In a one-woman powerhouse performance, Bethany Thomas stars as all five culture-defining icons in Songs for Nobodies — and the five "nobodies," who propel the play with unexpected anecdotes about each singer. This would be a daunting task for any performer, but Thomas is well-prepared for the challenge. The accomplished, genre-defying theatre and musical artist has already tackled Songs for Nobodies twice (to rave reviews!) at Milwaukee Rep and Chicago's Northlight Theatre.

Trailer courtesy of Northlight Theatre

An actor and singer since she was young, Thomas has been a force in the Chicago theatre scene for two decades. Her credits include a wide array of critically-acclaimed musicals and plays: Hedwig and the Angry Inch, Into the Woods, A Moon for the Misbegotten, The Color Purple, The Tempest, Marry Me a Little, and Porgy and Bess, to name just a few! She's also the recipient of multiple Jeff Awards, including Best Solo Performance for Northlight's Songs for Nobodies.

Alongside her theatre career, Thomas is active in the music scene as both a performer and songwriter. In recent years, she recorded and toured with Jon Langford’s alt-country band Four Lost Souls, released her solo album BT/SHE/HER, and collaborated with fellow actor/singer/comedian Tawny Lawrence on another full LP, Material Flats. As she laughingly explained in a Chicago Sun Times feature, "My circles overlap so much between theater and rock music that I don’t realize that a lot of people who go to live theater aren’t going to some punk show [right after that]!"

Check out the video below for a blazing live performance of Thomas' original song "DE-ESCALATOR," and catch her onstage in Songs for Nobodies right here at People's Light, April 26 through May 21!