Night Cast

(In order of appearance)

• Barbara DeMarco
  Soneka Anderson
• Mike Thomas
  Sam Parrott
• Tony Whitcomb
  RP McLaughlin
• Eddie Lawrence
  Cory Cunningham
• Nick O’Brien
  Patrick Noonan
• Mrs. Shubert
  Maureen Kerrigan

Understudies

Female Understudy — Francie Glick
Male Understudy — Bob Lohrmann
Nick O’Brien — Cory Cunningham
Eddie Lawrence — Sam Parrott

Who's Who in the Cast

Night Cast

RP McLaughlin (Tony Whitcomb) (they/them) is thrilled to be back in the Shear Madness salon. RP’s acting credits include I AM MY OWN WIFE (Stageworks), ROCKY HORROR SHOW (Dallas Theatre Center), NUNSENSE: AMEN! (Straz), FOREVER PLAID: PLAID TIDINGS (Straz), CURIOUS INCIDENT OF THE DOG IN THE NIGHT-TIME (TampaRep), THE FANTASTICKS (Salerno Theatre Company), SHEL’S SHORTS (Studio@620), and numerous concerts, cabarets, and readings. Offstage, RP consults with arts organizations nationally to fill gaps and strategically increase capacity. RP managed the $15M renovation of Washington DC’s Studio Theatre, served as Interim Programs Director for National New Play Network, Associate Produced the 2018 Women’s Voices Theatre Festival, and started their career as Artistic Fellow at Shakespeare Theatre Company, under Michael Kahn’s leadership. RP received their BFA in Theatre from Southern Methodist University. @RPDaysAreHereAgain. imrp.online.

Soneka Anderson (Barbara DeMarco) couldn't be happier to rejoin the DC company of "Shear Madness"! She recently appeared in the production at the Sharon Playhouse in Sharon, CT, and has been performing professionally since the age of 8. Her most recent credits include "Passing Strange" (Sherry/Renata/Desi - Moonbox Productions) and "The Wiz" (Scarecrow - Lyric Stage Company of Boston). Although she hails from Detroit, DC has been her home ever since she earned her BFA in musical theatre from Howard University. She would like to thank her family for their support, especially her biggest fan (and husband) Nicholas.

Sam Parrott (Mike Thomas) Kennedy Center Debut. DC: Shakespeare Theatre Company: Romeo and Juliet, Hamlet, Cymbeline. NEW YORK: Expand the Canon: War & Mercy; The Gallery Players: A Few Good Men; The Mechanicals: Much Ado About Nothing, Twelfth Night, Midsummer Night’s Dream, Cymbeline. REGIONAL: Greenbrier Valley Theatre: Midsummer; Shakespeare & Company: Romeo and Juliet, As You Like It, Hamlet, The Comedy of Errors, Pericles. TRAINING: MFA, The Shakespeare Theatre Company Academy at George Washington University.
https://www.samparrott.com/

Cory Cunningham (Eddie Lawrence) has been with Shear Madness since 2017. One of his favorite memories is walking around the building and seeing the colorful lights during Pride Month. Support local theatre. Support the arts.

Patrick Noonan (Nick O’Brien) just finished a run of Party People with the Actor's Theatre of Louisville and is excited to be rejoining the DC "Madness." A proud veteran of the longest running non-musical in America, he has starred as Nick in Shear Madness in numerous cities across the country, including the entirety of the OFF-Broadway run. Other Off-Broadway credits include: Almost, Maine and Perfect Crime. Favorite roles include Edgar in Irman Vep, Evan in Hard Cell (World Premiere), and King Arthur in Spamalot. Recent TV: Succession, FBI, Bull, Blue Bloods, And Just Like That, The Last O.G., Raisin Kanan, Awkwafina is Nora From Queens, The Good Fight, The Blacklist, several Law and orders, The Sinner, Mindhunter, Friends From College. Films include: Jules, West Side Story (2021), The Post, The Princess Diaries, The Half of it, Choose, Eileen (starring Anne Hathaway).

