DePaul is no stranger to having successful graduates. Every once in a while, though, alumni ignite something truly illustrious and celebrated. Playwright and DePaul alumnus Ike Holter is one such individual. His body of work is expanding at an impressive pace, and he is leaving his joyful mark on everyone he works with along the way.

Currently, Holter is in the midst of two very different but equally remarkable shows, “B-Side Studio” and “Unwilling and Hostile Instruments: 100 Years of Extraordinary Chicago Women.” The DePaulia had the unique opportunity to speak with Holter himself, as well as actors Missi Davis, Brad Smith and Jessica London-Shields, who are all building an extraordinary name for themselves within the theater community as well.

“B-Side Studio” is a four-part sitcom set in 1977, and it is about people who work in a recording studio,” Holter said. “It’s a working place sitcom, so you have all the tropes that you can play with. It is sort of a love letter to old-school sitcoms from the ’70s. We try to bring it into the now while still retaining that warmth.”

“B-Side Studio” is as unique as it is entertaining. Though it is performed as a production in front of a live audience, it is also filmed and then published online every Monday.

Missi Davis, who portrays Janice, and Brad Smith, who portrays Butch, dove into the show with dedication and poise.

“We are trying to find a way to experiment with theater without ignoring the fact that all of these new technologies exist to us,” Smith said.

The tradition of theater in Chicago is lengthy and rich. Holter has not only created a lively and entertaining work, but he is also pushing the envelope and challenging the ways in which theater can be experienced today.

“We’ve done research on whether anyone else has tried to do this, and from what we have found, it doesn’t seem like it,” Davis said. “Maybe somewhere someone has, but there is no record anywhere that we can find.”

Both actors share a special connection with Holter.

“Ike is fantastic to work with,” Smith said. “He is a great writer, and he speaks the way he writes. He is funny and fast, but he is also very professional and likes to work efficiently.”

Holter truly bonds with his actors and this intimate connection establishes something truly special for those who work with him.

“This is the first time that he has really written a character for me,” Davis said. “It’s really exciting to have someone who knows you so well. Janice is very different from many of the characters that I normally play, but she is extremely close to who I am if I were a very high end comical version of myself.”

Davis’ passion for performance transcends just being on stage. She is an advocate of what she described as “bringing people together to celebrate art in a new way,” and Holter’s work certainly fosters this ideal.

“Acting is my passion but theater is my life,” Davis said with a smile.

“B-Side Studio” is bravely exploring the medium of theater but is also simply seeking to entertain.

“Pretend you are in Los Angeles in the 70s and you’ve had a lot to drink, and you are going to have the time of your life because it’s the ’70s and everything was cooler then,” Holter said, laughing.

The second current show that Holter has collaboratively written, “Unwilling and Hostile Instruments: 100 Years of Extraordinary Chicago Women,” is vastly different than “B-Side,” though it represents an equal tour-de-force in the theater world. It is comprised of short plays from several different writers, each of which explore the great women of Chicago history.

“It is kind of a ‘greatest hits’ of Chicago women that goes back centuries,” Holter said. “There is a loose narrative around it, but you are basically seeing writers writing short pieces that show a snapshot of these people.”

DePaul alumna Jessica London-Shields who has taken on the roles of a young Maureen Watkins as well as Hull House co-founder Ellen Gates Starr, is a Theatre Seven artistic associate and is thrilled to be a part of the show and the short but impactful stories that it has to tell.

“They are trying to not be entirely informational,” she said. “You can’t really explain the entirety of someone’s life in a play, but what I think they do a really great job of is finding a very pinnacle moment and showing that moment in a very clear and interesting light.”

“Unwilling and Hostile Instruments” celebrates women. Today, femininity and feminism are becoming increasingly eminent and it is largely due to art like Ike’s.

“It’s not this dirty word anymore, and it’s about embracing that as a collective,” Holter said as he reflected on the feminist aspects of the play.

“Don’t start researching all of these Chicago women until after the show,” he went on to warn. “Come in with a clean perspective and pretend like you don’t know these people so that you can be surprised by these stories.”

When it comes to writing pieces like “Unwilling and Hostile Instruments” that are short in length, Holter’s creative process is fascinating.

“When I do a 10-minute play, I give myself two hours and then I do a few edits because the more time you spend on it the more you are going to squeeze out what is really interesting about it,” he said. “You should get these characters at their most intense. You come in half way through and you leave before the wreckage is complete. You leave the audience wanting more.”

Holter had no qualms about offering advice for aspiring young playwrights. “You’re crazy, embrace that,” he said with a chuckle. “Don’t do what’s expected, don’t follow the trends and don’t stop creating work that you yourself can produce.”

Holter’s exuberance is infectious. His achievements are stirringly impressive, though it is no surprise that he has seen so much success. His dedication, talent and experience are readily apparent in his conversation as well as his art, and this fall, Chicago has the opportunity to experience a large variety of his renowned work. Missi Davis, Brad Smith, Jessica London- Shields and Ike Holter are the kind of individuals that make DePaul and that great city that surrounds it proud.

“B-Side Studio” will be at the Logan Center for the Arts Sept. 13-Oct. 12.

“Unwilling and Hostile Instruments: 100 Years of Extraordinary Chicago Women” will be at Theatre Seven Oct. 1-Oct. 27.