Summer Arts Guide 2025
2025 Summer Arts Guide
The Shepherd Express presents your guide to arts and culture in Milwaukee this summer. From Shakespeare in the park to opera with pasta, contemporary galleries, grand exhibitions and makers markets, find something to enjoy every week with Milwaukee's growing creative economy.
Looking to add an event or exhibition? Contact our Web Coordinator via caroline@shepex.com
5 Points Art Gallery
Acacia Theatre Company
- Georgiana & Kitty: Christmas at Pemberly, June 13-29
As Acacia’s website says, “A charming, spirited and moving sequel fit for any season.” is the final part of the Jane Austen-inspired trilogy by Margot Melcon and Lauren Gunderson. If true to Acacia’s earlier productions of the trilogy, the dialogue will be smart and snappy while proper to the Austen era. (David Luhrssen)
The Alice Wilds
All In Productions
Alverno Art & Cultures Gallery
American Players Theatre (APT)
Aperi Animam
Arts @ Large
Bach Chamber Choir
Black Arts MKE
Black Holocaust Museum
Boerner Botanical Gardens
Bombshell Theatre Co.
- Mary Poppins, June 5-15
Most of us learned of the indefatigable nanny through the 1964 Disney adaptation with Julie Andrews in the title role. The movie was a musical staging of P.L. Travers’ novels about the magical addition to a London household. The Sherman brothers’ production opened on London’s West End in 2004 and has charmed audiences worldwide. (David Luhrssen)
- Mary Poppins Junior, June 10-12
- The Wedding Singer, July 31-Aug. 10
- Six: Teen Edition, Aug. 5-7
Boulevard Theatre
Bronzeville Arts Ensemble
Cabaret Milwaukee
Capital City Theatre, Madison
Carroll Players
Carthage College Theatre
carthage.edu/arts/experience-the-arts/theatre-dance-performances/
Catey Ott Dance Collective
Cathedral of St. John the Evangelist
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Wednesday concert series
Cedarburg Cultural Center
- Best Friends: Celebrating the Pets We Love, through June 1
Cedarburg Performing Arts Center
Chant Claire Chamber Choir
Charles Allis Art Museum
Choral Arts Society of Southeastern Wisconsin
Concord Chamber Orchestra
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Wimmer Communities Concert, July 3 (Boerner Botanical Gardens)
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Concert, Aug. 24 (Lion’s Park Bandshell, Franklin)
DanceCircus
David Barnett Gallery
Door County Contemporary Art Fair
- Peninsula School of Art, Fish Creek, June 5-8
Most of us learned of the indefatigable nanny through the 1964 Disney adaptation with Julie Andrews in the title role. The movie was a musical staging of P.L. Travers’ novels about the magical addition to a London household. The Sherman brothers’ production opened on London’s West End in 2004 and has charmed audiences worldwide. (David Luhrssen)
Door Shakespeare
- Twelfth Night, July 2-Aug. 16
Most of us learned of the indefatigable nanny through the 1964 Disney adaptation with Julie Andrews in the title role. The movie was a musical staging of P.L. Travers’ novels about the magical addition to a London household. The Sherman brothers’ production opened on London’s West End in 2004 and has charmed audiences worldwide. (David Luhrssen)
- Great Expectations, July 2-Aug. 16
Early Music Now
Ex Fabula
Falls Patio Players
- James and the Giant Peach Jr., June 27
What a great idea: a summer camp for creative kids whose end goal is to produce a play for the public. And how appropriate to choose one of Roald Dahl’s sinisterly witty stories, the tale of an orphan and his hero’s journey into … a giant peach. (David Luhrssen)
Festival City Symphony
First Stage
Forte Theatre Company
Forward Theater, Madison
Four Seasons Theatre, Madison
Frankly Music
Fresco Opera Theatre, Madison
Gallery 218
Gallery Night and Day
- July 18-19
Milwaukee’s original night and day art hop happens quarterly with a focus on galleries concentrated in the Third Ward, East Town and Walker’s Point. (David Luhrssen)
Germantown Performing Arts Center
Green Gallery
Greendale Community Theatre
- Disney Newsies: The Broadway Musical, July 24-26, July 31-Aug. 2
Grohmann Museum
- The Kalmbach Art Collection: Spanning Words and Imagery, through Aug. 19
Grove Gallery
Haggerty Museum of Art
- Mary L. Nohl Fund Fellowships for Individual Artists, June 12-Aug. 2
- Hot Days/Hot Nights: Photographs from the Collection, June 12-Aug. 2
Harley-Davidson Museum
- “Creating a Legend: Art & Engineering at Harley-Davidson,” through spring 2027
- Ezy Ryders: History & Tradition, Heart & Soul,” through 2026