Maureen Kerrigan (Mrs. Shubert) has appeared in Rep Stage's Mary Rose; The Old Lady Shows Her Medals; A Lie of the Mind; Dancing at Lughnasa; and the Baltimore company of Menopause the Musical. New York credits include: The Gingerbread Lady; Night; Miss Lonely Hearts (with Kelsey Grammer) and the Public Theatre's reading of Monster. Regionally she has appeared in L.A. Theatre Works' The Heiress (with Chris Noth), Arena's South Pacific, American Century's ...Marigolds, Things That Go Bump in the Night, and Lady in the Dark (Helen Hayes Nominee), Signature's My Fair Lady, Center Stage's Six Degrees of Separation and The Cobbler; Ford's Theatre, To Kill a Mockingbird and Inherit the Wind (with James Whitmore); Royal Palm's Sweet Charity and Chicago (Carbonell Award Nominee); Loeb Drama Center's West Side Story (with Leonard Bernstein) and the Moscow tour of Peter Pan. Screen appearances: Kevin Spacey in Netflix’s House of Cards,The Accidental Tourist; (opposit Willian Hurt); The Murder of Mary Phagan (opposite Jack Lemmon); St. Elsewhere; Homicide: Life On The Street, Mary Chapin Carpenter's music video House of Cards, and the indie films Audrey's View and Mary/Mary (DC's Peer Award). In Philadelphia, Ms. Kerrigan received an EMMY award for her performance in KYW TV's Shattered Dreams and has appeared in a variety of Cabaret solo performances including A Woman's Worth. She was the host of "Takoma Cabaret" on WOWD Radio, has been a member of the American Pops Orchestra and is delighted to be The Voice Of God on numerous PBS music specials.

Bob Lohrmann (Artistic Director, Male Understudy) has played all the male roles in Shear Madness in DC, Philadelphia, Boston and Cleveland. He, with director Bruce Jordan, literally wrote the book on directing Shear Madness. He is a charter company member of The People’s Light Theatre Company, where he has appeared in principal roles in more than 35 productions, including Holy Ghosts , Hamlet , Waiting for Godot , Charley’s Aunt , Romeo and Juliet , The Taming of the Shrew , 1000 Clowns , Lenny , Death of a Salesman , The Glass Menagerie , As You Like It , Marat/Sade , Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf? , Roshomon , La Ronde , Our Town , Inherit the Wind , Precious Blood , Wait Until Dark , and The Good Woman of Setzuan . He directed the acclaimed one-man show The Night Larry Kramer Kissed Me in Washington and Don’t Dress for Dinner in Lake George. In the Philadelphia area, Mr. Lohrmann has performed at the Wilma Theatre, Walnut Street Theatre, The Arden Theatre Company, the Wilmington Grand Opera House, Bank Street Theatre, and Locust Street Theatre, as well as Ford’s Theatre in Washington. Additionally, he has appeared in dozens of commercials and industrials and several feature films. He was the announcer for the Nickelodeon kids show “Finders Keepers” (…tell em’ what they’ve won, Bob!). His Philadelphia-based production company, Bob… writes, casts, and produces commercials and industrial training films and created and published the highly successful The Actor’s Casting Guide . His comedy sketches have been performed at the Manhattan Punchline in New York.

Marilyn Abrams (Cranberry Productions) (original Co-Producer) and Bruce Jordan (Cranberry Productions) (original Co-Producer/ Director) are the owners and creators of Shear Madness , the longest running play in American theatre history. These two New York actors anticipated the trend toward interactive theatre and acquired the world rights to Scherenschnitt a serious murder mystery by Paul Portner, and turned it into a rollicking comedy. In 1978/1979 they workshopped it in Lake George, New York, where Jordan directed and created the role of Tony Whitcomb, the salon proprietor, and Abrams created the role of Barbara DeMarco, the gum chewing manicurist. From this small beginning, this exuberant duo has leap frogged around the world keeping audiences laughing with the ever changing topical humor and up to the minute improvisation. Jordan directs and maintains the quality of the productions and Abrams handles the sales, licensing, and marketing. While Boston retains the long run lead, Washington, D.C. and Chicago are close behind, making Shear Madness the triple crown of comedy champs in the USA. Shear Madness has had over 200 productions worldwide and has been translated into 35 foreign languages. Countries such as Greece, Poland, France, Argentina, and scores of others have chalked up record breaking runs on their own turf. Abrams and Jordan have many accolades to their credit, such as the Paris Moliere Award for Comedy (equivalent to our Tony), the Mystery Writer of America Raven Award, and the Los Angeles Dramalogue Award, and many many others. Shear Madness is the only play to win the Charlie Chaplin Award for Comedy, given by the National Comedy Hall of Fame. This producing pair is excited about its latest venture, eight simultaneous productions now running in China. Sydney Australia follows in 2024 in time for that city’s 2025 Theatre Festival. A long way from its Lake George beginning.

