Photo credit: Tom Bamberger
Acts of Discovery runs October 24-27, 2018, at 1633 E. North Avenue
Heinavanker
Vocal ensemble Heinavanker (the name originating from Renaissance artist Hieronymus Bosch’s Haywain Triptych—its allegoric scenes seemingly inspired from today’s life) is a unique meeting point for musicians active in different fields. Since 1996, Heinavanker’s members have delved into early sacred music as well as ancient Estonian runic songs and folk hymns. Their upcoming Milwaukee concert (titled “Terra Mariana”) takes place under the auspices of Early Music Now.
On the program are 14 works. As is their wont, Heinavanker’s fine vocalists have selected several religious pieces to perform; these include Kyrie, Agnus Dei and Introitus by Johannes Ockeghem (d. 1497); Magnificat by Mikołaj z Radomia (fl. 15th century); and Salve Regina by the ensemble’s artistic director, Margo Kõlar (b. 1961). Other works include Estonian folk hymns and runic songs, Lamentatio by Maribrianus de Orto (c.1460-1529) and Gregorian music. (John Jahn)
Saturday, Oct. 20 at St. Joseph Chapel, 1501 S. Layton Blvd. For tickets, visit earlymusicnow.org.
Lombardi
Vincent Thomas Lombardi (1913-1970) needs little introduction—least of all in the state where he coached its beloved professional football team to three straight (and five total) NFL championships in seven years—in addition to winning the first two Super Bowls. As much as we may know (or think we know) about legendary Green Bay Packers coach Vince Lombardi, there’s still inspiration to be drawn from an intimate recounting of his life and times—by football fans and non-fans, alike.
Lombardi, a play written by Eric Simonson, follows reporter Michael McCormick through a week of the Packers’ 1965 season, whereby he discovers the coach’s passions and relationships both on and off the field with equally legendary players such as Jim Taylor and Paul Hornung, the press, and his wife, Marie. Throughout Lombardi’s run, Famous Faces—a sports memorabilia company—will be holding a silent auction at each performance, in which Packers mementos and keepsakes from past to present will be up for bid. (John Jahn)
Oct. 19-Nov. 4 at Racine Theatre Guild, 2519 Northwestern Ave. For tickets, call 262-633-1250 or visit racinetheatre.org/production/lombardi.
Against the Grain: The Life & Times of Levi Fisher Ames
After discovering Civil War veteran Levi Fisher Ames’ woodcarvings of real and mythical animals at the John Michael Kohler Art Center, writer-director Ed Morgan enlisted his Theatre MXT colleagues John Kishline and Deborah Clifton, and Danceworks Performance Company’s choreographer Dani Kuepper and dancers, to create a multidisciplinary performance about this remarkable Wisconsin folk artist. Soon filmmaker Kym McDaniel, actor Kirk Thompson and designer Rick Graham joined the project. “Some events could only be told in dance,” Morgan explained. “Others needed language and realistic behavior. The film is a window into Levi’s mind and also connects the dancers to the actual carvings.”
Well-versed in folk traditions, Morgan found Ames’ carvings “raw, direct, fun and totally unpretentious,” he said. “Theatrical, too, the way he presented them in little shadow boxes, sometimes interacting. But it was the combination of Levi’s carvings and his own life that really grabbed me. Here’s a guy who comes home damaged from the war, teaches himself and just starts creating. He’s researching animals, photographing them, constantly carving out in his yard; the neighborhood kids are coming around and he’s teaching them and telling them stories. His vision expands again and he makes an amazing new life for himself as a 19th-century showman touring Wisconsin with a traveling tent. He drags his whole family into it. Through it all, he stays true to his artistic sense. He won’t sell any of his carvings. He’s determined the collection stay together after he dies. Now his work is one of the more important collections at the Kohler museum.” (John Schneider)
Oct. 20-21 & 25-28 at Danceworks Studio Theatre, 1661 N. Water St. Call 414-277-8480, ext. 6025 or visit danceworksmke.org. For info on additional performances Nov. 9-10 at the John Michael Kohler Art Center in Sheboygan, visit the JMKAC website or call 920-458-6144.
