Bio
Hey there! My name is Marisa Dean (She/They).
I am a non-union actor, based in Chicago, IL and born & raised outside Orlando, FL. I hold a BFA in Acting with a minor in New Works for the Stage from Ball State University, and have continued my training in Chicago with Susan Hart Shakespeare and Remy Bummpo Theatre. I am currently seeking representation!
Regional Credits: POTUS (or, Behind Every Great Dumbass...) (Dusty) at The Ensemble Company in Orlando, FL. Hamlet (U/S Horatio) & Much Ado About Nothing (U/S Dogberry) at Great River Shakespeare in Winona, MN.
Chicago Credits: Julius Caesar (Brutus) & Henry IV Parts 1&2 (Peto, Mortimer, Douglas) at Olde School Shakespeare.
New Works: Earth Odyssey (Marisa the Influencer) at Girl and the Bear Collective. Marisa Dean Becomes a Woman (Herself) at Indy Storefront Theatre.
I grew up rounding up my siblings and several neighbourhood kids for weekly rehearsals of my original plays -- which I would type out on the family computer, print the scripts for, and insist be taken seriously. Then I have a distinct memory of my Uncles taking us to see a production of "Pippy Longstocking" and being absolutely enthralled. I had my breakout role as the Wizard in 6th grade middle school drama as part of "Once Upon A Mattress" and, so it goes, I never stopped pursuing theatre.
At Ball State University, I discovered a love for Shakespeare as I was taught the importance of "finding the human" in each heightened moment, and the superpower that my radical empathy & sensitivity could be in every process.
I rediscovered my passion for writing and, really, the art of "making things happen" when I wrote and produced my short one-person show "Marisa Dean Becomes a Woman". In that process, I found the joy of bringing the work ethic that's needed to dissect heightened text into a new work process. I found huge excitement in writing and exploring a script and creating a physical score that would be challenging to me as a performer -- with a goal to create a piece that is as fun and empowering to experience as an audience member as it is to perform.
I'm a big fan of women-centered stories, heightened text, new work, clowning around, and considering how the rigor & process of analyzing heightened text can be applied to new work!
I am also proud to be a teaching artist -- I have experience as a Shakespeare Teaching Artist, a middle school Drama Teacher, a College Performing Arts Academic Peer Mentor, and my current "day job" is being a nanny for a couple of creative kids in the northern suburbs of Chicago! I find that teaching & mentoring consistently inspires me in my own path as an artist.
