Johnny Rabe, a Naperville-based actor who’s performed on Broadway and stages nationwide, will make a homecoming of sorts when he returns to the Marriott Theatre for its new production, “She Loves Me.”
“I love working in Chicago and especially the Marriott because it feels like my home,” Rabe said. “It’s my fourth show there and the theater I’ve worked at the most. The audiences there are always amazing.”
Rabe plays Arpad Laszlo, a delivery boy who aspires to be a perfume clerk in the Tony Award-winning musical comedy set in a Hungarian perfume shop in the 1930s.
“It’s a really great part,” Rabe said. “The show is a little bit of everything; it’s quirky, it’s funny and it’s romantic. I think it’s the epitome of the Golden Age musical that does a good job of being realistic and being modern but also having the charm of a past era.”
Rabe’s rehearsals for the show started April 6, and he’ll be at it from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. six days a week until the show opens April 26 at the Lincolnshire theater. It runs through June 18.
Although his acting resume is extensive, he is the youngest member of the cast at 17.
“It’s kind of cool because a lot of the people (at the Marriott) have been there for many years, so it’s comfortable for me to come back,” Rabe said. “Everyone is so supportive.”
His mom, Lilah, shared the sentiment.
“Johnny’s first professional role was Winthrop in ‘The Music Man’ at the Marriott Theatre,” she said. “We have many great memories from that show. Everyone was so kind and helpful to Johnny and to me.”
Performing at Marriott has other perks, Lilah Rabe said.
“It’s nice that Johnny will be performing close to home since many friends and family members will be able to see the show,” Lilah said. “That includes one of his biggest fans, his 89-year-old grandmother.”
When not on stage, Johnny Rabe is a junior at the Chicago Academy for the Arts. He takes the train from Naperville to Chicago daily to attend class.
“Since I go to a performing arts school, they are very good about working with me and helping me catch up if I miss something,” Rabe said. “It’s a lot of work but when I am doing a show, it’s something I really love. I feel this energy, so when I have breaks or during lunch or after the show, I get my schoolwork done.
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“I couldn’t do any of this without my mom,” he said. “She is incredible and supportive. She moved to New York with me when I was 12 so I could do ‘A Christmas Story.’ As I have gotten older, I have become more independent, but she is always there to support me and I can always trust her opinion.”
“She Loves Me?” tickets are $50 to $60, and can be bought by calling 847-634-0200 or going to www.marriotttheatre.com.