Image: Forte Theatre Company
The Sound of Music - Forte Theatre Company
Forte Theatre Company was founded to fill a perceived void—the lack of a professional theater company in Milwaukee’s southwest suburbs. The company’s co-artistic and executive directors, Randall and Brenda Dodge, are actors who met in southern California while performing in The Pirates of Penzance. They moved to Milwaukee for family reasons, launching Forte Theatre in 2018.
October will mark the company’s debut at Franklin’s Saber Center for the Performing Arts with a two-weekend run of The Sound of Music. I asked Brenda Dodge some questions about Forte Theatre and their upcoming musical.
Why has The Sound of Music endured?
The Sound of Music is such a classic. It was the final collaboration between Richard Rodgers and Oscar Hammerstein II and the score is filled with so many memorable songs. Based on a true story, both the movie and the musical have touched generations.
We love the focus this show puts on the importance of music in our lives. Music underscores everyday life in a powerful way—it can bring memories back as clear as day and it helps us navigate both joy and adversity. The Sound of Music puts the power and importance of music front and center.
Photo: Brenda Dodge
Forte Theatre - Sound of Music
Forte Theatre Company's 'Sound of Music': Sarah Zapiain as Maria, Matt Specht as Captain von Trapp, Johnny Koniar as Kurt, and Naomi Robinson as Brigitta in rehearsal.
What are you bringing to your production of The Sound of Music.
Our production of The Sound of Music has adopted most of the musical changes from the film version. However, you’ll also get to hear two songs that were cut from the film.
Our wonderful scenic designer, Robert Sagadin, is seamlessly moving our actors and audience from Nonnberg Abby to a Swiss mountainside to the von Trapp house. We want to keep things moving to give the audience an almost cinematic experience.
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This is the first show we've produced at this scale and we can’t wait to see and hear this beautiful venue filled with the voices of some of Milwaukee's finest talent.
The Von Trapp children are recruited from Forte’s youth education program. Tell me about that program.
Photo: Brenda Dodge
Forte Theatre - Sound of Music
Children playing the von Trapp children in Forte Theatre Company's 'The Sound of Music'
We held open auditions for all of the roles in the show, and we're blessed to have access to some wonderful and talented kids due to our youth education programs. In addition to our professional mainstage shows, Forte produces youth musicals for students ages 10-18. The mission of our education program is to cultivate and educate young actors, and to get them working and learning alongside theater professionals.
We produced Frozen Jr. this past summer with a cast of 42 students representing 18 different schools from throughout the Greater Milwaukee Area. Our youth musical this winter will be Music Man Jr.
While it’s certainly not a requirement, just about all of the kids playing the von Trapp children have done shows or taken classes with us before. And it’s so fun to see them up onstage working with some of Milwaukee’s top professional talent.
What were you looking for in casting the lead roles for The Sound of Music?
This cast is chock-full of exceptional talent. We’re so grateful to get to work with so many talented, dedicated actors and singers. For the lead roles, we knew we needed to cast people who could handle the weight of the long history of this show, while also driving home the humanity in the characters.
Sarah Zapiain, who’s playing Maria, played Jo March in our mainstage production of Little Women: The Broadway Musical last spring. She was phenomenal and brought so much warmth and accessibility to the role, not to mention her beautiful voice. We knew she'd be brilliant as Maria.
We’re so excited to have Kathy Pyeatt playing Mother Abbess. She has sung with opera companies throughout the country including Asheville Lyric Opera, Florentine Opera, St. Petersburg Opera, Winter Opera St. Louis, Skylight Opera Theatre and more. You definitely won’t want to miss her singing “Climb Ev’ry Mountain.”
Another person of note is Ryan Jay, of Ryan Jay Reviews/TMJ4/”The Morning Blend” fame, who is playing Max Detweiler. This marks his first return to the stage in 30 years and we’re thrilled to have him involved.
We couldn’t be more thrilled to have assembled such an amazing group.
Forte Theatre Company’s The Sound of Music will be performed 7 p.m. Oct. 7-8; 2 p.m. Oct. 9; 7 p.m. Oct. 14-15; and 2 p.m. Oct. 16 at Saber Center for the Performing Arts
8222 S. 51st Street. For tickets, visit fortetheatrecompany.org.
