Ed Heinzelman – Page 2 – an intuitive perspective

October 21, 2026October 23, 2026

Broadway At The Marcus Center: Jersey Boys: The Story of Frankie Valli & The Four Seasons

Dawn (Go Away). Back in my day the Four Seasons were still topping the charts. Big Girls Don’t Cry. And along with my Beatles and Stones albums, I had a copy of the Four Seasons Greatest Hits. I probably got it from the Columbia House record club. Rag Doll. And I sang along with most all of them and I could hit all of Frankie’s hi notes then. Sherry. Sadly about ten years ago I lost most all of my falsetto skills. C’mon Marianne. So I wasn’t singing along Tuesday night while attending Jersey Boys at the Marcus Performing Arts Center. But I was wondering what hit song was going to be my ear worm accompaniment the next day.

20th Anniversary Touring Company of Jersey Boys. Photo by Jeremy Daniel.

This is a touring Broadway style production working with a simple set design overall. Basically a two story scaffolding with stairs on either side, sitting mid-stage to back-wall. Some action takes place on the second tier and many exits and entries occur there. On the other hand, this production is the land of a thousand set pieces as tables, chairs, desks, faux car interiors, concert stages, couches, and any other prop piece necessary for the story is wheeled in and out by the cast. I am in awe of the stage manager who is keeping this all straight and appearing on cue.

And there is a working band back stage supporting all of the hit songs you are eagerly awaiting. A marvelous little band, later augmented by a stellar brass and reed section in Act 2. I hope the drummer is getting a mileage bonus for the number of times the drum riser was pulled out front and then returned to the back wall or angled sideways or completely reversed. I would have gotten dizzy if I had to share the ride with him.

Left to Right: Harry Sperduto, Peyton Schoenhofer, Coby Oram, Owen McCredie. Photo by Jeremy Daniel.

Jersey Boys is subtitled The Story of Frankie Valli & The Four Seasons. So unlike many popular musicals with a book and story that is work a of fictional theater, this plays out a bit like a documentary interrupted by hit tunes. I am sure that the book here has stretched some events for dramatic effect and omitted others, but the story from Marshall Brickman and Rick Elice plays true to form. And if you want to see what the pre-Springsteen New Jersey music scene might have felt like, here’s your chance. There are thirteen actors here, and many of them play multiple roles and if my counting can be trusted, thirty four songs. The show runs 2 hours and 30 minutes including one intermission.

Of course, Frankie Valli was the front man and distinctive voice of the Four Seasons. So the actor playing Valli here is going to be under intense scrutiny from the audience. And this company has found the right actor in Coby Oram. If you close your eyes for just a moment when Coby is taking his lead parts soaring, you can almost feel that Valli is in the house. Oram is particularly sharp on those critical high falsettos and then elsewhere when he is in full throated lead sections. Harry Sperduto plays Tommy DeVito, the man who put the band together and brought on the voices and talents that put the Four Seasons on top. Sperduto pulls off the somewhat smarmy band leader who can’t quite be trusted with money and causes the band any number of issues over the years. But Sperduto also exemplifies the smugness and self assuredness that got the band rolling in the first place. Owen McCredie is a tall drink of water with that deep deep bass voice that is perfect for Nick Massi. McCredie also maintains the even keeled and very playful personality written into Massi’s part. And Massi keeps threatening to start his own band, so if McCredie decides to do that, I am all in.

And if you were one of the music nerds who read and memorized everything on the record labels and album covers, the names Bob Gaudio and Bob Crewe will be very very familiar to you. Peyton Schoenhofer plays Gaudio who is responsible for writing many many of the hit songs for the Four Seasons. Schoenhofer’s Gaudio is a level headed, straight shooter, business minded, and visionary individual. His friendship with Valli is really a lynch pin in their success. I don’t know what the real Bob Crewe was like, but Andrew Sattler’s take is a loose and easy personality with a bit of a new-agey bent…like what’s your sign? A direct opposite of the rather edgy New Jersey Italian boys he is working with.

Left to Right: Harry Sperduto, Coby Oram, Peyton Schoenhofer, and Owen McCredie. Photo by Jeremy Daniel.

We get to see all of the issues with building a successful musical act and touring and family pressures and fall outs between friends and reunions and some outside seedy influences. But eventually we come out on top with their induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and some sincere acceptance speeches. So, Working My Way Back To You Babe.

And if Tommy gets tired of that candy apple red Fender Telecaster, I can give it a good home.

Jersey Boys continues from now through October 25th, 2026 in Uihlein Hall at the Marcus Performing Arts Center.

More Information Here and Ticket Information Here.

October 18, 2026October 22, 2026

Smith-Redmann Dance Co Premiere: The Firekeeper

Milwaukee’s newest dance company exploded across the city skyline this past Saturday night with their presentation of Lia Smith-Redmann’s original choreography, The Firekeeper. This is the most moving and touching dance program that I can ever remember seeing. Sadly, it will have only one more performance in the near future on October 25, 2026 in the Door County Auditorium in Fish Creek, Wisconsin. If you are in the area, try to catch it. You will be moved.

The Firekeeper is the stuff of legends. It is a story of an ancient people, the Kurents, who are suffering under an oppresive leader, until the King of the Kurents reappears and gives them hope and a path to a new world. In the second act, a hero emerges from among the Kurenti, and learns the magic of conjuring fire, which brings our hero to full self-realization. And in the final act she returns to her community and leads them from their hopeless situation into an old but now re-imagined world.

From the company’s website:

Inspired by tales such as Rumplestilskin, Little Match Girl, The Giver, and Rite of Spring, this contemporary story ballet depicts a chilling world of dystopian technological cruelty, and the spirits of rebellion that come from unlikely places. Featuring characters from Slavic Carnival traditions and inspirations from the likes of Akram Khan and Pina Bausch…

The cast of The Firekeeper. Courtesy of Smith-Redmann Dance Co.

Smith-Redmann has choreographed this elaborate story for nine dancers and the cast for this series consists of dancers from here in the Milwaukee area. Our dancers are: Delilah Cardiff, Beck Kimbro, Paloma Kong-Ndoumbe, Elise Leonard, Madison Lower, Jessie MacDonald, Abigail Pasmore, Amaya Yasmin Esteves, and Rae Zimmerli. Full Disclosure: I am a personal friend of Elise Leonard, and I am grateful to her for getting me in touch with Lia Smith-Redmann and alerting me to this performance.

Smith-Redmann likes to go big and not just with the story. The dance itself is expansive as all of the dancers at one point or another are reaching out into space just as far as they can and maybe then some. And many of them reach up into the sky and occupy as much space as is physically possible. This is very compelling choreography that pulls you into the story and the action. And the action is very fast and expressive more often than not which brings a certain urgency to the action and kept me riveted to the stage. Which can be a problem because Smith-Redmann has choreographed these vibrant and active movements for every single dancer on stage, so when all nine are on stage as is often the case, you don’t know where to focus. Even in the piece leading into the finale, the ensemble was strewn about, laying on the floor, but here too, they expressed their volume and presence in the story.

The stage here is the wooden floor of the sanctuary of Calvary Presbyterian Church. So you are right on top of the dancers in a comfortable folding chair, so you can see and feel the emotions and actions very clearly. And there is not a toe shoe in sight, the dancers are all barefoot. So the slap of a barefoot on wooden floor adds to the sensory feel as well as the occasional squeak when a dancer makes a sudden spin or change of direction. I don’t quite know why, but those sounds felt very very satisfying.

Editor’s note 10/19/2026: This was part of my original mental text at 3:30 AM Sunday morning, but it had slipped away by 3 PM in the afternoon as I wrote. It reappeared at 1 AM this morning and now I am going to write it out for you but it is merely a paraphrase of the grand language from the middle of the night…and this might not be in the appropriate spot in my text, but here goes! The Dances and the dancers are amazingly agile, nimble, and fluid. And joyous. Even in the sad or threatening bits, the dance is joyous. And in her opening remarks, Smith-Redmann warned us that some violence is depicted. And it is. But just like the violence in the folk tales mentioned above it is accepted and understood and never comes across as repellent.

