Interview #2 With the Cast of "Laughter on the 23rd Floor"

• For our second interview with the cast of the very funny show, Laughter on the 23rd Floor, let's hear from one of the most talented actors I know.
• Mike Naglee has played an amazing variety of roles, including saviors, sinners, drunks and heroes. Now he's set to show his comedy chops in the comedy that takes the stage Friday night.  
• Here's Mike:

• Q: What is the play Laughter on the 23rd Floor all about?
• Mike: Laughter is about the writing staff of "The Max Prince Show," an Emmy award-winning live comedy show, having a blast while dealing with pressure from the network and the red scare in 1953's New York.
• Q: Tell us about the character you play.

  Mike: I play Lucas Brickman, the new guy in the office struggling to get his bearings. He keeps a running commentary through the course of the play, breaking the fourth wall to introduce characters or set the scene. If only these Zack Morris-like powers worked outside the show...

  Q: What's your background in theatre?

  Mike: I graduated from Marshall with a BFA in acting/directing in 2003. "Real life" took me out of the local theatre scene for a while, but I jumped back in the pool in late 2011. Since then I've been almost continuously involved in one local production after another, and became a member of the ARTS Resident Company in 2013. More literally, my first appearance on Marshall's stage was in 1999's Oliver when I walked behind a cardboard cut-out of a peasant woman and actually *was* background in theatre.

  Q: What's the most challenging thing about doing a comedy?

  Mike: Not cracking up. Fortunately, it's usually okay for Lucas to be highly amused at what's happening around him. Sometimes it gets quite difficult not to break character and laugh my fool head off.

  Q: You're staging this in the Renaissance Ballroom, a more intimate setting than the main stage. Does that make the show easier or is it more challenging?

  Mike: Both. It's easier to communicate what's happening in your head to an audience that's right on top of you, but you have to work against instincts acquired over years of playing in larger spaces. Reactions have to be bigger to play to an audience that is further away.

  Q: Tell us about the cast you're working with.

  Mike: I love these people. I even married one of 'em. Now *that* is a tight knit cast. Everyone in the cast and crew are great friends, great people, know what they're about and have a blast doing it. (Except that one guy. God, I hate that guy. You will too. Everybody does.)

  Q: Why would you recommend this show to our readers?

  Mike: It's hilarious! Come for the comedy and culture, stay for the gags and irreverence. The director has done a fantastic job molding a motley cast and crew into an evening of gut-busting entertainment. For *you.* I mean, can you imagine if someone put together a show just for you and you didn't come? Inconceivable.

  Q: Where and when will the show be staged?

  Mike: Laughter on the 23rd Floor opens this Friday night, Nov. 29 at 8 p.m. Busy Friday? More chances Nov. 30, Dec. 6-7. Tickets are only $10, or you can join us for dinner first for $15 more. Call 304-733-ARTS for dinner reservations. More details here: https://www.facebook.com/events/215752481937135/

  Thanks, Mike!