Holmes. Recent design credits include: Time is on Our Side, I Am My Own Wife (About Face Theater); Peter Pan (Music Theater Works); Bonnie and Clyde, Heathers (Kokandy Productions); and SS! Macbeth (The Chicago Shakespeare Theater). Other Chicago Credits include works with Drury Lane Oakbrook, Emerald City Theater, Northwestern University, Concordia University-Chicago, Pegasus Theater, Piven Theatre Workshop, Lookingglass Theater Company, Marriott Theatre, Paramount Theatre, Cock and Bull Theater, Mortar Theatre Company, and Theatre-Hikes. Regional design credits include: Smokey Joe’s Cafe (Pennsylvania Centre Stage) and Dracula and Othello (The Arkansas Shakespeare Theater). Robert is a member of USA 829. www.robertskuhn.com

Liviu Pasare (Video Design) has a Chicago-based practice creating works and visual experiences using new media and technology. He works as a video designer, cinematographer, editor, animator and has produced, directed and performed for live multimedia experiences. He has been affiliated with theaters and artists such as Luftwerk, Bob Faust, Collaboraction, Chicago Children's Theatre, Manual Cinema, Victory Gardens, Blue Man Group, Lucky Plush, The Seldoms, Claudia Hart, NicK Cave. For more info Visit Liviu.stoptime.live

Richard Lundy* (Stage Manager) Chicago credits include: Paradise Blue, The Last Wife, Sunset Baby (Timeline). Dracula (Hypocrites), Assassination Theater (Museum of Broadcast Communications). 16 productions including The Adding Machine: A Chamber Musical, (Next Theatre). Meet John Doe (Porchlight Theatre). Oh Coward!, The Maids (Writers' Theatre). Suburban Motel (Famous Door), Other Chicago credits: Northlight, Remains, Victory Gardens, Organic, Halstead Theatre, Wisdom Bridge. Regional: Trinity Repertory Company, The Cleveland Play House, Folger Shakespeare, Shakespeare & Company. National tours: I Love Lucy Live! (David George) and Miss Saigon (Cameron Mackintosh). 32-year member of Actors Equity. Married to the wonderful Carmel Carroll for 26 years.