Acts of Discovery
“Nobody could ever build a set like this,” Deb Loewen said about the warehouse on the corner of North Avenue and Bartlett Street. that will house her newest site specific performance, Acts of Discovery. A very rare-in-town Art Moderne structure built with care around 1946, it was a dairy distribution facility for many years. Most recently, it’s been a storage site for used books. Loewen, the founder/director of the well-named Wild Space Dance Company, keeps track of unusual local real estate transactions. When an interesting building changes hands, she’ll try to persuade the owners that a public performance belongs there during the transition. She’ll wrestle with the city over building codes and what she needs to do to keep the public safe. She’ll make the show a collective response to the architecture, atmosphere and history.
The first impression is of cream-colored tiled walls yellowing with age and huge glass-block windows glowing from outside streetlight. The vast, high-ceiling ground floor holds rooms of different shapes and sizes with wide doorways that open onto larger spaces. From any position, you can see a variety of settings. Audiences will move at least two times through the entire site, discovering small scenes in alcoves, traveling scenes, scenes behind scenes that echo other scenes, 360 degree views of scenes such as the choreographer sees as she walks around her dancers in rehearsals. Milk crates, milk products and a small cow are included for fun. It’s all about discovery, first for dancers, then for audiences. (John Schneider)
Oct. 24-27 at 1633 E. North Ave. For information call 800-838-3006 or visit wildspacedance.org
More To Do
“The Latin Side of Bebop”
From hard bop to world beats and from original compositions to soulful standards, the Wisconsin Conservatory of Music’s resident We Six Jazz Sextet explores the full range of jazz in every concert. The ensemble’s next concert, titled “The Latin Side of Bebop,” presents music exploring the fusion of jazz and Afro-Cuban rhythms that has produced some of the most exciting music of the Bebop Era. It features guest percussionist Bony Plog-Benavides and delves into classics by Dizzy Gillespie, Charlie Parker, Barry Harris and more. Thursday, Oct. 18, in the McIntosh/Goodrich Mansion, 1584 N. Prospect Ave. For tickets, call 414-276-5760 or visit wcmusic.org.
The Bad Seed
In a small Southern town, Colonel and Christine Penmark live with their daughter, Rhoda. On the surface, the latter is sweet, charming and full of old-fashioned graces, and she’s loved by her parents and admired by her elders. But Rhoda’s mom has an uneasy feeling about her, and, when one of Rhoda’s schoolmates mysteriously drowns at a picnic, Christine’s fears only grow. Why? Maybe the fact that the boy who drowned was the lad who won the penmanship medal that Rhoda felt she deserved. The Bad Seed will be directed by Maxwell Anderson and is based upon William March’s novel of the same name. Oct. 18-21 at Sunset Playhouse, 700 Wall St., Elm Grove. For tickets, call 262-782-4430 or visit sunsetplayhouse.com/shows/bad-seed.
“1918: A Musical Tribute”
One hundred years ago, the world was a very different place. A horrible world war finally ended, only to coincide with a global pandemic that would infect a third of the world’s population, killing millions. Women in America were still fighting for the simple right to vote! The “Jazz Age” was in its infancy as the music form began to make its way through the culture of the Western world. The Mastersingers of Milwaukee revisit the life and times of 100 years ago in their next concert—the works on the program carefully selected for their important connection to the 1918—the year Leonard Bernstein was born, Claude Debussy and Lili Boulanger died, and Charles Hubert Hastings Parry composed his best-known piece, Jerusalem. Saturday, Oct. 20, at North Shore Congregational Church (7330 N. Santa Monica Blvd.) and Sunday, Oct. 21 at St. John’s Lutheran Church (20275 Davidson Road, Brookfield). For tickets, call 888-744-2226 or visit mastersingersofmilwaukee.org.
