Milwaukee Repertory Theater’s 'Two Trains Running.' Photo by Mikki Schaffner.
Moral dilemmas aren’t easy to resolve, and the one at the heart of Ben Butler at the Cabot Theatre this play is quite intriguing—and possibly history-making.
THEATRE
Ben Butler
Moral dilemmas, by definition, aren’t easy to resolve, and the one at the heart of this play is quite interesting: Follow the letter of the law and send an escaped slave back to the Confederacy or make a major decision that could alter the course of history. Not only does this splendid play concern itself with that dilemma, but it also goes a step further—daring to be not just a historical drama but a witty comedy as well. This Milwaukee Chamber Theatre production of Richard Strand’s Ben Butler will be directed by Michael Cotey.
U.S. Major General Benjamin Butler was a defense attorney in Boston prior to the outbreak of the Civil War. As commander of Fort Monroe, Va., he’s supposed to enforce laws, such as the Fugitive Slave Act, which says that escaped slaves caught anywhere in the country must be returned to their owners. “I find this play itself to be an astonishing collection of contradictions,” says Cotey. “It’s fiercely funny one moment but equally not pulling any punches the next when it comes to dealing with the sordid history of slavery. This shouldn’t work, but not only does it work, but the mixture of comedy and drama puts a human face and voice to an important time in our history.” (John Jahn)
April 12-28 in the Broadway Theatre Center’s Cabot Theatre, 158 N. Broadway. For tickets, call 414-291-7800 or visit broadwaytheatrecenter.com.
Two Trains Running
This play is part of Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright August Wilson’s trailblazing American Century Cycle. It’s half a century ago, and in the America of the Civil Rights Movement and the Vietnam War, change is in the air, but for the owner of a rundown diner in a dying Pittsburgh neighborhood, real civil rights may just be an impractical dream. Torn between whether to gamble on an urban renewal buyout or sell his building to a predatory businessman, he finds himself caught between idealism and brutal reality. Two Trains Running paints a compassionate and unforgettable portrait of ordinary people in the midst of transformation.
The Two Trains Running cast features local husband and wife duo Chiké Johnson and Malkia Stampley, along with Frank Britton, Doug Brown, Jefferson Russell and others. It will be directed by Timothy Douglas, have sets designed by Tony Cisek and costuming by Kara Harmon. The Rep points out that Wilson’s drama is suitable for teenage and adult audiences; it contains frank discussion of racial matters and adult language, including use of the n-word. (John Jahn)
April 16-May 12 in the Milwaukee Repertory Theater’s Quadracci Powerhouse, 108 E. Wells St. For tickets, call 414-224-9490 or visit milwaukeerep.com.
Call Me Ishmael
Dale Gutzman, David Roper, Jake Russell, Shayne Steliga and Tom Koehn bring Herman Melville’s monster of a novel, Moby Dick, to the stage in a new, modern and thrilling way. Call Me Ishmael, as Gutzman explains, “is a hallucinatory adventure in which eight actors, inventive special effects and thrilling original songs and sounds sweep you along and carry you into the very heart of the great white whale and those that hunt him.” Distilling Melville’s classic into two hours of live theater has been a project of Gutzman’s for years. Roper has created the set design, Russell provides the sound design (and stars as the title character) and Steliga provides original music.
“It is a love story of an innocent young man who learns to feel and see things as never before,” explains Gutzman. “It is a story of revenge of a man who has given up his family, friends and purpose in life to hunt down the monster who took his leg. It is a story of faith and the search for truth, as well as the myriad illusions that cloud our lives and eat our souls.” (John Jahn)
April 17-28 at Off the Wall Theatre, 127 E. Wells St. For tickets, call 262-509-0945 or visit offthewallmke.com.
MORE TO DO
Ocean of Undiscovered Truth
Ocean of Undiscovered Truth is the title of a new concerto for oboe and wind ensemble by 34-year-old Chicago-based composer Roger Zare. Zare is known primarily for his orchestral and wind ensemble works, several of which have received significant recognition in the contemporary music community. Praised for his “enviable grasp of orchestration” (New York Times), the award-winning composer brings his music’s “formal clarity and alluringly mercurial surface” to Milwaukee for one night only. The UW-Milwaukee Wind Ensemble and Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra principal oboe Katherine Young Steele will perform the world premiere of Ocean of Undiscovered Truth. Friday, April 12, at 7:30 p.m. at the Helene Zelazo Center for the Performing Arts, 2419 E. Kenwood Blvd. For tickets, call 414-229-4308 or visit uwm.edu/arts/box-office.
HOME
HOME: An Exploration of Sovereignty, History and Home, featuring performance artists Kima Hamilton and Dasha Kelly Hamilton, will take place in Rehearsal Hall A of the Marcus Center for the Performing Arts on Thursday, April 11, at 7 p.m. Tickets ($20) can either be purchased in person at the Center’s Box Office (929 N. Water St.) or at the door. Kelly Hamilton uses her words and art as tools for building inspiration and community. She founded a non-profit that has created training experience for young artists and a community of urban “artivists” and has facilitated transformational programs and discussions throughout the U.S and other countries. She was named Milwaukee Artist of the Year and has been a finalist as Wisconsin’s Poet Laureate twice.
Sex Please, We’re Sixty
Mrs. Stancliffe’s Rose Cottage bed and breakfast has been very successful. Her guests (nearly all women) return year after year. Her next-door neighbor, “Bud the Stud” Davis, believes they come to spend time with him. Her would-be suitor, Henry, is a retired chemist who has developed a pill called “Venusia,” which has not been tested (let alone FDA-approved). Add yet more colorful characters and throw in a few good doses of Venusia, and all the real fun begins. How well do Viagra and Venusia mix? Strangely, indeed. April 12-28 at Memories Ballroom, 1077 Lake Drive, Port Washington. For tickets, call 262-284-6850 or visit memoriesballroom.com/dinner-theater.
“Florentine After Dark”
What happens at the Florentine Opera Company’s Riverwest headquarters after the Sun sets? Glorious music, of course! Soprano Rachel Blaustein, mezzo-soprano Ashley Puenner, tenor Edward Graves and baritone Nathaniel Hill will be raising their voices in song in this concert of German, French and American cabaret songs both familiar and fresh in the relaxed atmosphere of the Wayne and Kristine Lueders Florentine Opera Center. April 13-14 at 926 E. Burleigh St. For tickets, call 800-326-7372 or visit florentineopera.org.
