Elizabeth McCoy and Jonathan Mares star in Fat Squirrel's productions of 'Venus in Fur' and 'Miss Julie.' Provided photo At about the same time that “Fifty Shades of Grey” took off as an e-book, David Ives’ drama “Venus in Fur” had an award-winning run on Broadway, following up a successful stint off-Broadway. In the drama, a director is casting parts for a play he adapted from an erotic novel, “Venus in Furs,” a work by Leopold von Sacher-Masoch.