February 25, 2014 — [Milwaukee] —Artistic Director Mark Clements has announced Milwaukee Repertory Theater's 2014/15 Season.
"Next season will offer strong stories that are substantive pieces of theater that are both enlightening and entertaining," said Clements. "The season includes two exciting world premieres,after all the terrible things I do and Five Presidents. We will also continue the tradition that I started upon my arrival by including a musical on our main stage — the first production in the Quadracci Powerhouse will be the award-winning musical, The Color Purple. Audiences responded so enthusiastically to last year's production ofRagtime, I believe they are in for another treat with The Color Purple."
Managing Director Chad Bauman added, "This was my first time to go through season planning process with Mark Clements. We are very proud of the productions that we have selected for the 2014/15 Season and are confident that Rep audiences will find these choices as exciting, challenging and intriguing as we do. The productions we are offering for next year offer us the opportunity to continue to engage with our community in meaningful ways and to continue the important conversations that emerge from the work on our stages."
The Quadracci Powerhouse will open in grand style with The Color Purple, hailed by Time Magazine as "soaring and joyful." Adapted from Alice Walker's Pulitzer-Prize winning novel, this inspiring Broadway musical will be directed by Artistic Director Mark Clements and produced by the same creative team behind The Rep's 2013/14 hit production of Ragtime. During the holiday season, audiences will enjoy the beloved classic comedyHarvey. The production will be directed by KJ Sanchez, who returns to The Rep after directing this season's hilarious production of Noises Off and the beautifully-realized production of The Diary of Anne Frank last season. Next up on the Quadracci Powerhouse will be Good People, a recent Broadway smash hit about class and culture. Director Kate Buckley will direct this production; she returns to The Rep after previously directingGlengarry Glen Ross ( 2007/08 ) and Frozen ( 2006/07 ). The Quadracci Powerhouse Season will conclude with the World Premiere of Five Presidents written by Emmy Award-winner Rick Cleveland ( from TV's The West Wing ) and directed by Mark Clements and the multiple Tony Award-winning play, Peter and the Starcatcher, the grownup's prequel to Peter Pan.
The Stiemke Studio opens with the World Premiere production of after all the terrible things I do about two people with a shared past who struggle to offer each other a second chance. This production will be directed byAssociate Artist May Adrales who returns to The Rep after directing the riveting Stiemke Studio productions ofThe Mountaintop ( 2012/13 ) and Yellowman ( 2011/12 ). In the spring will be The Amish Project, a beautiful new play inspired by events surrounding the shooting at the West Nickel Mines School in 2006. Literary Coordinator Leda Hoffmann will direct this production.
The Stackner Cabaret season kicks off with the country music send-up The Doyle & Debbie Show, called "hilarious, drop-dead funny" by the Chicago Tribune. Rep Artistic Associate JC Clementz, who directed last year's heartwarming production of Forever Plaid, will direct this show. Immediately following will be the return of the wildly popular 2010/11 Stacker production of Liberace!, written and directed by Associate Artistic Director Brent Hazelton, and featuring the amazing talents of Jack Forbes Wilson. Rounding out the Stackner season will be a tribute to folk music and its roots performed by the multi-talented Grammy nominee, Stephen Wade, and the blues musical Low Down Dirty Blues.
Milwaukee Repertory Theater
2014/15 Season
Subscription Season
The Doyle & Debbie Show
by Bruce Arntson
September 5 — November 2, 2014
Stackner Cabaret
Directed by Artistic Associate JC Clementz
Called "hilarious, brilliant and drop-dead funny" by the Chicago Tribune, The Doyle & Debbie Show finds a washed-up country star and his newest singing partner dusting off their microphones and resurrecting a familiar signature sound. Singing 16 original hits, including "Stock Car Love" and "Blue Stretch Pants," this hilarious send-up of country music duos will have you doubled-over with laughter and roaring for an encore.
