Sister Act to be performed Oct. 12-Nov. 5 at Sunset Playhouse in Elm Grove.
This week we spotlight Sunset Playhouse’s production of the stage musical, Sister Act, Off the Wall Theatre’s unique take on A Midsummer Night’s Dream and Bel Canto Chorus’ return to a choral piece written by its music director, Richard Hynson, Evensong.
THEATER
Sister Act
The plot, characters and music of the 1992 feature film Sister Act, which starred Whoopi Goldberg, Maggie Smith and Harvey Keitel, seem ripe for the live stage. Odd, then, that it took 14 years for that to transpire. And, yes, the play has been a success, too. It would be hard to fail given the quality material; Sister Act was one of the most financially successful comedic films of the 1990s (it grossed $231 million worldwide).
Elm Grove’s Sunset Playhouse presents the stage musical of Sister Act—with its fine original music by composer Allan Menken and lyricist Glenn Slater—which was nominated for five Tony Awards, including Best Musical. It features the songs “Take Me to Heaven,” “How I Got the Calling,” “I Could Be That Guy” and the finale, “Spread the Love Around.” Sunset’s production casts Ashley Levells in the role of Deloris Van Cartier (Whoopi Goldberg’s role). (John Jahn)
Oct. 12-Nov. 5 at the Furlan Auditorium, 800 Elm Grove Road. For tickets, call 262-782-4430 or visit sunsetplayhouse.com.
A Midsummer Night’s Dream: The Musical
As Off the Wall Theatre’s Dale Gutzman explains, “A Midsummer Night’s Dream is often called William Shakespeare’s most erotic play. It deals wisely and cleverly with the mishaps caused by our desires and our refusal to admit to the darker sides of our natures.” Indeed, the characters and what they do in this play are eye opening today; they were certainly that and more when the audiences of 1596 first saw it.
But, as director Gutzman is quick to point out, this will not be a straight Shakespeare adaptation, but rather one that has been “mixed into a delightful cocktail of songs by Cole Porter.” And, yes, Porter songs like “In the Still of the Night,” “Be a Clown” and “At Long Last Love” seem most apropos to a timeless tale of love and intrigue, in which “the fairies cast their spells, the mechanicals rehearse their simple play, and the lovers woo and war…” Gutzman explains. Porter’s torchy love songs accompany the midsummer mayhem and madness. This Off the Wall production features David Flores, James Strange and Lawrence J. Lukasavage among a cast of 14 others. (John Jahn)
Oct. 18-29 at Off the Wall Theatre, 127 E. Wells St. For tickets, call 414-484-8874 or visit zivacat.com/offthewalltheatre.
MUSIC:
Evensong
Bel Canto Chorus opens its 87th season on Sunday, Oct. 15 with a choral piece written by its own music director, Richard Hynson, almost two decades ago, Evensong. Revisiting the piece has the composer-conductor reflecting on the work’s genesis. “I needed to find a new, unaccompanied work to balance the rest of the programming for the season,” he recalls. “I turned to words that had been a regular part of my life while a choirboy at the Washington National Cathedral—the Anglican Evensong Service. I used every part of the service: the prayers, psalms and canticles, as my libretto.” Its performance is in recognition of Hynson’s 30th year with Bel Canto.
The concert program also includes the Mass in G Minor by Ralph Vaughan Williams. At the time of its composition in 1921, it was the first mass to be written in a distinctly English manner since the 16th century. Also, there’s Alleluia by Grammy Award-winning American composer Eric Whitacre (b. 1970), a choral work he adapted from October—a concert band piece he composed in 2000. Two vocal soloists, baritone Jonathan Laabs and soprano Emily Pogorelc, will appear as soloists in the concert. (John Jahn)
Oct. 15 at the Basilica of St. Josaphat, 2333 S. Sixth St. For tickets, call 414-481-8801 or visit belcanto.org.
MORE TO DO:
Don Juan
Don Juan, the superbly shameless Spanish anti-hero, is the subject of this play at UW-Parkside. The college’s production is based on the 1665 French five-act comedy written by Molière. Don Juan (aka Dom Juan) was somewhat scandalous at the time; its subject matter offended both church and royalty. All the more reason to see it! Oct. 13-22 at UW-Parkside’s Main Stage Theatre. Visit uwp.edu for tickets.
Music for the Last Queen
This Great Lakes Baroque concert features music from the court of Marie “let them eat cake” Antoinette—the last queen of France who was convicted of high treason and executed by guillotine on the Place de la Révolution on Oct. 16, 1793. Enjoy some of the music she surely must have lost her head over, such as the lovely works of Armand-Louis Couperin, Jean-Jacques Beauvarlet-Charpentier, Nicolas Séjan and others. Friday, Oct. 13 at North Shore Congregational Church. For tickets, visit greatlakesbaroque.org.
The Prisoner of Zenda
Utilizing Anthony Hope’s novel, Wisconsin playwrights Ryan Schabach and Dan Klarer have come up with a fine adaptation of The Prisoner of Zenda, a tale about the kidnapping of a man who would be king. Milwaukee Chamber Theatre will present a staged reading of this literary classic (famously made into a feature film in 1937). Monday, Oct. 16 in the Skylight Bar & Bistro of the Broadway Theatre Center. Pay-what-you-can tickets are available at the door (no reserved seating).
