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Kevin Kolack’s resume reads more like the chaotic social experiment of a mad scientist than one you might expect of an actor/comedian.

The self-described renaissance man is a doctor of chemistry, Buddhist scholar and a certified firefighter, EMT and HAZMAT tech who went on to found a couple of businesses, teach, study acting, work as a taxi driver and get his helicopter pilot’s license. He’s since won roles on Law & Order: SVU, in national radio and television commercials, Off-Off Broadway theater and a slew of independent film projects that probably won’t ring a bell. The Texas-born and Georgia-raised Kolack has left few performance stones unturned, tackling the challenges of puppeteering and stand-up comedy in addition to traditional performance.

This weekend, he’ll put that eclectic experience to work at the Shawnee Playhouse along side co-star Jami Simon in a comedy revue titled Two for the Show. Performances will be presented Saturday at 8 p.m. and Sunday at 2 p.m.

Presented in the style of an old radio show with scripts in-hand, music and sound effects, Two for the Show consists of 14 scenes spoofing performance genres from reality TV, soap operas, and game shows to primetime medical and police dramas, and even children’s programming. The two actors play characters from ages 7 to 70 in what the author has described as a “vaudeville-type buffet for the ears, eyes and funny bone.” Among those characters are a pair of Southern belles, a couple of commuting chocolate lovers, a quartet of sock puppets, two sportscasters, a movie star and her plastic surgeon, and several so-called “valley types.”

It was Simon’s Like A Dream Productions that actually developed the quirky play. Also an established poet and a playwright, Simon wrote and performed the two-person comedy revue with actor Tom Godfrey for more than two years before reviving it with Kolack. Among her more recognizable credits are appearances on Saturday Night Live, Late Night with Conan O’Brien, As The World Turns, Law & Order, Guiding Light, As The World Turns and Reading Rainbow.

Tickets are $15 or $13 for seniors and $10 for children younger than 17. Call the box office at 421-5093 for reservations or visit www.TheShawneePlayhouse.com for more info.

The Shawnee Playhouse will operate through the winter with featured shows and special events including Pieces of Evelyn by Betsy Jackson Jan. 17-25, Marsha Norman’s ‘Night Mother on Jan. 31-Feb. 8, Love Letters on Feb. 14-16, Daddy’s Little Girl on Feb. 20-March 1, and A Life in the Theatre on March 13-22.
-agrega@timesshamrock.com