Star on the Door

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John Michael Sharkey (May 6, 1931 – September 28, 1992) was an American writer who published over eighty plays, many under pen names. 

Sharkey was born in Chicago, Illinois, the son of Patrick and Mary Sharkey. In the 1960s, he worked at Playboy and edited the company magazine for Allstate Insurance. He published science fiction stories starting in 1959 with "The Captain of His Soul", which appeared in Fantastic. He published about fifty stories in science fiction magazines such as Galaxy Science Fiction.

Sharkey wrote plays under his own name and four pseudonyms: Rick Abbot, Mark Chandler, Monk Ferris, and Mike Johnson.

Leo W. Sears, CFEE. Leo has four plays published with the Samuel French imprint of Concord Theatricals: Sorry! Wrong Chimney!, 100 Lunches: A Gourmet Comedy and Star on the Door were co-written with the prolific late Jack Sharkey. Borderline Crazies was his solo work.

He has directed 65 plays and produced 90 in high school theater, community theater and dinner theater. He was founder/owner of Metro Playhouse, dinner theater company from 1985 - 1992. Retired in 2001 after 25 1/2 years as high school teacher in theater and English. He has acted on stage and screen (in both movies and commercials). Graduated from Arizona State University in 1975 with a B Ed in Communication Arts with emphasis in Theater. Honored in Who's Who Among Colleges and Universities. Twice wounded Vietnam-era Marine. Founder/Owner/Executive Director of Big Island Film Festival in Hawaii from 2006 to 2016. He is a Certified Festival and Events Executive with IFEA. Currently living in Iowa City, IA.

Morris Theatre Guild

Welcome, and thank you for your interest in our theatre. Morris Theatre Guild is a not-for-profit group formed in 1973 to create theatrical productions for our local communities. Our purpose is to promote the interest of the public, our patrons, and the general membership of the guild in the theatrical arts, to educate all interested persons in the various skills involved in theatre, to cultivate artistic expression and provide opportunities to participate and experience live theatre in our area. Please consider showing your support by making a donation.

Breakdown

Setting

The entire play takes place in the dressing room of Doreen Lewis the opening night of The Inspector and the Aunt.

Act 1

Doreen's dressing room, a few minutes before the curtain.

Act 2, Scene 1

Doreen's dressing room, a few minutes before intermission.

Act 2 Scene 2

Doreen's dressing room, about half an hour later. 

There will be a 15 minute intermission between acts. 

Thank You

Special Thanks to:

Cheryl Crisman

Ellen Rasmussen

PLEASE SUPPORT OTHER AREA COMMUNITY THEATRES

JOLIET DRAMA GUILD  https://www.thejolietdramaguild.com/

ENGLE LANE THEATRE https://englelane.org/

STAGE 212 https://www.stage212.org/ 

Cast

Creative Team

Meet the Company

Sue Graham

Doreen Lewis

This is Sue's second time performing with Morris Theatre Guild. Last year, Sue performed in Morris Theatre Guild’s performance of the two-person play, “The Gin Game”. Some of her other shows she has performed in are “Peter Pan”, “Always a Bridesmaid”, “45 Seconds from Broadway”, and “Lie, Cheat, and Genuflect “. I am grateful for Morris Theatre Guild’s faith and support of me, and am looking forward to directing their upcoming production of “Shrek”! Sue is most grateful for the love, support, and inspiration she gets from my daughter, Kendel Rose!

Joseph Baima

Wolfgang Ferris

Joe has appeared in many local productions at MTG, Stage 212, Engle Lane and WilleyWorld, beginning in 1997 with "Something's Afoot" at MTG and, most recently, "American Buffalo", also at MTG. Joe is retired from Caterpillar, Inc. and lives in Marseilles with his wife, Dr. Mary Pat Baima.

James Welch

Paul Burnside

Jim is thrilled once again to be performing on the MTG stage. Jim's last endeavor was directing the reboot of Seeing Stars In Dixie. Jim last portrayed Paul Sheldon in the MTG's presentation of Misery. You may also have seen Jim on stage in other MTG hits, such as, “The Odd Couple”, “The Alto's”, “Over the River and Through the Woods” and "Squabbles." He also portrayed Herr Schultz in The Just Passing By Theatre Companies production of “Cabaret”. Jim has directed such stage hits for the MTG such as, “Lost In Yonkers” “Wait Until Dark”, “Steel Magnolias” and “Bill W & Dr Bob”. Jim is employed with Heniff Transportation as a hazmat tanker driver and loves spending time with his family. Jim is a diehard White Sox fan and enjoys boating, fishing, and swimming, and relaxing at his cottage on Delavan Lake Wisconsin. and camping at The Grundy Co Rod & Gun Club. Jim has been a board member for the Morris Theatre Guild for 37 years, and is currently serving as Vice President. He is looking forward to many years ahead with the MTG

William Gillespie

Mel Thorn

William lives in Morris. Bill has been in many productions with Morris Theatre Guild. Some of Bill’s most recent shows were “Squabbles”, “Sex Please We’re Sixty”, “Fox on the Fairway”, “On Golden Pond” (Engle Lane) and “I Hate Hamlet” (Lat 41). Bill appeared on several other community theatre stages from IVVC, Lat 41 and Engle Lane. Bill has three children.