Photographer Cate Dingley’s book Ezy Ryders focuses on New York City’s Black riding culture today. Images and text from her book have been chosen for the new exhibition at the Harley-Davidson Museum. All of Dingley’s photographs are in black and white. “There’s a sense of timelessness to them, black and white can be a very expressive medium,” curator Ann Sinfield says. (David Luhrssen)
H. F. Johnson Gallery of Art
Hover Craft
Hyperlocal MKE
Inspiration Studios Art Gallery
- Joe Stanke: The Books, June
- Theatrical Tendencies, The Sum of Us, June
- Wehr Nature Center Photography Exhibit, July
- Original One Act Play Festival, July
- DuBri Production, Tartuffe, August
- Rock/Paper/Scissors Exhibit, August
Irish Cultural and Heritage Center
Jazz Gallery Center for the Arts
- Free Improvisation, Saturdays
- Milwaukee Jazz Institute, Sundays
- Open Gallery Exhibition, Thursdays
Jewish Museum Milwaukee
- “Choices of Consequence: Denmark and the Holocaust,” through Sept. 7
“In Denmark, where most of the population saw themselves as integrally linked to others through shared humanity, the Nazi perpetrated Holocaust largely failed as roughly 95% of Danish Jewry was saved by heroic grassroots decisions and actions,” says curator Molly Dubin. “In a time of distressing division, this exhibit holds up an extraordinary example and lesser-known story of allyship mobilized by ordinary people.” (David Luhrssen)
John Michael Kohler Arts Center
- “Sam Barsky: It’s Not the Same Without You,” through July 20
- Pao Houa Her: The Imaginative Landscape, through Aug. 31
Hmong photographer Pao Houa Her’s one-woman show illustrates the artist’s deft photographic eye, sense of community, and the soul of the Hmong who emigrated to the U.S. in the 1980s, all within the click of the lens. (Michael Muckian)
- “Ashwini Bhat: Reverberating Self,” through Oct. 19
Kim Storage Gallery
- April Behnke: Mind Games, July 18-Aug. 16
- Tim Anderson: Stay the Course, Aug. 22-Sept. 27
Kith and Kin Theatre Collective
Kneeland-Walker House
wauwatosahistoricalsociety.org
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39th Annual Firefly Art Fair, Aug. 2-3
Kohler Memorial Theater
Ko-Thi Dance Company
Lake Arts Project
Lake Country Playhouse
- Aristocats Kids, June 20-28
- The Lion Kids Jr., July 31-Aug. 10
Lakefront Festival of Art
- June 13-15
2025 will be the 60th year for the festival, one of the earliest annual events to take advantage of Milwaukee’s beautiful lakefront. The grounds of the Milwaukee Art Museum will be the setting for numerous arts and crafts vendors along with food and music. (David Luhrssen)
Latino Arts, Inc.
- Issis Macias: Her Colorful World: Su Mundo de Colores, through June 6
- The Big Idea XII: My Superpower is Art, June 25-Aug. 25
Lily Pad Gallery
- Yana Movchan: Expression & Enchantment, through June 1
- Ocean House 2025, through Sept. 3
Lutheran A Capella Choir of Milwaukee
Lynden Sculpture Garden
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And then Down Became Up: New Works by Sonja Thomsen, through June 1
Sonja Thomsen weaves an intricate narrative across time and space, bringing together the legacies of pioneering women artists through a multidisciplinary exploration of balance, perspective and maternal lineage. The new work, visible just beyond the gallery’s windows, is echoed in the interior space in small, light-modulating objects, large-scale mural prints and transparencies and photographs. (Morton Shlabotnik)
Madison Ballet
Madison Museum of Contemporary Art
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Art Fair on the Square, June 12-13
Madison Theatre Guild
Marcus Performing Arts Center
- MJ (Broadway Series), May 27-June 1
The winner of four Tony Awards is a jukebox musical displaying the life of Michael Jackson through a roster of his hits. Pulitzer Prize-winner Lynn Nottage wrote the book for what turned out as—after Covid delayed its debut—one of the highest grossing Broadway shows ever. (David Luhrssen)
- Wicked, July 30-Aug. 17
MARN Art + Culture Hub
Marquette University Theatre
Master Singers of Milwaukee
Material Studios + Gallery
Memories Dinner Theatre
Menomonee Falls Symphony
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An American Celebration, Aug. 30 (Old Falls Village Historical Park)
MIAD Gallery at the Ave
Milwaukee Art Museum
- Gertrude Abercrombie: The Whole World is a Mystery, through July 19
- The Brilliance of the Spanish World: El Greco, Velazquez, Zurbaran, through July 27
In the last century El Greco was recognized as a forerunner of modern art, with the ecstasy and visionary impulses of his stylized images as a bridge between Greek Orthodox iconography and German Expressionism. This exhibit positions El Greco with his Spanish Baroque successors, Diego Velázquez and Francisco de Zuburán. (David Luhrssen)
