Deborah Staples News

What could be a better holiday gift to Milwaukee than a World Premiere adaptation of Dickens' beloved A Christmas Carol? On Friday night, Artistic Director Mark Clements opened his resplendent adaptation for the Milwaukee Repertory Theater in the gorgeous Pabst Theatre. In this innovative adaptation by Clements in collaboration with a stunning artistic team, the production renewed holiday magic in the company's 41st year for the city that Clements and The Rep call home.

Milwaukee Rep is excited to present a new, family friendly adaptation of Charles Dicken's A CHRISTMAS CAROL, written by Rep Artistic Director Mark Clements, featuring the same traditional story and characters you love. BroadwayWorld has a first look at the cast in action below!

 Milwaukee Repertory Theater announces casting for the World Premiere adaptation of A Christmas Carol.  Previously announced Milwaukee Rep favorite Jonathan Wainwright (Of Mice of Men, A Christmas Carolas Mr. Cratchit), will make his debut as Scrooge becoming the 12th actor in Milwaukee Rep history to portray one of Dicken's most recognizable characters.  He'll be joined by many familiar faces including Associate Artist Jonathan Gillard Daly (Man of La Mancha, Of Mice and Men) as Mr. Fezziwig, Michael Doherty (Ragtime) as Fred, Associate Artist Angela Iannone as Mrs. Fezziwig, Chike Johnson (Of Mice and Men) as Ghost of Christmas Present, Associate Artist Reese Madigan (Five Presidents) as Bob Cratchit, Associate Artist Jonathan Smoots (A Christmas Carol) as Marley, Malkia Stampley(Dreamgirls) as Mrs. Cratchit and Associate Artist Deborah Staples (Harvey, The Amish Project) as Ghost of Christmas Past.   Complete casting to be announced at a later date.

The popular Lilly's Purple Plastic Purse returns to First Stage for Kevin Kling's theatrical adaptation of Kevin Henkes best selling children's book beginning this May. A picture book written in 1996, Henkes' story features a tiny little girl mouse struggling to be who she is, wearing glitter sunglasses and mismatched outfits--as Lilly called herself, 'The Queen of the World' who liked everything' and in 2016, celebrates 20 years still tucked firmly in children's hearts.

American's national Mother's Day arrives, Sunday, May 8, and Next Act Theatre presents a heartwarming, poignant and powerful production to close their season at exactly the right time of year titled Motherhood Out Loud. Conceived by Susan R. Rose and Joan Stein, more than a dozen playwrights revisit motherhood through a series of themed vignettes beginning with 'Chapter One: Fast Births' and finishing with 'Chapter Five: Coming Home.' Directed by Milwaukee's acclaimed Laura Gordon, each chapter features four actors--Doug Jarecki, Michelle Lopez-Rios, Deborah Staples and Tami Workentin--who play the numerous mothers/fathers of various ages and stages throughout the evening.

Antigone--an ancient play first written by Sophocles in approximately 400 B.C.--challenges audiences in the 21st century and centers around strong women, political drama, and difficult moral choices necessary for the characters to choose. This classic play dramatically illustrates that over centuries, humanity changes little with modern circumstances. First Stage Young Company tackles this acclaimed tragedy under Joshua Pohja's direction by choosing modern language using a translation from the prestigious French dramatist Jean Anouilh written in 1943. Anouilh often centered his stories on idealistic youth, in this play a young princess, who fights for a divine and personal morality over royal social compromise. Pohja dedicated the production to young Middle Eastern women, similar to Malala who also raised her singular voice against her adversaries even under threat of death.

Milwaukee Chamber Theatre (MCT) announces its 42nd season, exploring the theme of "Misfits." The 2016-2017 Season will feature five exciting productions performed at the Broadway Theatre Center in Milwaukee's Historic Third Ward.

Opening night at the Pabst Theatre this December celebrated the 40th Anniversary of Milwaukee Rep's A Christmas Carol. The city's mayor Tom Barrett was on hand with an executive from Wells Fargo, the production's corporate sponsor. Each man echoed that theater, especially this longstanding tradition of Charles Dickens' A Christmas Carol, creates family memories that last a lifetime and brings the community together.

