Month: January 2022

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Milwaukee Repertory Theater’s Piano Men

You will be entertained.

You will be the entertainer!

Milwaukee Repertory Theater Artistic Director Mark Clements has taken the piano bar and dueling piano motifs and subverted them in the Stackner Cabaret to warm our hearts on cold January evenings. Voila, Piano Men!

Pianists Nygel D. Robinson and Steve Watts share a minimalist stage and their respective pianos…working through song requests submitted by the audience (get there early enough to fill out a request card) and relayed to the stage via a tablet computer. So the show you experience will be different than the one I saw this past Friday.

There is a very comfortable camaraderie between the two men as they take turns fulfilling those requests…and a bit of underlying competitiveness as well. And it all adds up to good fun. And as they develop and select their playlist there is an easy patter between them and some anecdotes and stories to be shared with you! (you might hear some complaints about Milwaukee weather)

Steve Watts
Nygel D. Robinson

Some of the best bits are songs that they both play along with, sometimes with counterpoint from their keyboards, alternating the vocals on verses, or taking a verse and handing off the chorus.

You may sing along. Nay, you will be encouraged to sing along! You will be required to sing along. You will be the entertained and the entertainer!

And the stage was perfectly suited to the performance. Two baby grands facing each other before an aged brick wall with ‘graffiti’. And I am sure the acoustic properties of brick helped bring out the sound of dueling pianos just exactly right.

But be ready for the lightening round last 15 minutes or so when Mr. Robinson and Mr. Watts put away the pads…and try to identify songs that they know from the ones you shout out from the audience!!!!!

This is the Stackner Cabaret. So I encourage you to make reservations and have dinner before the show. AND the show is 90 minutes with no intermission, so make sure you have your beverage of choice and any dessert or snack in front of you before the lights go down.

Piano Men is at the Stackner Cabaret from now until February 27, 2022. As I said above it runs about 90 minutes without intermission.

One last thing: Mr. Robinson will be replaced by Colte Julian starting February 8, 2022.

Colte Julian
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First Stage Presents: THE WATSONS GO TO BIRMINGHAM – 1963

-An exploration of how the love and strength of family can transcend adversity- 

Performance runtime is approximately 70 minutes, with no intermission. Suggested for families with young people ages 8+. 

This looks like it will be a lot of fun., The Watsons Go To Birmingham – 1963 kicks off 2022 at the First Stage. The play is based on a book by Christopher Paul Curtis and adapted for the stage by Cheryl L. West with original music by Paris Ray Dozier. The First Stage presentation is co-directed by Brandite Reed and Jeff Frank, The synopsis courtesy of First Stage:

Ten-year-old Kenny chronicles the events of a fateful summer for the Watson family of Flint, Michigan. When Kenny’s older brother Byron starts getting into too much trouble, Mama and Daddy decide the family needs to pay a visit to Grandma Sands in Alabama to set him straight. Mama, Daddy, Kenny, Byron, and youngest sister Joetta set out on a cross-country journey, heading south and toward a moment in American history where the world seems to change before their eyes.

And what the co-directors have to say about the play!

Co-director Brandite Reed shared this about the play: “THE WATSONS GO TO BIRMINGHAM is the perfect piece to make my directorial debut at First Stage. It’s a timeless work of art that illustrates the foundation and strength of the African American family throughout the direst of times in the civil rights movement in the 1960s. During rehearsals, I get a sense of nostalgia watching the young performers and wonderfully talented cast of adults bring this 1963 classic to life. For me it is perfect timing to show our communities of today, how the love and the strength of family can transcend adversity of any kind. I am very thrilled to be directing this piece alongside Artistic Director Jeff Frank. Together, I feel we can highlight all the important but beautiful moments this story has to offer.” 

Co-Director and Artistic Director Jeff Frank added: “The Watson’s Go to Birmingham – 1963 is one of my favorite books of all time. It is laugh-out-loud funny. The self-proclaimed “weird” Watsons are an amazing family; and it is a joy to spend time with them. We follow young Kenny’s journey as he tries to make sense not only of his mixed-up family, but also the mixed-up world in which he lives. In his search for perspective, Kenny provides us all with a deeper perspective on family and on our collective history.” 

And the where and whens but please visit First Stage’s website here for more information as things may change: THE WATSONS GO TO BIRMINGHAM – 1963

THE WATSONS GO TO BIRMINGHAM – 1963 runs January 21 – February 13, 2022 at the Marcus Center’s Todd Wehr Theater, located at 929 N. Water Street in downtown Milwaukee. Tickets start at $21 and can be purchased in person at the Marcus Center Box Office at 929 N. Water Street, by phone at (414) 273-7206 or online at firststage.org. 

P.S. Here is the link to their current safety protocols.