Francie Glick (Understudy, Assistant Stage Manager) returns to Shear Madness having performed the roles of Barbara DeMarco, Mrs. Shubert and Mikey Thomas. D.C. stage appearances include productions with MetroStage, The Washington Stage Guild, The National Archives, Woolly Mammoth Theatre Company, The Smithsonian Institution, Washington Jewish Theatre, Harlequin Dinner Theatre, Gross National Product comedy troupe, Off The Circle Theatre Company, CT Rex Family Theatre and NCTE. Regionally, Ms. Glick has performed with Cortland Repertory Theatre, Light Opera Company of Cape Cod and Fredericksburg Theatre Company. She can be seen and heard on numerous television and radio commercials, video games, feature films, and television series, both local and national.

Karen Currie (Production Stage Manager) KENNEDY CENTER: Digging Up Dessa, Oliverio,Mockingbird,Orphie and the Book of Heroes; OLNEY THEATRE CENTER: The Joy That Carries You, A.D. 16,Mary Stuart, Once, Finian’s Rainbow, In the Heights. SIGNATURE: Easy Women Smoking Loose Cigarettes, Heisenberg, Jesus Christ Superstar, The Fix, Cabaret, Saturday Night, Sycamore Trees, The Happy Time; VIRGINIA STAGE COMPANY: Detroit ’67, A Christmas Carol (2018); THEATER J: Over 20 productions including Trayf, The Christians, Another Way Home, G-D’s Honest Truth, Yentl, Freud’s Last Session, After the Revolution, The Whipping Man, and The Religion Thing; FOLGER THEATER: As You Like It; NYC: The Last Session; EDUCATION: M.A. in Arts Management, American University.

Day Cast

(In order of appearance)

• Barbara DeMarco
  Emily Gilson
• Mike Thomas
  Taylor Witt
• Tony Whitcomb
  Alex Domini
• Eddie Lawrence
  Max Johnson
• Nick O’Brien
  Bob Lohrmann
• Mrs. Shubert
  Tracy Coffey

Who's Who in the Cast

Day Cast

Tracy DiiBon Coffey (Mrs. Shubert) is thrilled to rejoin the DC Shear Madness company! DC credits: Babbitt (Shakespeare Theatre Company); King John, Taming of the Shrew, Arden of Faversham, East of the Sun, West of the Moon (Shakespeare Theatre Company Academy); The Lost Virginity Tour (Best Medicine Rep); REGIONAL credits: Becky Nurse of Salem (Trinity Rep); Sticks and Bones (Contemporary Theater Boston); The Assemblywomen (Head Trick Theater); The Legend of Sleepy Hollow (Center on Tour). Favorite onstage roles: Shakebag (Arden of Faversham) and Blanche Dubois (A Streetcar Named Desire). Favorite offstage roles: Happy wife of former military officer, Ross, and mom to three fabulous kiddos and the cutest dog ever! This run is for Dad, who loved a good comedy, and Richard, who gave me courage. TRAINING: MFA, Shakespeare Theatre Company Academy/George Washington University. SAG-AFTRA member. TracyDiiBonCoffey.com

Alex Domini (Tony Whitcomb) would kill to be part of Shear Madness for forever! Regional: Anything Goes (Ogunquit & Gateway Playhouse); Elf (Gateway Playhouse); Wizard of Oz, A Christmas Story (Capital Rep); A Christmas Carol (McCarter Theatre); 9 to 5, Kiss Me Kate, Young Frankenstein (Weathervane Rep). Readings: Adam Lives (Goodspeed Musicals). Opera: Young Artist at The Glimmerglass Festival (Art. Dir. Francesca Zambello), Opera North (Art. Dir. Evans Haile). TV: “The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel”. MSM Precollege and The Hartt School alum. Proud member of AEA since 2016.

Emily Gilson (Barbara DeMarco) Kennedy Center mainstage debut!! Emily is a mezzo-soprano and teaching artist born and raised in DC, and the first live theatre she ever saw was here in this building. Regional highlights: The Nance at 1st Stage (11 Helen Hayes nominations); Songbird with Washington National Opera, starring Ramin Karimloo; Soloist, LaTiDo DC/NoVA; Maryland Renaissance Festival acting company; Winterfest at Adventure Theatre MTC; Strand Theater Company (Lizzy Darcy, Miss Bennet); Tabletop Broadway NYC cabaret series ; the UK-based, digital Stage Award-nominated The Show Must Go Online (Northumberland, Richard II) [Offie Award winner, Off West End Theatre Special Recognition, 2021]; Avant Bard (Ariel, The Tempest); and Silver Spring Stage (Catherine, In the Next Room). Emily is also a resident voice actor with Jabberwocky Audio Theater (last heard in Quorum: The Gambler's Tale). TV: The Daily Show. Film: Rustin (Netflix, dir. George C. Wolfe) ; A Civil Civil Servant; Unresolved; Pen Pals; Silent Sentinel. Training: BA Theatre/Medieval Studies: SUNY Purchase; Studio Theatre Acting Conservatory; Shakespeare & Company (Lenox, MA); Shaw Festival (Ontario, CA); musical theatre/opera: Dan Thaler Voice Studio (NYC). You can also find her haunting the streets of Old Town Alexandria as a colonial history and ghost tour guide! Special thanks to my reps at Firestarter Entertainment (love you Karen!!). Support artists and orchestras and actors, now more than ever. www.emilygilsonactor.com. For JRHR: l'chaim

