Skip to main content
My Shows
News on your favorite shows, specials & more!

Trap Door's Theatre Announces Two New Company Members

By:

Trap Door's Theatre Announces Two New Company Members ImageTrap Door Theatre is proud to announce two new company members: Monica Payne as Resident Director and Danny Rockett as Resident Sound Designer.

Monica Payne is a freelance director who recently devised and directed the Jeff-recommended Into the Empty Sky at Trap Door.

Other recent projects include Our Country's Good (UCLA) and a workshop production of Camino Real for CSU Summer Arts/Steppenwolf Classes West. She spent much of 2015/16 working on Trash Story, an award-winning Polish play by Magda Fertacz, directing full productions in both New York (Kulture+ Productions) and Los Angeles (UCLA), as well as a staged reading for the International Voices Project (representing Trap Door) in Chicago. She has made two trips to Poland in recent years with the Adam Mi

Other projects include a critically acclaimed production of Toni Morrison's The Bluest Eye for the Pittsburgh Playhouse; Ploughman from Bohemia for Theatre Lumina; Racine's Phedre; Euripides' Hecuba; Mark Twain's Huck Finn; her own adaptation of Innocent Erendira and her Heartless Grandmother by Gabriel Garcia Marquez; Euripides' Elektra; William Inge's Natural Affection; and Sam Shepard's Savage Love. She also directs music videos, including "We Are" and "The Old Man and his Daughter" for Kaitlin Huwe. A former actress, Payne has appeared on stage with Steppenwolf, The Artistic Home, The Hypocrites, The Journeymen, Famous Door, and Collaboraction, among others. She is a member of the 2008 Lincoln Center Director's Lab in New York, as well as the 2012 Director's Lab West in Los Angeles. She holds an M.F.A. in Directing from the UCLA School of Theater, Film and Television. www.monicapaynedirector.com

Danny Rockett has performed on Broadway, radio and television in a career in music and theatre spanning over 2 decades. A composer, whose work has been featured on numerous stages, films, tv shows and music halls, Rockett has primarily written for theatre, radio, and rock bands. Rockett plays multiple instruments and is an accomplished producer, teacher and musical director whose work can be heard on dozens of albums in a plethora of musical styles. With a humorous and unorthodox approach, Rockett attempts to reinvent the art of sound production with every new challenge and endeavor. Danny is the proud recipient of a Joseph Jefferson award for Best Original Music for last season's How to Explain the history of Communism to Mental Patients.





Need more Chicago Theatre News in your life?
Sign up for all the news on the Summer season, discounts & more...


BroadwayWorld TV


Catch as Catch Can in Chicago Catch as Catch Can
Steppenwolf Theatre Company (6/04-7/12)
EWP presents Robbie Fulks & Griffin William Sherry Showcase in Chicago EWP presents Robbie Fulks & Griffin William Sherry Showcase
Raue Center For The Arts (8/07-8/07)
Hedwig and the Angry Inch in Chicago Hedwig and the Angry Inch
Catalyst Ranch (7/09-7/26) PHOTOS
Anthem's Grand Illusion: A Tribute to the Music of Styx in Chicago Anthem's Grand Illusion: A Tribute to the Music of Styx
Raue Center For The Arts (10/30-10/30)
6X6 Project in Chicago 6X6 Project
Raue Center For The Arts (6/27-6/27)
SIX (Boleyn Tour) in Chicago SIX (Boleyn Tour)
Peoria Civic Center (11/17-11/19)
Sketch Playlist in Chicago Sketch Playlist
iO Theater (6/04-8/06)
Music Theater Works Presents the Beloved Classic “West Side Story,” August 13 - 30 in Chicago Music Theater Works Presents the Beloved Classic “West Side Story,” August 13 - 30
Music Theater Works (8/13-8/30)
Jingle Belles Comedy in Chicago Jingle Belles Comedy
Raue Center For The Arts (12/10-12/10)
Night Owl Bike Ride in Chicago Night Owl Bike Ride
Raue Center For The Arts (8/08-8/08)