Rohn Thomas acts in a Columbia Films production alongside George Clooney and Ryan Gosling

Rohn Thomas, part-time faculty member with Kent State’s School of Theatre and Dance, appears alongside some of today’s most recognizable actors in the Golden Globe nominated movie The Ides of March, starring George Clooney (Michael Clayton and O Brother, Where Art Thou?) and Ryan Gosling (Crazy, Stupid, Love. and The Notebook). The movie opened in theatres Friday, Oct. 7, and was released on DVD on Tuesday, Jan. 17.

The Ides of March follows an up-and-coming press secretary for a novel presidential candidate who finds himself involved in a political scandal that threatens the campaign. Thomas plays the stage manager during a debate scene. During his three-day shoot in May 2011 at Miami University in Oxford, he worked directly with Clooney and Gosling.

“The trailer looks great. George [Clooney] was absolutely genuine and positive. You can sense how things are going with a shoot by the energy of the crew. It was very upbeat on this one,” Thomas says.

During a break in the green room, Thomas accidentally discovers an interesting irony – that part of the movie theoretically takes place at Kent State University.

“Fun story … I noticed a computer screen with the Kent State logo on it,” Thomas says. “I asked if The Ides of March was going to be filming at Kent State. The production designer tells me, no, that although actual filming was taking place on the Michigan State campus, they were going to refer to the university as Kent State and were going to use the Kent State logo and signage.”

Thomas has previously been cast in other popular movies including The Mothman Prophecies (2002) starring Richard Gere, The Shawshank Redemption (1994) starring Tim Robbins and Morgan Freeman, and The Dark Half (1993) starring Timothy Hutton (Leverage).

Thomas is no stranger to live theatre either. Most recently he appeared in Great Lakes Theater Festival’s production of Taming of the Shrew. He also worked with the Cleveland Playhouse, as well as Buffalo’s Studio Arena Theatre in New York. Audiences may also recognize him for his performances as Smea in Peter Pan, Mayor Shin in Music Man and Mooney in Anything Goes at Porthouse Theatre, on the grounds of Blossom Music Center.

Thomas teaches “Acting for the Camera” at Kent State’s School of Theatre and Dance, and he also produces and directs short films.

He lives in Kent, Ohio, with his wife Terri Kent, an associate professor at Kent State University where she serves as head of the Acting and Musical Theatre programs and artistic director of Porthouse Theatre, and their four children.