Vino Veritas Creative

Director

Steve Shanks

Steve is returning to acting and directing after a brief hiatus while getting married and starting a family. This will be his first production with the Darien Arts Council, where he is a Board Member. Previous acting roles include John Proctor in “The Crucible”, and Oscar in “The Odd Couple” at the University of St. Francis and Lenny in “Of Mice and Men” with Latitude 41 in Joliet. He also co-directed “The Odd Couple” with his former co-star Jeff Matson 10-years later for Latitude 41. Though his most cherished roles are the parts of loving husband to his wife Nikki, and father to his 3-year-old daughter Carissa. To them, Steve owes untold appreciation and thanks for allowing him the time to work on this production. Many thanks to the cast for taking this journey and diving into these roles. It is a joy and honor to explore these characters with each of them for our audience.

Sound/Lights

Joshua Johnson

Hello, my name is Joshua Johnson. I have been working with the DAC since mid 2023 learning what it takes to make fun productions for your enjoyment! In the short time I’ve worked with the DAC, I’ve leaned how to direct and how to manage backstage! I’m excited to continue learning about theatre under the talented members of the council!”

Original Creative Team

David MacGregor

David’s plays have been performed from California to New York to London and Hobart, Tasmania. He is a resident artist at The Purple Rose Theatre (Chelsea, MI), which was founded in 1991 by actor and playwright Jeff Daniels. He has had ten plays produced there, and a revival of his 2008 dark comedy, "Vino Veritas," appeared in 2017 as The Purple Rose Theatre's 100th production. His trilogy of Sherlock Holmes plays, "Sherlock Holmes and the Adventure of the Elusive Ear" (2018), "Sherlock Holmes and the Adventure of the Fallen Soufflé" (2019), and "Sherlock Holmes and the Adventure of the Ghost Machine" (2022) all premiered at the Purple Rose, and are available for licensing through Theatrical Works Worldwide (TRW). His work has been published by Dramatic Publishing, Playscripts, Smith & Kraus, Applause, Heuer Publishing, and TRW.
The film based on "Vino Veritas," which stars Carrie Preston (star of CBS' "Elsbeth" and Emmy-winner for "The Good Wife"), won numerous festival accolades and is now available on various on-line platforms, as well as DVD and Blu-ray. His Icelandic romance "In the Land of Fire and Ice" was a 2016 Athena List winner, and is now in pre-production, with Emmy-winner and Oscar-nominee Shohreh Aghdashloo attached. The film adaptation based on his short play, "For Old Time's Sake," stars Oscar-nominee John Savage.
His newest play, "The Antichrist Cometh," is a comedy that premiered at The Purple Rose Theatre in 2024, and is published by TRW.
He has had his writing publicly burned and has been hanged in effigy.