Marnie Andrews, a respected name in theater, will be presenting a lecture titled “Fools and Crazy People: Notes on an Adventurous Life” at 6 p.m. Thursday in the Lecture Hall of the Doudna Fine Arts Center.

The lecture will be free for all who attend.

Andrews has been brought in as guest director for the theatre department’s production of “The Mousetrap.”

Kevin Doolen, the chair of the theatre department, first met Andrews when he directed her in a production of “The Glass Menagerie” where she played the character Amanda.

Since then, he has worked with her on other occasions and chose her to be next in the line of many guest artists he is looking to bring to Eastern.

Andrews does most of her work in the competitive art hub of New York City. She has worked as an actor, director and writer of poetry and academia.

Doolen said she brings a certain level of scholarship to her work, which he is seeking to integrate further into the theater arts program at Eastern.

He said Andrews’ acting career is typical of what many actors from Eastern will be facing when they graduate.

Doolen said he chose Agatha Christie’s “The Mousetrap” for similar reasons and thinks Andrews will be a good match for the production.

Doolen said he believes her talk and her work within the department will be beneficial to both students and faculty alike.   

“It’s good for faculty because it challenges them,” he said. “They have to work outside of the routine with someone outside of the department which is always for faculty to do.”

Doolen said with her many credits to her name in live theater, film and television, Andrews aims to use her experiences to reassure students that perseverance and determination can make a dream job reality.

Dan Crews, the director of patron services, said the conversation will most likely take the form of a heart-to-heart between Andrews and students.

“When people listen to her stories, they’re going to have questions,” Crews said.

He said there is a good chance she will open up the talk for questions from students.

Doolen said she will touch on “how life informs career and career often informs life.”  Andrews will be discussing both the creative and business side of her career, which according to Doolen is equally as important to any career.

Kaycie Brauer can be reached at 581-2812 or at kabrauer@eiu.edu.