Max Johnson (Eddie Lawrence) is a Washington, DC local working actor, teaching artist, lighting designer, and deviser. Recent theater credits include Everything is Wonderful (The Keegan Theatre), Butterflies Are Free (Bluff City Theater), The Pliant Girls (Theatre Prometheus/Nu Sass), The Waverly Gallery (u/s, 1st Stage), Inside Out and Backwards (Imagination Stage), A CommediaRomeo and Juliet (Faction of Fools), The Caretaker (Edge of the Universe Theatre), Angel Number Nine (Rorschach Theatre), Mankind (Iron Crow Theatre), and A Midsummer Night’s Dream and A Raisin in the Sun (Olney Theatre’s National Players Tour 72.) Max graduated from Wesleyan University with a BA in Theatre and a BA in History. More information about Max can be found on his website: maxjohnsonactor.com

Bob Lohrmann (Nick O'Brien) has played all the male roles in Shear Madness in DC, Philadelphia, Boston and Cleveland. He, with director Bruce Jordan, literally wrote the book on directing Shear Madness. He is a charter company member of The People’s Light Theatre Company, where he has appeared in principal roles in more than 35 productions, including Holy Ghosts, Hamlet, Waiting for Godot, Charley’s Aunt, Romeo and Juliet, The Taming of the Shrew, 1000 Clowns, Lenny, Death of a Salesman, The Glass Menagerie, As You Like It,_
_Marat/Sade, Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf?, Roshomon, La Ronde, Our Town, Inherit the Wind, Precious Blood, Wait Until Dark, and The Good Woman of Setzuan. He directed the acclaimed one-man show The Night Larry Kramer Kissed Me in Washington and Don’t Dress for Dinner in Lake George. In the Philadelphia area, Mr. Lohrmann has performed at the Wilma Theatre, Walnut Street Theatre, The Arden Theatre Company, the Wilmington Grand Opera House, Bank Street Theatre, and Locust Street Theatre, as well as Ford’s Theatre in Washington. Additionally, he has appeared in dozens of commercials and industrials and several feature films. He was the announcer for the Nickelodeon kids show “Finders Keepers” (…tell em’ what they’ve won, Bob!). His Philadelphia-based production company, Bob… writes, casts, and produces commercials and industrial training films and created and published the highly successful The Actor’s Casting Guide. His comedy sketches have been performed at the Manhattan Punchline in New York.

Taylor Witt (Mike Thomas) selected credits include Arena Stage: Unknown Soldier, Exclusion; Everyman Theatre: Dawn; Ford’s Theatre: A Christmas Carol; Signature Theatre: The Upstairs Department; Olney Theatre Center: Too Wong Foo… in Concert, A Nice Indian Boy; Studio Theatre: Admissions; The Keegan Theatre: An Irish Carol, Merrily We Roll Along, Shakespeare in Love; Virginia Rep: Beautiful: The Carole King Musical, Tuck Everlasting; Richmond Triangle Players: The Rocky Horror Show; Toby’s: Newsies (Helen Hayes Nomination, Supporting Actor), The Hunchback of Notre Dame, Ghost; @witt_taylor

Francie Glick (Production Stage Manager) has not only worked behind the scenes as a Stage Manager for Shear Madness; she has also appeared ON stage in the roles of Barbara DeMarco, Mrs. Shubert, and even Mikey Thomas! Other D.C. stage appearances include productions at MetroStage, The Washington Stage Guild, Woolly Mammoth Theatre Company, The National Archives, The Smithsonian Institution, Washington Jewish Theatre, Harlequin Dinner Theatre, Gross National Product comedy troupe, Off the Circle Theatre Company, CT Rex Family Theatre and NCTE. Regionally Ms. Glick has performed with Cortland Repertory Theatre, Light Opera Company of Cape Cod, and Fredericksburg Theatre Company. She can be seen and heard on numerous television and radio commercials, video games, feature films, and TV series, both locally and nationally.

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Shear Madness is the longest-running play in the history of American Theater!

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