Ten Days in a Madhouse

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Beau Meyer

Cast members of "Ten Days in a Madhouse" on stage.

Cast members of the Music Theatre of Madison production "Ten Days in a Madhouse."

Ten Days in a Madhouse is an original musical from Madison composers and playwrights Jennifer Hedstrom and Karen Saari, the result of a four-year collaboration between Music Theatre of Madison and the duo. The premise is promising. The story is adapted from a gutsy expose written by pioneering woman journalist Nellie Bly. In 1887, Bly went undercover, feigning mental illness, at New York's “ Women's Lunatic Asylum ” and ultimately reported on the stark conditions in what became a book called Ten Days in a Mad-House. Shows are at 7:30 p.m., Aug. 19-20 and 26-27; and at 2 p.m., Aug. 21. More info: mtmadison.com.

press release: Music Theatre of Madison, a professional musical theatre company now in its sixteenth season, will present the world premiere of the musical Ten Days In A Madhouse, written by Madison composers and playwrights Jennifer Hedstrom and Karen Saari. The production is the result of a four-year development collaboration between MTM and the authors. Performances will take place at the Wisconsin Union on the 2nd floor in the Play Circle Theatre on August 19, 20, 26, and 27 at 7:30 p.m. and August 21 at 2:00 p.m. Tickets will be on sale July 17 through the Union Theatre box office at 608-265-ARTS or online via www.mtmadison.com. Full Price Friday & Saturday $35; Full Price Sunday $30; Student (any) $15.

Ten Days in A Madhouse is adapted from Nellie Bly’s 1887 exposé of the same name. The burgeoning writer, tired of being asked to write for the society pages, received an assignment from Joseph Pulitzer of the New York World to infiltrate Blackwell’s Island Insane Asylum and report on what she saw. The conditions were deplorable. 

“It’s tailor-made for a dramatic adaptation,” says Executive Director Meghan Randolph, who directs and produces the musical. “The characters and action are rich, vibrant, and fascinating. But beyond that, this story calls for music. We explore the line between sanity and insanity, and the music allows us to play with that line in a vivid way.” 

The production is directed by Randolph, with music direction by Mark Wurzelbacher and choreography by Marin Johnson. Anna Pfefferkorn leads the cast as Nellie Bly, alongside Liz Griffith as the terrifying Nurse Grupe, Jennifer Kuckuk as ailing Tillie Mayard, Kailea Saplan as the mysterious Pauline, Paige Hutchison Fecteau as the quick-witted Anne Neville, Erica Halverson as sassy and brassy Sarah Fishbaum, and Leena Rathgeber (Louise), Ashley Oviedo (Mrs. Ramirez), Caroline Hansen (Nurse McCarten), Kai DeRubis (Dr. Field), Joe Green (Dr. Ingram), and ensemble members Evelyn Becker, Sasha Trybulec, and Aniah Warren. Ensemble members and Hansen, as well as Rose Beach, serve as understudies and swings. 

The production received a reading at MTM in December of 2019. A workshop was scheduled for June of 2020, but with the pandemic it was turned into a podcast and full audio drama, recorded from 20 different locations with each actor recording their lines and songs from their homes, mixed together by sound designers Adam Qutaishat and Scott Glogovsky. “It was an unbelievably difficult but gratifying project,” says Randolph. “And ultimately it gave Karen and Jennifer a great resource for continuing to develop the show. 

Post-show talkbacks with experts Kathryn McGarr of UW-Madison, Dee Hall of Wisconsin Watch, Janet Hyde of UW-Madison, and Ellen Foley, former editor-in-chief of the Wisconsin State Journal, will take place after all shows except August 27. Additionally, MTM is offering a chance to chat personally with Saari and Hedstrom at “Cocktails with the Composers,” which will be held on the Union Terrace on August 20 and 27. 

Randolph describes the piece as “haunting, suspenseful, and ultimately uplifting. Jennifer and Karen have found the humanity in all of the characters and there are rich, complex roles for women, something that musicals often lack. They’ve also kept the stakes high and the action moving. It will be exciting to see it come to life!”