But don’t think that there weren’t any grand lifts or spins or solos or pas de deux. There is plenty of western ballet influence but it is intertwined with any number of other dance traditions. Certainly Slovenian styles, some other European styles, and once or twice it seemed in transition that a dancer or two held a post similar to pictures I have seen of Asian Apsara dance figures. Which brings us to the music. The accompaniment was recorded and is a grand collection of different influences as well; from folk traditions, to western classical, to electronic music, to more modern idioms, to just drumming. At one point, although not technically, music, the dancers were sitting on the floor, moving their arms and upper bodies to the vocalized sounds of their own breathing. This wild diversity wouldn’t seem to make sense, but it worked and was wholly unified with the dance movements and the story elements throughout.

One more note on the dancers. They did just an amazing job. First, they had to learn and master about one hour’s worth of choreography, and as I said, most often unique to the character that they were playing. And the speed at which they moved was often very quick with a variety of stops, returns, and sharp turns. And some of the lifts and carries that they completed were a bit harrowing from my seat. The scariest move was when Elise Leonard tried to escape by running directly toward the audience full out and two other dancers grabbed her arms and slingshotted her back into the company. Not just their dance but their gymnastic talents are amazing.

I am not used to covering dance, so I am sure that I leaving something important out. But I can’t wait to see the next presentation from Smith-Redmann Dance Co.!

YES, I left something out. Lia Smith-Redmann also did the sound design and costumes. Early on the costumes were contemporary casual wear but as the story progressed the costumes depicted the different folklore characters that populated Smith-Redmann’s story. Just as beautiful and thought provoking as her choreography.

And the Presenting Supporters were Slovenian Arts Program and the Door County Auditorium.

October 12, 2026

On The Exhale: One Act, One Actor, One Troubling Rabbit Hole

By the time I finish writing this and getting it published, Vanguard Milwaukee’s presentation of On The Exhale will have completed its run. It was scheduled for just four days and was performed in The Drawing Room of the Var Gallery’s South 5th Street location (just half a block or so north of National Ave). The stage was a simple black cube, raised a few feet above the floor, with folding chair seating on all four sides. Annika Perez-Krikorian directed and Emily Vitrano is the sole performer. We last saw Vitrano as newly-wed Corie in Renaissance Theaterworks delightful Barefoot In The Park.

Photo by Ross Zentner and courtesy of Vanguard Milwaukee.

This is quite different. Vitrano is a single mom college professor who has been confronted by male students demanding a grade change. She refuses. And the result isn’t a confident, I did the right thing. Instead it is nightmares that resolve into the student pulling a gun and shooting her. She takes some measures to protect herself in her office and one day hearing a commotion in the hall, runs to slam her door shut, only to realize the dean is trying to reach out to her. There is an active shooter situation going down, but not on their campus. Instead it is at her son’s elementary school and she rushes over their only to herded into groups with other parents…and she describes the roil of emotions she feels as she wait and waits…to finally be told her son is dead.

Her eventual response isn’t what I expected. It probably isn’t what you would expect. It probably isn’t what any of us would do in this situation. She mourns of course. In her own way. She pulls back from the other parents. She collects all of the news clippings, police documents, etc, and lays them out on the floor and tapes out the outline of her son and marks off the place where the shooter stood.

And then she goes down the real rabbit hole as she purchases the same make and model assault rifle that was used to murder her son. And she learns how to shoot it. And she masters it. And she comes to understand the feeling and control that a person can feel using just such a weapon, although she calls it a tool. And the rabbit hole gets deeper and she testifies before a legislative body and stalks an inattentive senator and does no harm, but leaves a trail that says in an obvious way, that he actually dodged a bullet.

This is an extremely emotional play that goes from fear, to loss, to anger, to defiance. How Vitrano managed to keep her own sanity through rehearsals and these four performances had to be a struggle. Because she has entirely internalized the character. Yes, she paces and stomps and shouts and poses with the implied gun and squats and spins and twirls around the stage. But there are more slight variations in her posture and gait that express the grief or anger or fear far more effectively. And it’s there in her eyes. Just watching her eyes tells the emotional story very clearly. Her eyes seem to harden and squint and blaze open in fear and actually redden and retreat on command. I couldn’t help but internalize her feelings as well. This was a completely unexpected and completely amazing performance.

On The Exhale was written by Martin Zimmerman.

More information about Vanguard Milwaukee.