Guerrilla Theater Company

'''Guerrilla Theater Company''' (GTC) was an underground theater company based in the [[Tremont,_Cleveland|Tremont]] neighborhood of [[Cleveland]], Ohio. Founded in August 1992.{{cite news|last1=Black|first1=Judy|title=Guerrilla Theater: Cleveland’s Own Indoor Street Theater|publisher=Scene Magazine|date=September 18-23, 1993}} Over the course of two years, this company of actors and writers in their mid-twenties produced two original series of hour-long, late night productions featuring short, satiric plays which they called “hits”.{{cite news|last1=Wilder|first1=Jesse|title=Guerrillas in Our Midst|publisher=Northern Ohio Live|date=January 1993}}

==''You Have the Right to Remain Silent!''==

The company opened their debut production, ''You Have the Right to Remain Silent!'' on Friday, October 23, 1992 at 11 PM, with performances continuing every Friday and Saturday night at the Professor Street Theater, 2275 Professor Street. The performance consisted of twenty-one short plays (“hits”) written and directed by the company, commonly addressing social or political issues. The framing device was that of a live TV game show, featuring interstitial games and prizes with a large “wheel of misfortune.”{{cite news|last1=Joseph|first1=Keith|title=Comedy for the Young at Heart|publisher=Scene Magazine|date=February 18-24, 1993}}

==''Mind Your Own Business''==

Their second original production, ''Mind Your Own Business'' opened on Friday, November 19, 1993 at The Actors’ Gym (an actual former boxing gym){{cite news|last1=Evett|first1=Marianne|title=Unconventional Guerrilla Makes Games Pay Off|publisher=The Plain Dealer|date=April 5, 1994}} at 2393 Professor Street in Tremont. For this second iteration, the company performed at 8 PM and 11 PM every Friday and Saturday night. Billed as “Cleveland’s own jumbo-sized board game” the audience was seated on three sides of a large game board.{{cite news|last1=Hammer|first1=Herb|title=Guerrilla Group’s Inventive ‘Game Show’ Hits the Mark|publisher=Chagrin Valley Times|date=December 16, 1993}}

==Summer Shakespeare==

GTC also produced two plays by William Shakespeare, ''The Taming of the Shrew'', directed by Rich Weiss (1993) and ''Romeo & Juliet'', directed by David Hansen (1994){{cite news|last1=Damico|first1=James|title=Enduring Catharsis|publisher=The Cleveland Free Times Times|date=September 21, 1994}}. ''Romeo & Juliet'' would be their final production, the company disbanding due to lack of funding.{{cite news|last1=Little|first1=Denise|title=Guerrilla Stage to Close After Shakespeare|date=September 16, 1994|publisher=The Morning Journal}}

==Guerrilla Radio Hour==

In 1994, GTC held a thirty-minute timeslot on [[WRUW-FM|WRUW]] 91.1 FM on the campus [[Case Western Reserve University]], presenting ''The Guerrilla Theater Radio Hour'' which was recorded in a studio in the shower of The Actors’ Gym.

==Influences==

Guerrillas claimed inspiration from the [[Blue Man Group]], [[Saturday Night Live]], and Chicago’s [[Neo-Futurists]]. The company had been in touch with the Neo-Futurists before proceeding and their response was “encouraging.” {{cite news|last1=Giffels|first1=David|title=Theater|date=December 1992|publisher=The River Burns}}

==Publicity Stunts==

The company was notable for staging unannounced performances in public spaces, and for “ticketing” parked cars with production flyers that appeared from a distance to be actual city of Cleveland parking tickets.{{cite news|last1=Nigro|first1=Michael|title=Guerrilla’s In the Midst|publisher=The Cleveland Free Times Times|date=April 13, 1994}}

==Accolades==

Guerrilla Theater was voted Best Theater Company (1993) by the readers of [[Cleveland_Scene|Scene Magazine]].{{cite news|title=The Votes Are In, And The Winners Are …|publisher=Scene Magazine|date=November 11-17, 1993}}

==Members==

Marie Andrisewicz

Shelley Bishop

Erin Cameron

Tracey Gilbert

David Hansen

Eric Lee

David Litz

Keith Lukianowicz

Diana Tracy

Rich Weiss

Lee T. Wilson

Betsy Zajko