Department of Theatre and Dance: Western Illinois University

Marcus Olson

Assistant Professor of Theatre
Office Location: 100B Browne Hall
Office Phone: (309) 298-1747
Email: M-Olson@wiu.edu

Assistant Professor of Theatre and Head of the BFA Program in Musical Theatre. As a professional actor in New York, Marcus performed in the original Broadway cast of Stephen Sondheim and James Lapine’s Passion (Tony award winner for Best Musical), and was in the original cast of Sondheim and Weidman’s Assassins (Grammy award winner for Best Musical). He also played the role of the Baker in the Broadway National Tour of Sondheim and Lapine’s Into the Woods.

The Threepenny Opera, director
Three Penny Opera

Off-Broadway, Marcus replaced Jason Alexander in the hit musical Personals, and understudied W.H. Macy and Andrew McCarthy in Bodies, Rest and Motion at Lincoln Center. He is a member of Actor’s Equity Association, the Screen Actor’s Guild, and the American Federation of Television and Radio Artists. Television credits include: Ryan in the 1994 season premiere of NBC’s Law and Order, and Peter Allheart in a Nickelodeon Christmas Special.

As a professor, Marcus has taught a variety of theatre courses and directed numerous productions at Michigan State University, East Carolina University, and Wright State University in Ohio. He holds a BA (summa cum laude) in theatre from Amherst College in Massachusetts, and a Master’s degree in directing from Miami University of Ohio.

In the summer of 2006, Marcus acted and directed in The Colony, a professional playwright’s conference hosted by the University of Montana, and he conducted an audition workshop for young singer/actors for the Missoula Children’s Theatre on Flathead Lake. In 2007, he returned for a second summer with The Colony.

Meet Me In St. Louis, director