Actress-cum-businesswoman
Carole Dibo
Home town: Wilmette
Age: 51
Why she’s entertaining: Having performed on stage and screen for more than 20 years, this mother of three has most recently starred as an innovative businesswoman in the North Shore arts scene. With her business partner Sam Samuelson, Dibo saved the Wilmette Theatre from being re-developed into a furniture store in 2006, transforming the almost 100-year-old building into a new multi-arts venue featuring live shows as well as movies. The theatre’s offerings range from top comedy acts, cabaret and burlesque shows to screenings of “The Rocky Horror Picture Show” and the Chicago International Children’s Film Festival, giving North Shore residents high-quality, affordable entertainment options.
“To meld the love of the arts with growing a business is wildly exciting. It’s an honor to do it,” Dibo says.
Growing the next generation of actors: Dibo is also founder and director of the Actors Training Center at the Wilmette Theatre, a professional training ground for young actors. She’s worked as a casting assistant for Steppenwolf Theatre among other places, and connects her students to N.Y. and L.A. “Those who can, teach,” she says, putting her own spin on the H.L. Mencken quote.
On renting out the theater: “It belongs to everybody on the North Shore. It’s a creative playground for all of us,” she says. There’s even a Wii hookup for the movie screen.
The best part of her job: “Sitting at the back of the theater on a sold-out show, watching 200 people enjoy something that we took from nothing and created. That’s a huge high,” Dibo says.
— Liz Logan
