Producing artistic director of Milwaukee Chamber Theatre Michael Wright likens the company’s upcoming show Fallen Angels to “an episode of ‘I Love Lucy’ as written by Noël Coward. It’s as if Lucy and Ethel had inherited a little extra money and were living in 1925 London!”
The production, which opens April 14, is about two happily married upper-class women in 20th-century England. While their husbands are away on a golf trip, each unexpectedly hears from their mutual past flame and the two drink a little too much while reminiscing about what they might be missing, igniting their old rivalry. Arguments, antics and miscommunications ensue as they await their former French lover’s arrival.
Wright explains that during this time period, “Women had just recently thrown away their corsets and were beginning to loosen up a little and explore their options,” and that the play “does poke fun at the double standard between the way men and women were allowed to behave, especially at that time.” But he adds that, “Even though the action takes place in another era, I find these characters and their situation to be totally identifiable. Ultimately, this piece is about relationships that have hit a bump in the road, become a bit too routine and predictable, and might benefit from a catalyst to reignite the spark that was once there.”
Featured performers are Kay Allmand, Matt Koester, Beth Mulkerron, Rick Pendzich, Molly Rhode and Chase Stoeger. “What makes Fallen Angels particularly appealing to me is that it has three very juicy women’s roles, which is all too rare. And Coward really knew how to write for women,” says Wright. “We’re incredibly fortunate to have so much talent here in Milwaukee. Kay, Beth and Molly are all top-notch local actresses with extraordinary comic instincts. They’re going to have a blast with this one!”
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Fallen Angels runs April 14-May 1 at the Broadway Theatre Center’s Cabot Theatre, 158 N. Broadway. For tickets, call 414-291-7800 or visit milwaukeechambertheatre.com.
Theatre Happenings:
South Milwaukee Performing Arts Center (901 15th Ave., South Milwaukee) hosts two performances by the internationally acclaimed Cashore Marionettes on Saturday, April 9: Simple Gifts at 2 p.m. and Life in Motion at 7:30 p.m. The former is a 60-minute piece where Joseph Cashore presents his marionettes in everyday-life scenes; the latter is a 90-minute version of Cashore’s show that offers a “sensitive vision of what it is to be human.” For more information, call 414-766-5049 or visit southmilwaukeepac.org.
April is Sexual Assault Awareness Month and Bronzeville Arts Ensemble brings attention to its importance with Say Something: Women Helping Other Women Heal Through Theatre, an evening of two new works by La’Ketta Caldwell and Amy Shu that “explore the beauty of healing, acceptance and the power to overcome.” Show runs Friday, April 15 and Saturday, April 16 at The Body and Soul Healing Arts Center, 3617 N. 48th St. For more information and tickets, call 414-290-5378 or visit facebook.com/bronzevilleartsensemble.
The infamous giant, bloodthirsty Venus fly trap comes to Cardinal Stritch University’s Nancy Kendall Mainstage Theater (6801 N. Yates Road), April 15-25. For tickets to the beloved musical Little Shop of Horrors, call 414-410-4171 or email boxoffice@stritch.edu.
August Wilson’s Fences is a Pulitzer Prize- and Tony Award-winning drama about a former Negro League baseball player and how he grapples with dreams versus reality. Show runs April 26-May 22 at The Milwaukee Repertory Theater. For tickets, call 414-224-9490 or visit milwaukeerep.com.
