Chicago’s theatre scene is one of the best in the country. It is one that has consistently grown and one that has retained many of its talented players over the years. One of those talented individuals is Mary Nora Wolf.

A native of Ohio, Mary first attended Baldwin Wallace University before finding her way to Chicago to attend Columbia College.

“Chicago’s active theatre scene and its musical theatre opportunities stood out to me,” she said. “It became a very emotional place for me which influenced me to move to the city and attend Columbia.”

A combination of financial- and personal-based decisions lead Wolf to leave Columbia before graduating.

“I was working a lot and rehearsing a lot,” she said. “Fitting Columbia into my schedule and budget was not working. Now I’m still working a lot and rehearsing a lot but I’m in one of the final levels of Second City’s music improv program and it's giving me more of an experience,” she said. “Every time I think of continuing my education at Columbia I realize that the progress I have made through classes at Second City and other comedic programs has always lead me to bigger projects.”

Since her time at Second City, Wolf has been able to perform in "Iolanthe" with The Gilbert and Sullivan Opera Company of Chicago and "The Pirates of Penzance" with The Savoyaires.

Wolf was also chosen to be the director of the dark comedy “How Does That Make You Feel,” a play that ran through August but can still be seen on Entertainment Buffet's Youtube channel. Musical theatre has always been a constant in her life.

Her direction towards comedy was spontaneous and light-hearted.“One of my friends was a standup comedy host and influenced me to start doing comedy here. After being forced to do standup for the first time at Weeds Tavern, I dived down an improv- and standup-filled rabbit hole that lead me to Second City.”

While finding more niches in theatre, Wolf appreciated Chicago’s independent scene more than the well-known theatre groups. “I would, of course, perform at any but the independent theatres and groups have always stood out to me.”

When asked if there was anything she would have done differently Wolf said, “I would have taken improv classes at a younger age and auditioned more frequently. Also, go to class. You are paying for it so just go.”

Like most students in the arts, Wolf believes that her end goals are not unattainable. “I believe writing for a sitcom or performing on a main stage is not impossible. I know that I have the drive and commitment to obtain those goals.”