Give My Regards to Nowhere: A Director's Tale

'Richard Engling knows Chicago's famously chaotic and glorious storefront theater scene like the back of his hand. It's the perfect setting for absurd comic hi-jinx.'

– Chris Jones, Chicago Tribune


In this “rollicking ride through the underbelly of the acting world” (Midwest Book Review), Chicago director Dwayne Finnegan has a long shot at the big time and only two obstacles: himself and everyone he knows. Dwayne's got an idea of how to direct Shakespeare's least-favorite play that could set him on the road to Broadway. We're talking Bob Fosse choreography, Jimi Hendrix guitars, and the hottest cast in the city of Chicago. But when the show's producer cuts out with the cash, Dwayne decides to produce the show himself, putting his marriage and his meager finances at risk. What could go wrong?


'Engling's satire on storefront theatre is thoroughly entertaining from start to finish.'

– ChicagoOnStage



'a scrappy, big-hearted backstage comedy layered with mordant wit and full of a deep, abiding love for its characters...'

– Adam Langer, author of CYCLORAMA


'Hilarious, witty, touching, intelligent, and spot-on... Entire chapters are laugh-out-loud funny...'

– Nadeem Zaman, author of THE INHERITORS and UP IN THE MAIN HOUSE AND OTHER STORIES


'...Give My Regards to Nowhere is a magic trick performed in plain view. The novel is comic, wise, and riveting.'

– Liam Heneghan, author of BEASTS AT BEDTIME


'...Engling vividly captures the disparity between grand artistic ambition and what reality has to offer in this very funny, briskly written, and often touching book. Fans and inhabitants of Chicago's (or any city's) theater scene will feel right at home...'

– Mark Larson, author of ENSEMBLE: AN ORAL HISTORY OF CHICAGO THEATER