Milwaukee Rep’s: Country Sunshine: The Legendary Ladies of Nashville!

Crazy, For thinking that my love could hold you, I’m crazy for trying, And crazy for crying, And I’m crazy for loving you

Now when you read that, if you heard Patsy Cline singing it in the back of your head…this show is absolutely for you! And if you didn’t, this show is absolutely for you because you have a lot of catching up to do!

The Milwaukee Repertory Theater is on a run with special tributes to musical stars presented in their Stackner Cabaret. And they have extended it one more time with their opening offering for the 2023/2024 season. And it’s a long overdue tribute to “The Legendary Ladies of Nashville” starring Katie Deal!

Now Katie Deal is the real thing…for sure. Georgia born and bred and a stalwart of America’s country scene. And here in Country Sunshine, she brings us the back stories and hit songs of all of our favorite women in Country Music. So she has the twang and the swing and the charm that exemplifies all of the singers that she pays tribute to. And her enthusiasm and energy had many of us in the audience tapping our feet and singing along and there was a little chair dancing going on. And Deal recognized the fans who were most engaged with a smile, a nod, and when she could, just a little wave in their direction.

photo courtesy of the Milwaukee Repertory Theater

Now, I am not going to be able to remember all of the wonderful performers whose songs Deal recreated for us. But she nailed them and brought a lot of memories back for me since my first exposure to many of these songs came from my dad’s table radio back in the 1950s and 60s. But of course, Patsy Cline, as I mentioned in the opening, got a medley of her biggest tunes, ending with Crazy of course. But she also covered Dottie Wells, Loretta Lynn, Tammy Wynette, Dolly Parton, and a lot more! If you don’t hear a favorite song during this show, you aren’t paying attention!

And Deal is backed by a tight quartet of musicians, hitting all of the right notes and keeping the sounds alive! The band? : Jeff Hamann on bass, Johnny Rodgers on piano, Bob Monagle on guitars, and Terry Smirl on drums…AND Kristin Doty on supporting vocals. This show wouldn’t happen without them! Too bad they were covering so many songs and didn’t have the time to stretch out a bit and show us all of their chops!

The only thing I wanted from this show that I didn’t get…more music! LOL! Yeah, I would have loved more Dottie or Emmylou or Linda or Patsy! But I loved what I got. And yes, as I suggested in the opening, this show is for everybody!

Country Sunshine just opened so there is plenty of time to catch it, although don’t wait too long, because I expect that it will be a popular ticket.

So click here for more information on dates and tickets and some trailers from the show. And for extra credit reading, here is the Playbill!

And it’s in the Stackner, so plan ahead and make dinner reservations so you can eat, drink, and kick back a bit before the show!

The Greatest Love for Whitney, A Whitney Houston Tribute Created By Mark Clements At The Milwaukee Rep

I am feeling like a bit of a Stackner Cabaret ‘tween at the moment…too young to have appreciated Dean Martin (Dino just closed at the Stackner : see my response here) and too old to have been a fan of Whitney Houston. But I am being a little melodramatic here because I should admit that Beehive was in my wheelhouse (see my response here).

But yes, I didn’t really know what to expect from The Greatest Love for Whitney other than I was about to experience some incredible performers in outstanding performances…the high bar that The Milwaukee Repertory Theater’s Stackner Cabaret has set for itself. But everyone else knew why they were there and from the shout outs and sing-a-longs and applause, this show met with their expectations for a Whitney Houston experience!

And obviously Rep Artistic Director Mark Clements is a huge Whitney fan. And he has created an elegant and moving tribute to Whitney. The Stackner stage is just filled with star presence in actors Alina Cherone and Alesia Miller and the Rep’s own Musical Director Dan Kazemi as accompanist.

Alesia Miller and Alina Cherone, photo by Michael Brosilow and courtesy of The Milwaukee Repertory Theater.

Cherone and Miller have the perfect voices to showcase Whitney’s catalog of songs. And they trade off one after another taking the lead role…or double up when the song calls for extra emphasis…or bring up the harmonies when needed! Not a wrong note here. And in between the songs they present some background from Whitney’s career. And they also provide us with how Whitney provided them with a role model that helped bring them to the Stackner stage.

Alina Miller; photo by Michael Brosilow and courtesy of The Milwaukee Repertory Theater.

And Kazemi accompanies them on piano and keeps the orchestral backing tracks rolling right along. It was great to see him in the footlights on stage rather than just a photo in the program this time!

And I almost forgot…and how could I? Alesia Miller is a Milwaukee native and brings some local color to the stories she tells about growing up and pursuing the stage and music!

Alesia Miller; photo by Michael Brosilow and courtesy of The Milwaukee Repertory Theater.

And just an elegant and simple cabaret stage…stools…piano…microphones…drape rear curtain…and a neon Whitney signature sign. A completely supportive environment…nothing to distract from the actors or the music.

The Greatest Love for Whitney continues at the Rep’s Stackner Cabaret through May 28, 2023…additional information here. The link includes access to the trailer and rehearsal videos.

Extra credit reading: The Program.

And when you go, you may see Charlotte Odusanya as one of the actors…she wasn’t on stage the night that I attended the play. I imagine that she has her own Whitney story to tell as well!

Charlotte Odusanya; photo by Michael Brosilow and courtesy of The Milwaukee Repertory Theater.

PSA: Milwaukee Repertory Theater Announces Their 2023/2024 Season!

During a thirty minute streaming event last evening, Milwaukee Rep Artistic Director Mark Clements announced the Rep’s 2023/2024 season. Here is the recording of Mr. Clements presentation and listed just below are the full descriptions from their press release:

To celebrate our 70th Anniversary Season, an extraordinary milestone, we’ve hand-picked a season of exceptional plays including our first World Premiere musical on the mainstage, beloved literary adaptions, the return of Milwaukee Rep favorites and exciting new works.

Energizing moments, empowering stories, passionate performances – with bold theatrical experiences to captivate the heart and stir the soul. Our 2023/24 Season has something for everyone! 

The Quadracci Powerhouse season will open with Run Bambi Run, a new musical about America’s most infamous woman turned American folk hero Lawrencia “Bambi” Bembenek, written by Oscar-winner Eric Simonson (Lombardi) with music by Grammy-nominee Gordon Gano of theViolent Femmes. Following will be the celebrated mystery Dial M for Murder, which inspired Hitchcock’s masterpiece. The new year brings two celebrated adaptations – Louisa May Alcott’s endearing Little Women and Chaim Potok’s The Chosen. Closing the season will be Nina Simone: Four Women, a play with music recalling events that shifted Simone’s career from artist to activist.

The Stackner Cabaret features four blockbuster shows starting with Country Sunshine: The Legendary Ladies of Nashville With Katie Deal, featuring songs from the Queens of country music and Nuncrackers our favorite nuns return to film their first TV special filled with songs and hijinks. Last seen eight years ago, Guys on Ice returns for a special anniversary production as one of our most popular shows ever, followed by Piano Men 2, a smash hit with audiences, in which no two performances are the same as our dueling pianists take requests live! 

The Stiemke Studio features two ground-breaking new works – the World Premiere of Parental Advisory: a breakbeat play from award-winning storyteller Idris Goodwin (HBO’s Def Poetry Jam) and direct from a sold-out Broadway run What the Constitution Means to Me, called “the best and most important new play” by The New York Times.

Subscriptions On Sale Now! Get the BEST Seats at the BEST Price before the individual tickets go on sale to the public. Call 414-224-9490 or visit www.MilwaukeeRep.com/Subscriptions.

And here are the details!

And the one annual event that we all are waiting for: