PSA: FROM THE PAGE TO THE STAGE: FIRST STAGE PRESENTS WORLD PREMIERE OF ESPERANZA RISING 

Experience the journey of a young girl’s strength and determination in a theatrical adaptation of a modern literary classic.

MILWAUKEE First Stage — one of the nation’s leading theaters for young people and families — invites audiences to witness the world premiere of ESPERANZA RISING, a poetic tale of a young girl’s triumph over adversity based on the popular book by Pam Muñoz Ryan

Set in the turbulent 1930s, two young storytellers, with the help of an ensemble of actors, take the stage and begin to weave the tale of Esperanza — a wealthy Mexican girl whose privileged existence is shattered when tragedy strikes, and she and her mother must flee to California. Forced to work in a migrant labor camp, Esperanza must learn to rise above her difficult circumstances and discover what she’s truly made of.

“Our Todd Wehr season concludes with an exhilarating world premiere from our First Stage’s Amplify Reading Series,” said Jeff Frank, First Stage artistic director. “Playwright-in-residence Alvaro Saar Rios has crafted a nimble version of the story with two storytellers welcoming us into the world of the modern classic novel by Pam Muñoz Ryan magically lifted by the music of composer Dinorah Marquez. The importance of hope and the power of family resonate deeply as the storytellers guide us through Esperanza’s loss of her home and her journey to make a new life.” 

ESPERANZA RISING runs May 2 through 18, 2025, at the Marcus Performing Arts Center’s Todd Wehr Theater. Tickets are available now on FirstStage.org.

The show runs approximately 75 minutes, including a brief intermission. Recommended for families with young people ages 7-17 and theater lovers of all ages. This production’s Pay What You Choose Performance is on Friday, May 9 at 7:00 p.m., the Sensory Friendly Performance is on Saturday, May 17 at 3:30 p.m., and the Sign Language Interpreted Performance is on Sunday, May 18 at 3:30 p.m.

Disney + Pixar’s Finding Nemo @ First Stage Theater

As you start to settle into your seat in the Todd Wehr Theater, you realize that you are now in a new and exciting undersea environment. First you take in the organic stage shapes that define a reef and other underwater environments and then you notice the waving blue lights that depict sunlight streaming through the surface waves and you are transported. So before our musical actually begins, Scenic Designer Kristin Ellert and Lighting Designer Jason Fassl, have put us in the right frame of mind to enjoy Finding Nemo.

There is a large ensemble here and as always there is a core of adult actors that play the major adult roles and then two casts of young people who perform at alternate performances. So if you are looking to see a certain performer, please check the performance schedule. There are links below.

Cast in Disney & Pixar’s FINDING NEMO TYA. First Stage, 2025. Photo by Paul Ruffolo.

The version of Finding Nemo is an adaptation of the famous Disney + Pixar movie so most of the audience is going to be familiar with the story, but maybe not the storytelling! I mean, how do you depict the action of an animated movie, live on stage! Well, with a lot of very enthusiastic and dramatic actors…and a whole ocean of puppets!

Two of the three main characters are played by adults, Jake Horstmeier as Marlin, Nemo’s Dad, and Karen Estrada as Dory, a friend that Marlin meet’s along the way in his search for Nemo. Estrada plays off Dory’s bit of forgetfulness and brings out the happy and determination in the character. And when Marlin starts to give up hope or strays away from the task at hand, she is able to help him focus and stay on track. Horstmeier is a clearly determined and loving father here but shows us the occasional frailty in Marlin as his determination flags a bit from time to time. Horstmeier and Estrada clearly enjoy their characters and just as clearly enjoy working together.

Lainey Techtmann (center) and cast in Disney & Pixar’s FINDING NEMO TYA. First Stage, 2025. Photo by Paul Ruffolo.

But of course the actual star of the show is Nemo! And here is where the split in casts takes command. In the Orange Cast, Lainey Techtmann plays Nemo and in the Blue Cast the role belongs to Simone Gong-Murray. When I attended for the Sunday matinee, Techtmann was on stage and absolutely nailed the role. I was pleased to see her on stage again, having enjoyed her depictions of Tiny Tim in the Rep’s A Christmas Carol.

Now there are a lot of other characters here…and every member of the ensemble played multiple roles. And this is where the puppets come in!

Mara Iligaray (center) and cast in Disney & Pixar’s FINDING NEMO TYA. First Stage, 2025. Photo by Paul Ruffolo.