- Erin Shirreff: Permanent Drafts, through Aug. 31
Milwaukee Ballet
Milwaukee Chamber Theater
Milwaukee Children's Choir
Milwaukee Comedy
Milwaukee Festival Brass
Milwaukee Film
Milwaukee Fringe Festival
Milwaukee Institute of Art & Design Gallery
- Meet Me at Dandy Draw, June 9-Sept. 13 (Brooks Stevens Gallery)
- Don’t Call Me Junior, June 16-Aug. 30 (Frederick Layton Gallery)
Milwaukee Irish Arts
Milwaukee Jazz Orchestra
Milwaukee Makers Market
Milwaukee Makers Market champions local artists, creators, designers and crafters to celebrate the city’s small businesses. This one-stop shop experience provides an inclusive environment for local makers to showcase their talent and connect with Milwaukeeans. (Sophia Hamdan)
- June 22 (American Family Field)
- July 20 (Discovery World)
- Aug. 9 (Zocalo Food Truck Park)
- Aug. 17 (Ivy House)
Milwaukee Musaik
Milwaukee Repertory Theater
Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra
- Masur Conducts Brahms, June 6-7
Considered one of the 19th century’s greatest symphonic composers, Johannes Brahms’ Symphony No. 1 is epic in design. The sublime opening Allegro signals the conflicts and turbulent currents ahead. Conductor Ken-David Masur pairs Brahms with Colored Field by contemporary neo-Romantic American composer Aaron Jay Kernis. (David Luhrssen)
- Great Moments in Grand Opera, June 13-15
Milwaukee Youth Symphony Orchestra
Milwaukee Youth Theatre
MKE Black Theatre Festival
Morning Star Productions
Museum of Wisconsin Art
- Franklin Boggs: The Art of Tanning, through June 8
- Fred Stonehouse: No Agenda, through June 8
When Milwaukee-born Fred Stonehouse attended staff meetings as at UW-Madison art school, he often found himself disinterested in the administrative details. So, he did what any artist would do—he doodled. Using whatever paper scraps or file folders currently in hand, the neo-surrealist explored the unusual creatures that inhabited his inner mental landscape. Unlike non-artists, he did not discard these casual efforts, and now they form the core of this exhibit. (Michael Muckian)
MOWA | DTN (Saint Kate–The Arts Hotel)
- Jessica Calderwood: Material Girl, through June 1
MOWA on the Lake (St. John's on the Lake)
Next Act Theatre
North Shore Academy of the Arts
Northern Sky Theater
- Something in the Water, June 11-Aug. 21
- Dairy Heirs, June 12-Aug. 23
- No Bones About It, June 16-Aug. 22
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The Bachelors, Aug. 29-Oct. 24
The writers of Guys on Ice, a perennially popular comedy in the Upper Midwest, return with their take on guys having a pizza together. The Fred Alley and James Kaplan characters are startled when the pizza is delivered by a woman they once knew. (David Luhrssen)
Oak Creek Performing Arts and Education Center
Oconomowoc Arts Center
Oil a City Gallery
Optimist Theatre
Every summer a troupe of skilled thespians tours the parks of Milwaukee County and beyond with their renditions of Shakespeare. (David Luhrssen)
Outskirts Theatre
Over Our Head Players
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The 39 Steps, June 1, June 6-8, June 13-15, June 20-21(6th Street Theatre, Racine)
The 1935 Alfred Hitchcock spy/mistaken identity thriller has become source material for a stage play popping up just about everywhere. Comedian Patrick Barlow’s adaptation debuted in the UK in 1996 and became a hit on Broadway. The absurd moments of the original plot were grist for comedy, with some comparing the theatrical version to Monty Python. (David Luhrssen)
Overture Center for the Arts, Madison
Peninsula Players
- Barefoot in the Park, June 17-July 6
- Misery, July 9-27
Stephen King’s novel Misery is the ultimate expression of celebrity anxiety: What will a crazy fan do to keep her idol close by? Misery became a memorable 1990 horror movie and has since been given several theatrical adaptations. The Peninsula Players’ website suggests that this one is for ages 13 and up, given “strong language” and onstage violence.” (David Luhrssen)
- Little Women: The Broadway Musical, July 30-Aug. 17
- Dear Jack, Dear Louise, Aug. 20-31
Peninsula School of Art
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Door County Contemporary, June 5-8
Philomusica Quartet
Portrait Society Gallery
Present Music
Prometheus Trio
Quasimondo Physical Theatre
Racine Art Museum
- Pieces: Collage and Assemblage from RAM’s Permanent Collection, through June 14
- “Low: Rene Amado,” through July 19
- RAM Showcase: Focus on Adornment, through Nov. 22
- Fool Me Once: The Trompe L’oeil Sculptures of Karen Dahl and James Doran, through Jan. 10, 2026
- On Fire Part II: Surveying Women in Glass in the Late-Twentieth Century, through Jan. 24, 2026.
