Milwaukee Repertory Theater

Milwaukee Repertory Theater ("Milwaukee Rep") is a theater company in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Founded as the Fred Miller Theatre Company, the group is housed in the Patty & Jay Baker Theater Complex, which includes the Quadracci Powerhouse Theater, the Stiemke Theater, and the Stackner Cabaret. The Rep produces an annual production of A Christmas Carol at the Pabst Theater. The Rep serves an annual audience of over 200,000 patrons, including over 15,000 subscribers.

Milwaukee Repertory Theater
Patty & Jay Baker Theater Complex
Address108 E Wells Street
Milwaukee, Wisconsin
United States
Coordinates43.0408808°N 87.9113174°W / 43.0408808; -87.9113174
TypeRegional Theater
CapacityQuadracci Powerhouse Theater: 720
Stiemke Theater: 205
Stackner Cabaret: 186
Construction
Opened1954
Reopened1987 (current location)
Website
www.milwaukeerep.com

History

After being established as the Fred Miller Theatre Company, the name was changed to the Milwaukee Repertory Theater in the late 1950s, to reflect its growing catalogue of classic and contemporary plays, and a commitment to develop the resident acting community. In 1968, it moved from its original space—the Fred Miller Theatre, on Oakland Ave.—to the Todd Wehr Theater at the Performing Art Center in downtown Milwaukee. In 1974, a small warehouse was converted into the experimental Court Street Theater, which served as a laboratory for creative exploration and a testing ground for new playwrights. The Milwaukee Repertory Theater moved to its current location in 1987 and closed its Court Street operations. The theater is now located on the east bank of the Milwaukee River in the Patty and Jay Baker Theater Complex at 108 E Wells St, Milwaukee, Wisconsin.[1]

Milwaukee Repertory Theater is dedicated to presenting new playwrights, reliving classics, and commissioning translations of classic and contemporary foreign playwrights. Each year, the Milwaukee Rep welcomes up to 275,000 people at nearly 700 performances of 15 productions ranging from compelling dramas, powerful classics, new plays and full-scale musicals in its three unique performance venues. Since 1958, Milwaukee Repertory Theater has premiered nearly 150 plays and musicals.[2] Historically the theater has put on annual holiday productions of Charles Dickens' A Christmas Carol at the historic Pabst Theater since 1976. In 2012, the Rep recorded a deficit of nearly $400,000, despite an increase in total ticket revenue of 60% from the previous season.[3] Coming out of the recession, The Rep reined in its budget, increased ticket sales, and received a single donation of half a million dollars helping to pay down the accumulated deficit from past seasons.[4]

Theater spaces
  • 720-seat Quadracci Powerhouse Thrust Stage
  • 186-seat Stackner Cabaret Theater, bar, and restaurant
  • 205-seat Stiemke Studio

World premieres
  • The Last Days of a Young Man by James Andrews (1958)
  • Adam the Creator by Ray Boyle and Sam Lawent (1960)
  • Tartuffe translated by Richard Wilbur from the play by Molière (1962)
  • All Together Now by Nagle Jackson, Jeffrey Tambor, and Milwaukee Repertory Theater Company (1972)
  • An Occasional Piece Suitable to the Openings of Theaters by Nagle Jackson (1973)
  • Fighting Bob by Tom Cole (1979)
  • How I Got That Story by Amlin Gray (1979) [5]
  • Lakeboat by David Mamet (1980)
  • The Nerd by Larry Shue (1981)
  • The Foreigner by Larry Shue (1984)
  • Work Song by Eric Simonson and Jeffrey Hatcher (2000)
  • The Bachelors by Fred Alley and James Kaplan (2001)
  • Moby Dick adapted by Eric Simonson (2002)
  • Winter Wonderettes by Roger Bean (2003)
  • Bach at Leipzig by Itamar Moses (2004) [6]
  • Sherlock Holmes: The Final Adventure by Steven Dietz (2005)
  • Holmes and Watson: A Musical Mystery by Jahnna Beecham and Malcom Hilgartner (2009)
  • Soultime at the Apollo by Kevin Ramsey (2009)
  • Liberace! by Brent Hazelton (2010) [7]
  • after all the terrible things I do by A. Rey Pamatmat (2014) [7]
  • Back Home Again: On The Road with John Denver by Randal Myler and Dan Wheetman (2015)
  • Five Presidents by Rick Cleveland (2015) [7]
  • American Song by Joanna Murray-Smith (2016)
  • Sirens of Song by Kevin Ramsey (2016)
  • Mark Twain’s River of Song by Randal Myler and Dan Wheetman (2018)
  • One House Over by Catherine Trieschmann (2018)

Notable artists

Community involvement

"The Rep's" community programs include student matinées, facility tours, residencies, and in-school workshops. The Rep contributes complimentary tickets to Milwaukee area non-profit fund-raisers. The Rep also sponsors adult acting classes, public lectures and discussions, pre-show "The Rep-In-Depth" presentations in the Quadracci Powerhouse and Stiemke Theaters, and audience talk-backs. Additional patron features include "pay-what-you-can" performances, audio described performances, American Sign Language-interpreted performances, captioned performances and numerous special events including Opening Night and Closing Night parties. The Friends of The Rep is Milwaukee Rep's official volunteer organization.

The Rep is also home to one of the oldest internship programs in regional theater. Each season acting, directing, and production interns join the company full-time to gain experience in professional theater.[9] Mark Clements is the current Artistic Director.

References
  1. "Milwaukee Repertory Theater – History and Mission". The Milwaukee Rep. Archived from the original on January 28, 2015. Retrieved February 10, 2015.
  2. "New Play Development". milwaukeerep.com. Retrieved 2020-01-23.
  3. Schuyler, David (January 6, 2014). "Milwaukee Repertory Theater posts fiscal 2013 deficit despite attendance growth". Milwaukee Business Journal. Retrieved July 28, 2017.
  4. "Theater Management Knowledge Base » Case Study: Milwaukee Repertory Theater (2014)". yaletmknowledgebase.org. Retrieved 2017-07-27.
  5. "Milwaukee Repertory Theater Production History 1954-1980". Retrieved February 14, 2019.
  6. Hernandez, Ernio (December 18, 2005). "The Pipes Are Calling: Bach at Leipzig Ends Off-Broadway Run Dec. 18". Retrieved January 31, 2018. Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
  7. Oleksinski, Johnny (February 26, 2014). "Milwaukee Repertory Theater announces 2014-15 season". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved February 10, 2015.
  8. Milwaukee, Urban. "Milwaukee Repertory Theater Receives $1 Million Gift to Name the John D. (Jack) Lewis New Play Development Program". Urban Milwaukee. Retrieved 2017-07-26.
  9. "Joseph Hanreddy Joins UWM's Peck School of the Arts to Launch New Fellowship in Directing and Design" (Media Release). Milwaukee Repertory Theater. February 22, 2010. Archived from the original on February 10, 2015. Retrieved February 10, 2015.
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