Tamara Malebranche

Beverly

Tamara is thrilled to return to the Morris stage after an 18-month hiatus. She was previously seen in "Mama Won't Fly" and "Momologues 2: Off to School." When Tamara isn't on stage, she works as the Director of Music at Holy Family Parish in Shorewood. Tamara would like to thank her husband, Jim, and daughter, Isabel, for supporting her passion to become an entirely different person for a few hours these past two months.

Matt Pasternak

Thomas

Matt Pasternak is excited to be Thomas in Star on the Door at Morris Theatre Guild! A resident of Joliet, Matt was active in theatre in high school at Gardner-South Wilmington HS before returning to the stage in 2019. Matt is a board member at the Morris Theatre Guild, active both on stage and behind the scenes, and he appreciates your support of community theatre!

Fluffy

Fluffy the poochie

Fluffy is excited to be make his onstage debut with the Morris Theatre Guild. Fluffy hails from a toy chest of a small community day care center. When not on stage, Fluffy enjoys quite evenings buried by other toys in his toy chest. He became interested in acting while watching Toy Story during snack time, with his favorite character being Zurg from Toy Story 2. Fluffy's dream role is to play the villain. Thank you to all the ladies at the center for breaking me out and onto the stage!

Matthew Johnson

Director

Christine Johnson

Stage Manager

Brian Pross

Technical Manager

Sarah Crisman

Scenic Artist

Colin Rasmussen

Theatre Technician

Max Jones

Theatre Technician

Multimedia

Morris Theatre Guild Christmas Show

Dates: Dec 6-8 & 13-15

Adapted for radio by ANTHONY E. PALERMO from Frank Capra’s 1946 film It’s a Wonderful Life is based on the story, The Greatest Gift by Philip Van Doren Stern.

This beloved American holiday classic comes to captivating life as a live 1940s radio broadcast. With the help of an ensemble that brings a few dozen characters to the stage, the story of idealistic George Bailey unfolds as he considers ending his life one fateful Christmas Eve.

DIRECTORS WANTED

Morris Theatre Guild is always looking for directors. If you are interested please use the link below to fill out the application and when you are done email it to: info@morristheatreguild.org

Director application: Directors Application.

Auditions

And They Came for Me: Jan 5th & 6th, 2025, from 6:30-8pm; 5 Males and 4 Females

Show Dates: 3/7/2025 – 3/16/2025

Synopsis

And Then They Came for Me is a unique theatrical experience: a multimedia play that combines videotaped interviews with Holocaust survivors Ed Silverberg and Eva Schloss with live actors recreating scenes from their lives during World War II. Ed was Anne Frank’s first boyfriend, and she wrote about him in the beginning of her now-famous diary. Eva Schloss was the same age as Anne Frank and lived in the same apartment building in Amsterdam. Her family went into hiding the same day as the Frank family. And like the Frank family, they were betrayed. On Eva’s 15th birthday, her family was arrested by the Nazis and sent to concentration camps. Eva and her mother survived, and after the war her mother married Otto Frank (Anne’s father). Part oral history, part dramatic action, part direct address, part remembrance, the ensemble-driven And Then They Came for Me breaks new ground and has been acclaimed by audiences and critics in world-wide productions. This production is like a historic newsreel brought to life on the stage.

UPCOMING SEASON

Morris Theatre Upcoming Shows

 Dates: Jan 24 - Feb 2, 2025

"Once upon a time, there was a little ogre named Shrek...."And thus begins the tale of an unlikely hero who finds himself on a life-changing journey alongside a wisecracking Donkey and a feisty princess who resists her rescue. Throw in a short-tempered bad guy, a cookie with an attitude and over a dozen other fairy tale misfits, and you've got the kind of mess that calls for a real hero. Luckily, there's one on hand... and his name is Shrek.

Show Dates: March 7-16, 2025

And Then They Came for Me is a unique theatrical experience: a multimedia play that combines videotaped interviews with Holocaust survivors Ed Silverberg and Eva Schloss with live actors recreating scenes from their lives during World War II. Ed was Anne Frank's first boyfriend, and she wrote about him in the beginning of her now-famous diary. Eva Schloss was the same age as Anne Frank and lived in the same apartment building in Amsterdam. Her family went into hiding the same day as the Frank family. And like the Frank family, they were betrayed.  Part oral history, part dramatic action, part direct address, part remembrance, the ensemble-driven And Then They Came for Me breaks new ground and has been acclaimed by audiences and critics in world-wide productions. 

Show Dates: May 9-18, 2025

The Drowning Girls, a ghost story about three British women who, all murdered by the same man in the early years of the last century, were considered–and considered themselves– insubstantial. Insubstantial, that is, until their murderer charmed them into marriage, thereby making them, as one of the trios says, “a useful member of society.”

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