CHICAGO (WBBM NEWSRADIO) -- It's been a whirlwind week for actor Frank Ferrante.
"This past week, on my day off, I flew to Palm Springs where I got a star on the Walk of Fame there and then I flew back to Chicago the next day to continue the show here," he laughed.
"I'm used to traveling and doing one-nighters all over the world but this week was crazy and amazing at the same time."
Five nights a week, Ferrante plays "The Caesar" in Chicago's "Teatro Zinzanni", a show that combines comedy, music, cirque, cabaret, and burlesque with a three course dinner. The show takes place on the 14th floor of the Cambria Hotel in The Loop.
It was the first show in Theater District to return to live performances post pandemic.
"It was brave in a way. We've been navigating through all the COVID protocols but we also want to make sure that live theater can stay alive. We're one of the first live shows in the country to come back." he said.
"So far, the audience has embraced us. People want people to succeed here, that's why I love Chicago."
Now, he's bringing his one man show "An Evening with Groucho" to the space on Tuesday, October 26th.
"I'm excited to bring this show back here. We debuted in Chicago proper in the Spiegeltent two years ago."
Looking back, Ferrante says he knew Groucho would be his destiny when he first saw a Marx Brothers movie when he was 10 years old.
"I grew up in California. I was a shy kid growing up in a small town who discovered comedy and it shifted my world. I saw the Marx Brothers on television, " he recalled.
"There was this guy in grease paint, mustache, eyebrows, cigar, tailcoat and he's saying these rather brash and inappropriate things. I've never seen anything like this. The guys around him were equally mad and I decided then and there, that's what I wanted to do. They were having fun."
Ferrante was a drama student at USC when he created the show.
"I put on a show called an "Evening with Groucho" as my senior project. I invited Groucho's children to see me at USC. I couldn't believe they actually showed up. I was scared to death but I did the show, it was a big hit," he said.
"It paved the way for other roles, directing, producing, you name it."
Since then he's performed the show around the world. I've done this show now, 3,000 performances, 500 cities, and I'm celebrating 35 years. I would've never believed I would still be doing this role 35 years later. It's been a blessing. It's a joy."
Ferrante says the show takes place in the 1930's but the story of Groucho and who he was transcends generations.
"The show is devised so that you don't even have to be a fan of Groucho. It works by sheer will. It's so interactive. It's got music and stories and a third of the show is improv which I think makes it. The idea of the show is what it would be like to spend 90 minutes with the funniest man on the planet, in my opinion."
After a dark time for the world and specifically the entertainment industry, he says it's been a fulfilling experience to see people laugh again.
"People have come off over a year and a half of isolation, fear and sadness and audiences are now so filled with joy and relief to be back out and amongst each other. It's a sense of community again," Ferrante said.
"The laughter is louder, the engagement is more and the sense of frothiness and craziness is appreciated. People say to me after the show 'I haven't laughed in so long'. They say 'I needed that'. That matters to me. The show serves as a healing agent. I'm just proud to be part of that."
An Evening with Groucho, will play one night only on October 26 at 7 p.m. at the Spiegeltent ZaZou located on the 14th floor in the Cambria Hotel Chicago Loop-Theatre District, 32 W. Randolph St.
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