Racine Symphony Orchestra
Racine Theatre Guild
- Legally Blond, May 16-June 1
- The Drowsy Chaperone, July 18-26
The show by Lisa Lambert and Greg Morrison is a spoof of 1920s American musical theater. Since its 1998 Toronto debut, The Drowsy Chaperone has played Broadway, London’s West End and across the globe and won handful of Tony Awards. (David Luhrssen)
Real Tinsel Gallery
Renaissance Theaterworks
Sacra Nova Chorale
Sculpture Milwaukee
Sculpture Milwaukee was founded in 2017 from an idea by local entrepreneur Steve Marcus and became an independent nonprofit in 2020. Sculpture Milwaukee has commissioned work to line Wisconsin Avenue from living artists, some with ties to our state. As much as possible, the sculptures are fabricated in Wisconsin in keeping with the Badger State’s machine-shop history. (David Luhrssen)
Seat of Our Pants Reader Theatre
Sharon Lynne Wilson Center for the Arts
- Terri Warpinksi, Restless, On Display July 7 - Sept. 24
- Free Artist Talk and Reception: Thursday, July 17 from 6-8:30 p.m., RSVP here
- Starry Nights Free Outdoor Summer Concert Series, Fridays, June 27 - Aug. 8 at 6:30 p.m. Learn more here.
- Ruth Ware - Author Visit and Talk presented by Boswell Books, Wednesday, July 16 from 7-9 p.m. Get tickets here. Ticket includes book.
Sheboygan Theater Company
Skylight Music Theatre
South Milwaukee Performing Arts Center
- Disney’s Finding Nemo Kids, July 19
- Disney’s The Hunchback of Notre Dame, Aug. 1-3
Sunset Playhouse
- Disney’s Finding Nemo Kids, through June 1
- Miss Holmes, June 5-22
- Hollywood Hits Singalong, June 5-8
- We’ve Only Just Begun: Kerry Sings Karen, June 10
- Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat, July 10-Aug. 3
- Spongebob the Musical: Youth Edition, Aug. 8-10
Theatre Gigante
Theatrical Tendencies
- Vanya and Sonia and Masha and Spike, June 14-23 (Inspiration Studios)
Third Avenue Playhouse, Sturgeon Bay
- Buyer and Cellar, June 4-22
In this popular comedy, out-of-work actor Alex More lost a job as the mayor of Disneyland’s Toon Town and became Barbra Streisand’s employee at her expansive Malibu estate. The play nicely contrasts More’s day-job environment of luxury and perfection and his private life, which includes an old Volkswagen bug and a tiny apartment, decorated on a threadbare budget. (Anne Siegel)
- The 39 Steps, July 16-Aug. 10
Thrasher Opera House, Green Lake
Three Point Project
threepointprojectwi.wordpress.com
Milwaukee has an important new dance company founded last year by 27-year-old artistic director Ashley Tomaszewski whose previous years as a dancer and associate artistic director with Water Street Dance Milwaukee helped that group to greatness. (John Schneider)
Tooth-and-Nail Gallery
Tory Folliard Gallery
- Mary Jones: The Fabulist, through June 7
- Of Nature, June 7-July 12
- Ron Isaac: Better Days, June 7-July 12
- The Salon Show, July 18-Sept. 6
UW-Parkside Theatre
UW-Milwaukee Peck School of the Arts
- Art & Design Summer Open Studios, June 10-Aug. 15 (Art Building)
- UpStart: MFA in Dance Research Concert, July 26 (Mitchell Hall Studio 254)
UWM Theatre/Peck School of the Arts
UWM Union Art Gallery
uwm.edu/studentinvolvement/arts-and-entertainment/union-art-gallery
UW-Whitewater Crossman Gallery
UW-Whitewater Young Auditorium
Var Gallery & Studios
Villa Terrace Decorative Arts Museum
Village Playhouse, Wauwatosa
Voices Found
Walker's Point Center for the Arts
Warehouse Art Museum
Washington Island Chamber Music Festival, Aug. 4-15.
washingtonislandmusicfestival.com
Water Street Dance Milwaukee
West Bend Theatre Company
West Performing Arts Center
Wild Space Dance Company
Windfall Theatre
Wisconsin Classic Stage
- Henry V, June 1 at Calvary Presbyterian Church