Rather than elaborate costumes and intense and time consuming costume changes, each actor carried a stunning puppet for each role. Sunfish, starfish, barracuda, sharks, octopi, seahorses, sea turtles, and a tall tall shore bird were all represented by puppets, as well as Nemo, Dory, and Marlin. Most of these puppets were carried on the shoulder of the actor who supported them on a stick near the tail and a mechanism at the head that provided support and the action to make the mouth move. And the bodies are articulated so the actor can make movements with the puppet that resemble swimming. So besides singing, dancing, and speaking their roles, the actors had to remember to swim their puppets and move their mouths to simulate their speech as they told the story. Simply amazing!

And I have no idea who Puppet Designer Jesse Mooney-Bullock managed to produce such a unique array of puppets and teach everyone in their use. I enjoyed this aspect of the production very much. And also special thanks to Directors Jeff Frank and Michael Dean Morgan for making all of this work. Just moving around all of these characters much less making it all work with such precision and grace is amazing.

And I was not the only one amazed. At the end of every performance, the cast assembles on stage and takes a few questions from the audience. Two questions about the puppets came from youngsters in the audience. One wanted to know how hard was it to learn to work with the puppets. And a cast member assured them that it took a lot of work but after a while it got easier but it took a lot of practice. And the second question was why they used puppets instead of costumes, and another cast member stated that it easier to switch to a different puppet for a role change than doing a costume change and moving with the puppet was easier to do.

Disney + Pixar’s Finding Nemo, Theatre For Young Audiences Version, continues at the Marcus Performing Arts Center at the Todd Wehr Theater through April 6, 2025. Additional information and tickets can be found here.

Run time is about 75 minutes with a brief intermission and Finding Nemo is recommended for ages 5 and older!

Extra Credit Reading: Playbill! and Enrichment Guide!

Cast in Disney & Pixar’s FINDING NEMO TYA. First Stage, 2025. Photo by Paul Ruffolo.

PSA: FIRST STAGE HOSTS WORLD PREMIERE OF EMILY SONG AND THE QUEEN OF THE NIGHT: AN EPIC TALE OF MAGIC, MUSIC, AND HEROISM

MILWAUKEE First Stage — one of the nation’s leading theaters for young people and families — invites audiences to the world premiere of EMILY SONG AND THE QUEEN OF THE NIGHT. In this thrilling new production, Emily discovers she has extraordinary powers—but will they be enough to protect her loved ones from the formidable Queen of the Night? Don’t miss this epic superhero adventure that is sure to inspire and captivate audiences of all ages

EMILY SONG AND THE QUEEN OF THE NIGHT runs Jan. 31 through Feb. 16, 2025, at the Marcus Performing Arts Center’s Todd Wehr Theater. Tickets are available now on FirstStage.org.

Developed through First Stage’s Amplify Reading Series, this groundbreaking new musical emerged from the TYA (Theater for Young Audiences) BIPOC Superhero Project led by Jose Casas and designed to connect playwrights of color with professional TYA companies nationwide.

“Inspired by the world of anime and graphic novels, playwright and composer Marcus Yi has crafted an epic musical adventure unlike anything we’ve ever done before,” said Jeff Frank, First Stage Artistic Director. “Our Amplify Fall Festival shapes the development of potential future productions at First Stage. EMILY SONG AND THE QUEEN OF THE NIGHT promises to captivate audiences by delivering a story that transcends traditional expectations of musical theater, seamlessly blending innovation, imagination and representation.”

Emily Song had always known that she was meant to sing. However, her father banned music from their lives for as long as she can remember. But that doesn’t stop Emily from secretly taking singing lessons online or joining the school glee club. On her 12th birthday, Emily’s powers manifest, and she discovers she is a music mage—a sorcerer who can cast magical spells through music. When the Queen of the Night kidnaps her father and best friend, Emily must figure out how to harness her newly discovered talent to save her loved ones—and New York City— from total destruction. 

Grab your cape, and be the first to see this brand-new musical!

The show runs approximately 75 minutes, including a brief intermission. Recommended for families with young people ages 7-17 and theater lovers of all ages.

This production’s Pay What You Choose Performance is on Friday, Feb. 7 at 7 p.m., the Sensory Friendly Performance is on Saturday, Feb. 15 at 3:30 p.m., and the Sign Language Interpreted Performance is on Sunday, Feb. 16 at 3:30 p.m.

About First Stage
Founded in 1987, First Stage is one of the nation’s leading theaters for young people and families, and a driving force behind the creation of the best and most innovative plays for family audiences, theater training programs for young
people, and education initiatives for its schools and community. First Stage ensures that all programming is not only accessible to its community but that it is reflective of the community it serve

We’ll see you there!!