The Color Purple
Book by Marsha Norman
Music and Lyrics by Brenda Russell, Allee Willis, and Stephen Bray
Directed by Mark Clements
September 23 — November 2, 2014
Quadracci Powerhouse
Directed by Artistic Director Mark Clements
Following the success of last year's Ragtime, Mark Clements and his creative team reunite to bring you the hit musical based on Alice Walker's Pulitzer Prize-winning novel. This glorious musical saga, spanning four decades, tells the unforgettable story of a woman who finds the strength to triumph over adversity and discover her own unique voice in the world. With a joyous Grammy-nominated score featuring jazz, ragtime, gospel and blues, The Color Purple captures the hearts of young and old, and reminds us that "it only takes a grain of love to make a mighty tree."
World Premiere Event!
after all the terrible things I do
by A. Rey Pamatmat
October 1 — November 9, 2014
Stiemke Studio
Directed by Associate Artist May Adrales
A poignant, new American drama finds Daniel, a writer, fresh out of college, returning to his Midwestern hometown to regain his sense of self. He takes a job at a local bookstore owned by Linda, an émigré from the Philippines, and soon after, they realize their connection is much deeper than a shared love of literature. Together they will have to face the trauma of their pasts to create second chances for themselves — but can they find forgiveness?
Back By Popular Demand!
Liberace!
by Brent Hazelton
November 7, 2014 — January 11, 2015
Stackner Cabaret
Directed by Associate Artistic Director Brent Hazelton
Born less than 10 miles from where Milwaukee Rep now stands, Liberace lived a life of flamboyance, flash, and lavish costumes. In this funny and touching tribute, the virtuoso musician gets one last chance to glitter and shine as he tickles the ivories through his favorite songs, including "I'll Be Seeing You," "Chopsticks," and "The Boogie Woogie." Milwaukee favorite, Jack Forbes Wilson, will reprise his iconic performance as the man who defined four decades of music and pop culture.
Pulitzer Prize-Winning Comedy
Harvey
by Mary Chase
November 18 — December 21, 2014
Quadracci Powerhouse
Directed by KJ Sanchez
Elwood P. Dowd has a friend in Harvey — a six-foot-tall rabbit "pooka," visible only to him. Elwood's behavior relating to his invisible friend is a constant source of frustration for his long-suffering family. When his social-climbing sister attempts to have him committed to an asylum, she learns she'd rather have Elwood just as he is — kind, caring, genial and at peace with the world and his place in it — than turn him into something he's not. Winner of the Pulitzer Prize, and made famous by Jimmy Stewart's performance in the iconic 1950 film, Harvey is the perfect comedy for the holiday season!
The Beautiful Music All Around Us
by Stephen Wade
January 16 — March 15, 2015
Stackner Cabaret
Legendary musician and 2013 Grammy-nominee Stephen Wade brings his near-lifetime exploration of Southern musical traditions to the Stackner. Best known for his long-running one-man show, Banjo Dancing, Stephen's newest piece is based on his award-winning recent book that uncovers the largely hidden but surprisingly influential makers of iconic American folksong. Drawn from the celebrated Library of Congress field recordings of the 1930s and '40s, this exhilarating theatrical concert features spoken word, projected images, and live music-making. The Beautiful Music All Around Us is guaranteed to be a performance unlike any you have ever seen.
Good People
by David Lindsay-Abaire
January 20 — February 15, 2015
Quadracci Powerhouse
Directed by Kate Buckley
In South Boston, gossiping and bustin' chops is the name of the game. You can bet your weekly BINGO winnings that everyone knows your personal business. Southie native, Margie, has found herself in tough times — no job, overdue rent, and a difficult family. With very little left to lose, Margie turns to an old flame for help, and ends up finding out that sometimes it only takes a few good people to help you succeed in life. An insightful piece about class and culture, this recent Broadway hit is darkly funny and surprisingly touching.
The Amish Project
by Jessica Dickey
February 11 — March 22, 2015
Stiemke Studio
Directed by Literary Coordinator Leda Hoffmann
Praised by The New York Times as "extraordinary," The Amish Project is a devastating and beautiful one-woman tour-de-force performance that compels us to question the paths we take at the crossroads of grief, rage, and clemency. Inspired by the 2006 school shootings in Nickel Mines, Pennsylvania, this fictional account of a real-life tragedy allows us to glimpse into the world of Amish culture, and to come to grips with the true limits of compassion and forgiveness.
