Stephanie Shum was looking for a way to make friends when her family moved from Canada to Illinois when she was nine, settling in Buffalo Grove.

“Somebody who became my best friend in third and fourth grade was doing a summer theater program,” Shum said. “I followed her to that because she was my only friend. I fell in love with theater through that experience.”

That led to a lifelong love of acting.

“I did school plays when I went to Aptakisic Junior High as well as when I went to Stevenson High School,” she said.  In addition, she performed with Summer Stars, a program of the Buffalo Grove Park District.

Although she knew that she would continue acting, Shum said she didn’t think of it as a possible career. “Planning for the future and doing something stable was always something that was top of mind in my family as well,” she explained.

Shum earned a marketing degree from McGill University in Montreal and continued acting there.

“Strangely, after that I kind of melded the two paths,” she noted. “I started working in theater administration. I worked for quite a few years at Lookingglass in marketing, and my day job now is at A Red Orchid Theatre as well.” She is the Marketing & Development Director at that theater.

Shum said she chose to study marketing because her father has an accounting and business background. “So that was something that was always on my mind,” she explained. “Marketing felt the most creative in a way. It felt somehow connected to theater for me in terms of thinking outside the box.”

But Shum couldn’t give up acting.

“As I delved deeper into the administrative side of theater, the calling to be onstage was always still there,” she reported. “So I started auditioning again and was able to do both.”

Shum has performed with numerous theater companies, including Goodman, First Floor, Gift, American Theater Company, Neo-Futurists, The New Coordinates, and TheatreSquared, among others. She is represented by Gray Talent Group.

One of Shum’s favorite roles was in “Dogs” at Red Theater last fall. She earned a Jeff nomination for Performer in a Supporting role in that show.

To increase her acting knowledge, Shum attended and graduated from the School of Steppenwolf. “I didn’t go to college for theater so I think for a long time I had a bit of imposter syndrome,” she admitted. Through training there she said that she was “able to sort of immerse myself in a lot of different acting techniques that I hadn’t necessarily encountered. It gave me a bit more confidence.”

Shum’s latest role is a character named Mia in the world premiere of “The Targeted” by Hanna Kime at A Red Orchid Theatre.

“’The Targeted’ is about a community of people — self-identified folks who believe they’re being systematically stalked or harassed or psychologically tortured by organized or government groups,” Shum related.

Mia’s brother identifies as a targeted individual. She decided to go with her brother to a conference for targeted individuals.

“He wants her to understand better what he’s going through, and she’s making a concerted effort to be there for him, although she might have her doubts herself,” Shum explained.

Although the play is about targeted individuals, Shum believes it addresses larger themes in the current world.

“People are being divided over beliefs, and how can we continue to be there for each other or to be empathetic for each other even if we might not see eye-to-eye,” Shum explained.

“It’s such a juicy role,” she concluded.

The actor/marketing professional is particularly enjoying the fact that her two careers are both at the forefront now.

“A Red Orchid is where I work during the day,” Shum said. “The fact that I’m able to be here as an artist and an administrator feels special. And to get to work with ensemble members that I get to interact with on a daily basis in a different capacity — that I admire and want to emulate as an actor myself — feels really special.”

“The Targeted” runs from May 7 to June 14 on the Chopin Theatre Mainstage in Chicago. For tickets, call 312-943-8722 or visit aredorchidtheatre.org.

Myrna Petlicki is a freelance reporter for Pioneer Press.