Clarendon Hills Couple's Theater Readies to Open Latest Show

First Folio Theatre’s upcoming play will be performed in Oak Brook by actors from all over, but it’s a Clarendon Hills couple that really makes it happen.

Alison C. Vesely and David Rice run the nonprofit First Folio, a small theater company that puts on shows year-round at the Mayslake Peabody Estate in Oak Brook. Vesely is the artistic director who directs many of First Folio’s shows, while Rice runs the business side.

Vesely and Rice, who are married, are currently readying for their theater’s latest production, Unnecessary Farce, which begins Feb. 1 and runs through March 4.

The play’s plot is in sync with its title.

“It is a story about two very inept police officers attempting to catch what they believe is a crooked mayor in a sting operation,” Rice said. “The entire play takes place in two back-to-back, identical motel rooms with a connecting door and involves a great deal of comedy mayhem.”

Unnecessary Farce was written by Paul Slade Smith, a one-time First Folio actor, and premiered in 2006 at the BoarsHead Theater in Lansing, Mich. Since then, the show has been produced 75 times in four countries and three languages. Vesely, though, will be the first to direct the show in the Chicagoland area.

“We were amazed that there has never been a professional Chicago production of it,” she said.

First Folio Theatre has a core group of actors who appear in numerous productions, but also hire non-regulars for some roles. Unnecessary Farce stars Erin Noel Grennan, Kevin McKillip, Molly Glynn, Joe Foust, Jeannie Affelder, Raymond Fox, and Dale Benson.   

Vesely, 54, grew up in Clarendon Hills and then moved back to town with Rice, 57, in 1989. The couple has a 29-year-old daughter, Hayley Rice, who has acted in a number of First Folio shows and has performed with other area companies, including Focal Point Theatre Company in Chicago and Circle Theatre in Oak Park.

Vesely and Rice, who both have acting backgrounds in the Chicago area, began First Folio Theatre with outdoor “Shakespeare Under the Stars” shows 15 years ago, before any of the Mayslake Peabody Estate buildings had gone under renovations. It was about a decade later that the estate’s buildings were opened to the public and the couple took advantage, producing indoor shows in addition to the outdoor Shakespeare. Now, the First Folio typically puts on four shows per year—three indoor shows and one outdoor Shakespeare show. (In 2012, the outdoor Shakespeare show will be The Merchant of Venice.)

Vesely and Rice “wear many hats” at First Folio, Vesely said. In addition to producing and directing shows, they also handle ticket sales and box office management.

“You name it we do it,” Vesely said.

Rice said the First Folio’s location is a key element that defines the company.

“The setting of Mayslake Peabody Estate provides just incredible background and location which is distinctly different frankly from any theater in the Chicago area,” Rice said.

Tickets are currently on sale for Unnecessary Farce here at First Folio's website. Vesely and Rice advised that those interested should get a move on, because their shows tend to sell out. Beginning on Feb. 1, there will be four shows a week—Wednesday, Friday and Saturday at 8 p.m., and a Sunday matinee at 3 p.m.

Rice said if he had to rate the play like a movie, he’d rate it PG-13. It doesn’t have any offensive language or realistic violence, but it does involve some “bawdy” humor.

If you’re okay with that, Rice said, “It’s great for anybody who’s looking for just a good, hearty laugh.”