WRITER, ACTOR, MUSICIAN,
WRITER, ACTOR, MUSICIAN,
Riley Samuel Merritt is a freelance writer, actor and musician.
Now a resident of Chicago, Riley was
raised in the rugged four corners region.
After graduating from New Mexico State
University with a degree in musical
theatre, he spent his first post-college years
training and creating in Southern
Colorado and Northern New Mexico. After
completing a tour of his one-man show,
TRUNK, Riley has settled in Chicago
where he has had the opportunity of working with exceptional companies such as Parker Players and Midsommer Flight. You can expect readings of
Riley’s new works on the horizon, as well as many more performances around the Chicago area.
September 10th at 7:00
A staged reading of a new play
September 10th at 7:00
Visceral Adventure Lounge, 3638 W Grand Ave
FREE!
A motley collection of artists and wannabes, each in search of self, relevance, meaningful definitions of art, stardom, life and divinity, come together at a hostel in the high-desert town of Santa Fe. Their rollicking interplay exposes big truths and big lies and puts each on course toward a “stardom” of universal proportions.
TRUNK
By Riley Samuel Merritt
TRUNK is a one-man, interactive production that delves into the mind of a young artist reckoning with his approaching death. Written and performed by Riley Samuel Merritt, the play draws from over a decade of his personal writings—poetry, prose, and eight original songs—to examine the fragile intersections of identity, ambition, and connection.
Inspired by the 15th-century morality play Everyman, TRUNK reimagines the age-old confrontation with mortality through the lens of a flawed, modern creative. While the narrative is not autobiographical, Merritt uses his own life as a vessel to explore the universal story of what it means to live truthfully—and die honestly—as an artist.
Audience participation is central to the show, making each performance a shared act of reflection and storytelling. Viewers are invited to contribute their voices, reinforcing TRUNK’s core themes of community and collective memory.
Ultimately, TRUNK is both a personal unpacking and a public offering—a meditation on legacy, vulnerability, and the moral responsibility of the modern artist in a world that often forgets to listen.
Coming Soon
-
Bull/Bear
In this staged reading, two Chicago rivals bet their all on the fluid market of grain futures, in a game that costs more than money to play.
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Love Anon
In a dystopian near future, two delusional lovers are torn apart by a technocratic superpower, and only one survives.
-
CHEST
In this autobiographical sequel to Merritt’s “TRUNK,” our Everyman questions the nature of good and evil, and where his journey will take him now that his fear of death has been quenched.