Michael Shannon
Michael Shannon is a founding member of A Red Orchid Theatre. He has been a part of A Red Orchid since The Connection in 1993, for which he designed the poster and wrote the director’s note in the program. Most recently he starred in A Red Orchid's 25th Anniversary production of Victims of Duty. Other A Red Orchid performances include Simpatico (Jeff Award), Mistakes Were Made, Gagarin Way, ‘Tis Pity She’s a Whore, and The Killer, to name a few. He also made his directorial debut at A Red Orchid with Hunger and Thirst and also directed playwright Brett Neveu’s world premiere of Traitor, which earned him a Jeff Award for Best Direction.
Elsewhere around Chicago, he has worked at Steppenwolf, Lookingglass, Northlight, Famous Door (RIP), and the Next Lab, birthplace of Killer Joe, in which he originated the role of Chris Smith and performed it a gillion times all over God’s green earth. Mike currently lives in NYC where he was recently seen on Broadway in Frankie and Johnny in the Claire de Lune with Audra MacDonald, and A Long Day’s Journey Into Night alongside Jessica Lange and Gabriel Byrne (for which he was nominated for a Tony Award). He also appeared in Ionesco’s The Killer with Theatre for a New Audience and made his Broadway debut in Grace at the Cort Theatre. He also played Astrov in Annie Baker’s adaptation of Uncle Vanya at Soho Rep, directed by Sam Gold.
Film credits include Groundhog Day, Chicago Cab, The Ride, Jesus’ Son, Cecil B. Demented, Tigerland, Pearl Harbor, 8 Mile, Bad Boys II, Kangaroo Jack, Grand Theft Parsons, The Missing Person, Zamboni Man, Revolutionary Road (Oscar Nomination), My Son My Son What Have Ye Done?, Shotgun Stories, Take Shelter, Mud, Machine Gun Preacher, Premium Rush, The Iceman, Man of Steel, 99 Homes, Free Held, Elvis & Nixon, Loving, Nocturnal Animals (Oscar Nomination), 12 Strong, and The Shape of Water, Pottersville, and The Currant War, among others. On TV, he played Nelson Van Alden on HBO’s Boardwalk Empire, Gary Noesner in Waco, and Captain Beatty in Fahrenheit 451.