A CHRISTMAS CAROL is currently running at Milwaukee Repertory Theatre through December 24, 2015, and BroadwayWorld has a first look at the cast in action below!

Noel Coward's popular play Private Lives currently on stage at American Players Theatre might be ripped from modern entertainment headlines. These scenes of two recently divorced spouses reconnecting for a romantic tryst could be versions of Duchess Sarah Ferguson and Prince Andrew living unmarried under one roof (after their long ago divorce) and wishing for royal approval to remarry. Or perchance reminiscent of Gyweneth Paltrow and Coldplay's Chris Martin separating and naming their split a "conscious uncoupling," Coward's 1930 production appears more believable decades later, continually relevant for contemporary audiences.

First published more than 200 years ago, Jane Austen's famous novel Pride and Prejudice comes to American Players Theatre (APT) and revisits significant gender issues audiences might assume have been resolved. Former Milwaukee Reperatory Theater Artistic Director Joseph Hanreddy and acclaimed J.R. Sullivan adapted one of the world's most popular novels into a compelling, senstive stage play that breathes life into Austen's romantic couples who search for their futures on Spring Green's Up the Hill stage this summer.

'The flower of the garter blooms for every Windsor heart.' So sings the American Player Theatre cast when Shakespeare's The Merry Wives of Windsor arrives to open the Up The Hill Theatre season. These beloved characters celebrate 'The Most Noble Order of the Garter' ceremony, which APT stages similar to an early 20th century American Independence day celebration only with English patriotism---summer entertainment costumed by Holly Payne complemented by Nathan Stuber's scenic design.

American Players Theatre (APT) will launch its 36th Season tonight, June 6, 2015 with a preview performance of William Shakespeare's The Merry Wives of Windsor. The performance begins at 8:00 p.m. Tickets are still available.

American Players Theatre (APT) will launch its 36th Season June 6, 2015 with a preview performance of William Shakespeare's The Merry Wives of Windsor.

Five names the magic number. For the past 50 years, Milwaukee Rep has supported the Artistic Intern Program, a rarity throughout the country. In another 5th anniversary worth celebrating, The Rep Artistic Intern Ensemble presented a cohesive, fascinating evening in homage to the theater during their Short Play Festival held in the Stiemke Studio this April. Actors stood in the tiered stands amid the audience and asked: "Think of all the characters you love."

Science, religion, creationism. evolution--A debate where faith versus confirmed fact constructs a classroom drama touched with humor tiled Ten Questions to Ask your Biology Teacher about Evolution. Milwaukee's Next Act Theatre presents a World Premiere production written by Canadian playwright Stephen Massicotte in his two-act play centering on a science teacher Miss Kelly and her rather conscientious religious objector to the curriculum, a young man named Ray. While both characters struggle with loss and tragedy in their lives, their opposing cultural contexts help minimize their pain--Kelly quotes scientific statistics while Ray quotes Biblical scripture.

September 13, 27, 29 and October 2, 2006. These forgotten dates inherit new meaning when Milwaukee Rep stages Jessica Dickey's The Amish Project in the Stiemke Studio. Each of these four dates represents a school shooting--and one occurred in a tiny Wisconsin town-- while debut playwright Dickey focuses on October 2. October 2, 2006 the local neighborhood milkman walked into Pennsylvania's Nickel Mines schoolhouse with a gun and shot ten girls, five who survived..

Milwaukee Repertory Theater presents The Amish Project by Jessica Dickey, a fictional exploration of the Nickel Mines schoolhouse shooting in an Amish community, and the path of forgiveness and compassion forged in its wake. The one-person cast for The Amish Project stars Rep Associate Artist Deborah Staples. Directed by Milwaukee-based theater director and Rep Literary Coordinator Leda Hoffmann, the production runs now through March 22, 2015 and opens tonight, February 13. BroadwayWorld has a first look at the cast in action below!

It's your last week to vote for the 2014 BroadwayWorld Milwaukee, WI Regional Awards! Check out the latest live stats as of December 26th. Voting closes at the end of the year, in under one week!

Milwaukee Repertory Theater announced casting today for The Amish Project, the next production in their 2014/15 Stiemke Studio Season.