Eric Simonson's drama Lobardi has been produced and staged in various formats in Wisconsin over the past couple of years. There was a Next Act Theatre production starring my personal favorite Lombardi thus far--David Cecsarini . . . there was a Milwaukee Rep production of an updated completely different version of the script starring Lee Ernst. There was even a staged reading of the play in Green Bay with the cast of the Broadway production not too long ago. This month, there's a bother production being staged . . . this one in Door County courtesy of The Peninsula Players--America’s Oldest Professional Resident Summer Theatre.
The production stars Neil Friedman as Lombardi. Wow. The production pics they've got of Friedman shows that they chose someone who looks like the guy . . . no small order for an actor. to look like such an iconic figure in the history of professional sports, but this guy certainly does it judging from the pics. In addition to doing plenty of work for the Players over the years, Friedman has done a lot of work in the Chicago area. Which means I'm not at all familiar with his work, but his resume includes a lot of classical stuff, so this guy is experienced.
There's something about seeing a high-end professional production outdoors . . . the fact that it's also going to be a play about Green Bay makes this a nice opportunity. Could be a fun opportunity for people going up to see a game.
Stay on top of the news of the day
Subscribe to our free, daily e-newsletter to get Milwaukee's latest local news, restaurants, music, arts and entertainment and events delivered right to your inbox every weekday, plus a bonus Week in Review email on Saturdays.
There are some three home games going on during the run of this show. Drive up. See the play Saturday night. Stay the night. And then on your way back down see the Packers play San Francisco or New Orleans . . . (The Chicago game is a Thursday night one. That could be kind of a nice long weekend, though . . .)
The Pensinsula Players' production of Lombardi runs September 5 through October 14. For ticket reservations, call 920-868-3287.