World Premiere Event!
Five Presidents
by Rick Cleveland
Directed by Mark Clements
March 10 — April 5, 2015
Quadracci Powerhouse
Directed by Artistic Director Mark Clements
From Emmy Award-winning writer, Rick Cleveland, ( The West Wing, House of Cards and Six Feet Under ), comes a funny and incisive new drama about the meeting of America's most exclusive club — the ex-presidents. Obliged to gather together on the day of Richard Nixon's funeral, four "exes" and one "current" vent frustrations, revisit old grievances, and reveal the toll it takes on any person foolish enough to seek the highest office in the land.
Low Down Dirty Blues
by Randal Myler
March 20 — May 24, 2015
Stackner Cabaret
The night club may be closed, but the party is just heating up. Join a group of musician/singers as they gather after-hours to swap stories and share their fervor for music. Four multi-talented performers pour their passion, soul, and love into the greatest hits from Muddy Waters, Ma Rainey, Sophie Tucker, Howlin' Wolf, Pearl Bailey, and many more. Twenty-two smokin' songs, non-stop blues riffs, titillating double-entendres, and hot rhythms keep the theater sultry and steamy from the first note to the last.
Peter and the Starcatcher
A Play by Rick Elice
Adapted from the novel by Dave Barry and Ridley Pearson
Music by Wayne Barker
April 21 — May 24, 2015
Quadracci Powerhouse
Join a swashbuckling, mad-cap adventure aboard the good ship Neverland! Before Peter was Pan, he was just an orphan who didn't like grownups. But his future changes forever when the lost boy boards a pirate ship, and we're whisked away on a breathtaking adventure to answer the question: How did a boy named Peter become The Boy Who Never Grew Up? Fun for the whole family, the five-time Tony Award-winning show features a dozen actors playing more than 100 unforgettable characters. The New York Times called it "the most exhilarating . . . storytelling in decades! You must experience it for yourself." This innovative, hilarious and imaginative prequel to Peter Pan will have you HOOKed the moment you let your imagination take flight.
Additional productions not part of the regular Subscription Season:
A Christmas Carol
By Charles Dickens
Adapted by Joseph Hanreddy and Edward Morgan
December 2 — December 24, 2014
Pabst Theater
Tiny Tim, Bob Cratchit and Ebenezer Scrooge make their 39th annual appearance at the historical Pabst Theater in the Milwaukee holiday family favorite.
Rep Lab
April 10 — 13, 2015
Stiemke Studio
The Rep's annual short-play festival, Rep Lab, will celebrate its 5th season of showcasing The Rep's highly-lauded Intern Ensemble.
Please note: All plays and dates are subject to change.
Subscriptions will be available for renewing and new subscribers beginning Tuesday, February 25. Subscription prices for the 2014/15 Season range from $99 — $499. Packages available are the Ultimate 11-play package which includes the entire season spanning all three of The Rep's performance spaces; Quadracci Powerhouse/Stackner 9-play package; Quadracci Powerhouse/Stiemke Studio 7-play package; Quadracci Powerhouse 5-play package; Stackner Cabaret 4-Play package as well as a Create Your Own Season package and Flex Passes. For additional information on subscription offerings, please contact The Rep's Ticket Office at 414-224-9490 or visit www.MilwaukeeRep.com .
Milwaukee Repertory Theater is a nationally-recognized company that presents compelling dramas, powerful classics, award-winning contemporary works, full-scale musicals, housed in its three unique performance venues — the Quadracci Powerhouse, Stiemke Studio and Stackner Cabaret. The Rep also produces an annual production of A Christmas Carol at the beautiful and historic Pabst Theater. Under the leadership of Artistic Director Mark Clements and Managing Director Chad Bauman, The Rep is committed to creating plays that are meaningful and relevant to the society we live in — plays that are challenging, visceral and engage the community through the issues they explore, demonstrating how a theater deeply rooted in its locality can also enjoy a richly influential and resonant national voice.
