Before joining the administrative team as Artistic Director, Wyatt Kent toured with us as Uncle Henry and The Wizard in The Wizard of Oz, Mr. Orvendellis in The Jumping Jacks & The Beanstalk, and Starkey the Pirate in Peter Pan. He's delighted by the dancing cows in The Jumping Jacks & The Beanstalk (really, who wouldn't be?!) and says that right now, Jacks is probably his favorite Compass play.

#1 What kinds of teams did you belong to when you were growing up?
I was trotted along in a number of youth sport leagues when I was elementary aged (soccer, basketball, baseball) but none of it really stuck. By the time I was out of high school I wished it had. I really enjoy recreational team sports, it turns out! In high school I did lots of non-athletic activities but being a part of the speech team was my biggest priority. "Duo" (basically a two-person, 10-minute play) and poetry were my main events.

#2 Soup or salad?
At home, soup. In a restaurant, usually salad.

#3 What's one play that kids should check out:
Where Have All The Lightning Bugs Gone? by Louis E. Catron. It was a play that my mom introduced me to when I was young, I think she did it in high school. It is a one act play that for some reason stuck with me for a long time.

#4 Top five favorite snacks:
Cheez-its
Chips and fresh guacamole
Potato chips of all sorts
A really good apple
Snack stick from Gene’s Sausage Shop

#5 Villain or hero?
As much as I want to be cool and say villain, hero. 

#6 What’s something you do to relax?
I enjoy playing board games! (and enjoy figuring out the rules to board games almost as much . . .)

#7 What’s your favorite kind of cookie? How do you prefer to eat it?
If I had to choose one, ginger snaps. Just eat them! 

#8 What’s your favorite thing to do in Chicago in the winter?
Complain about "dibs" with friends.
. . .
No, in seriousness I love walking around busy areas during the holiday season. I enjoy the hustle and bustle (as long as I’m not trying to actually accomplish something) as well as the lights of the city. Chicago at night can be really special.

#9 Why do you live in Chicago?
The theatre is the short answer! The longer answer is: I like being within a day’s drive of my family and I think Chicago is a comfortable place to live. I love exploring and I have yet to run out of new things to see and experience. 

#10 Tell us about your pet.
Perry the Rescue Terrier! He’s a darling dog full of personality that my girlfriend got as a senior dog from PAWS. It’s been great to watch him grow less and less fearful as he has had a stable environment over the last year. He even likes to play with other dogs now!

​#11 What would you do if someone gave you a million dollars, no strings?
I’d like to design out a dream theatre space and use the money to establish a resident company.* 

*Usually, theatre companies hire different artists for each show they do. They might work with the same actor, designer, or other artist a bunch of times over the years, but they hire the artists for one show at a time, or a couple of shows at a time. Usually. With a resident company, the theatre uses (mostly) the same artists throughout all of their shows. That doesn't necessarily mean that there are parts for all of the resident actors in every show, but usually the shows get picked specifically for certain members of the resident acting company. Resident companies used to be pretty popular, but they're expensive to maintain, so they're pretty rare now.

#12 What’s the household chore that you would avoid forever if you could?
Taking out the trash is fine. You know what I hate doing? Putting a new trash bag in after you take the old one out. I have no idea why, I just don’t like it. 

#13 How do you like to spend a rainy day?
Avoiding getting wet. I hate having wet feet and no matter what, I always feel unprepared for it. A rainy day where I have nothing to do and nowhere to go is great, but they never seem to get scheduled that way.

#14 Morning person or nightowl?
Night, but for certain kind of projects I’ve found sleeping on it and resolving things in the morning to work well for me. ​

#15 What’s your favorite day of the week when you are teaching a performance residency?
I really like Tuesdays. They are frenetic but structured, everyone gets to be introduced to what their piece of the play is going to look like, and I love getting to know all the actors again in the context of their character groups.

#16 What’s your favorite holiday? How do you celebrate it?
I like New Year’s Eve. I haven’t always done the best job of it, but I like to try to either be in a new place or do some sort of new event to ring in the New Year. I think it is fun to be a part of the celebration in a new city. People are in a good mood, and the next day is usually sleepy and relaxed.

#17 What did you want to be when you grew up?
When I was young I wanted to be a teacher! I really enjoyed school and told my teachers that I wanted to work in the school when I grew up.

#18 Cake or pie?
Pie!​

#19 What’s your favorite kids’ movie?
The Iron Giant. Does that count as a kids’ movie? (note: we think so!) It’s just a beautiful movie with an incredibly heartfelt message. I cry pretty much every time.

#20 Tell us all of the towns you’ve lived in.
Orlando, FL; Auburn, NE; Scottsbluff, NE; Ogallala, NE; Columbus, NE; Lincoln, NE; Tempe, AZ; and Chicago, IL.

By Cathlyn Melvin          ||           Community, Small Business, Holidays

updated 5/8/2019

On Monday we received an email from Emmaline Vu and LinkedIn letting us know that it's National Small Business Week. What? Who knew?

Now that we know (and you do, too) we challenge you to honor the more than 28 million small businesses in the United States (and so, so many more across the globe) by signal-boosting their products and services. It won't cost a thing, and it can mean so much to the individuals who are working hard to deliver those services and products!

This National Small Business Week, set aside 15 minutes to engage with your favorite small businesses online. With your positive interactions, you'll help boost their visibility, their network, and, let's be real, you'll also boost their warm-and-fuzzy level every. single. time.

And, hey. It won't cost you a nickel.

Cathlyn

By Cassandra Quinn          ||          Community, Holidays, Small Business