Marion resident, Greg Fiebig, is a native of St. Louis, Missouri. He received a PhD in Speech Communication from the University of Missouri, Columbia, a Master of Arts in Theatre at the University of Central Missouri in Warrensburg, and is also a graduate of Southwest Baptist University in Bolivar, MO, majoring in Speech and Sociology.
Fiebig chose Marion, Indiana as home in May, 2006, when he accepted a position as a theatre professor for Indiana Wesleyan University. After eight years in that role, he became Chairman of the Communication & Theatre Division at IWU, but his work on and behind the stage was far from over. While on sabbatical in NYC in 2014, Fiebig worked with a mid-town church to develop a performing arts ministry which then inspired him to establish a professional repertory theatre devoted to William Shakespeare. After writing an organizational structure and business plan and jumping through some hoops, Hoosier Shakes was born in Marion in 2016 – the same year as the 400th anniversary of Shakespeare’s legacy. The official nonprofit has grown vastly since its inception. Its budget has increased significantly through support of benefactors as the company adds educational programming and even performance venues outside of Grant County. Fiebig finds great fulfillment in seeing the program grow in Marion and enjoys sharing stories of how the performances have influenced individual families and youth who might not have taken interest in or been able to afford watching a Shakespeare play. Since day one, Hoosier Shakes operates on a “pay as you will” basis in order to provide live performing arts entertainment, as well as a piece of history, for all.
Around the same time Hoosier Shakes began, Fiebig also approached Mayor Jess Alumbaugh following his first election in 2016 regarding finding ways to bolster the arts in Marion. A year and a half later, he and two other proponents, Sheila Todd and Katie Perez, formed a task force then listening sessions to begin the Fusion Arts Alliance (FAA) — a stand-alone nonprofit by artists for artists, as well as the City of Marion Arts Commission (CMAC) as a city arm. They both took off early this year (2020).
Between the two initiatives, Fiebig volunteers 10 – 15 hours a week on operating and continuing to develop Hoosier Shakes, and another 5 hours a week with the Fusion Arts Alliance – both efforts in passionate pursuit to champion the arts for Marion / Grant County.