Arts aplenty

Our guide to upcoming highlights in theater, dance, visual art and classical music

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Get thee to the theater

By Gwendolyn Rice

After a whirlwind summer of shows indoors, outdoors and in unorthodox spaces, there’s plenty to look forward to in the coming months — a plethora of performances, in fact, from area theater companies. Some are political; some personal; some designed for laughing out loud; some not so much. Here are my top picks.

Madison’s Overture Center is the second stop on the national tour of the Broadway hit A Gentleman’s Guide to Love & Murder (Oct. 3-8), which racked up 10 Tony nominations in 2014 and came home with four trophies, including Best Musical. Part silly British farce, part throwback to old English music halls, it’s a story with a charming serial killer as the protagonist. When it’s revealed that lovesick Monty Navarro is actually a distant heir to the fortune of a prominent English family, he realizes that only eight people stand between him and happiness. Hilarity ensues as he methodically offs his relatives — who are all played by the same actor. Add a score in the style of a light operetta, and it will be clear why this show was a favorite of audiences and critics alike.

Seeing an early version of a play performed in a staged reading is essential for the playwright to continue developing the work. Unfortunately, those opportunities don’t come along very often. And if it’s hard for writers to hear their words come to life onstage, it’s exponentially more difficult to find a theater company that’s willing to try out a new musical — they typically require more people, a bigger budget and more rehearsal time. But Music Theatre of Madison (MTM) is producing staged readings of three new works in its New Musical Festival at Brink Lounge. Each performance will feature a talkback, allowing audiences to give feedback on the nascent pieces. No tickets necessary but reservations are encouraged. Out of more than 100 submissions, received from all over the country, MTM chose Dumb Luck (Oct. 5), a country-western epic that tells the true story of Elmer McCurdy, the inept bandit whose corpse ended up a tourist attraction and prop on a TV show; Puppet (Oct. 19), an acerbic comic musical that marries operetta with political intrigue; and Medea (Nov. 2), a feminist rock show that casts one of drama’s most fiery protagonists in an entirely new light.

Shortly after the election last November, there was a lot of discussion online about what role artists would play in protesting Donald Trump’s agenda. People talked about programming plays that could illustrate the dangers inherent in a dictatorial leader who demonized the “other” and used fear to manipulate the masses. I eagerly anticipated the season announcements of theaters across the country, looking for the subversive plays we had discussed with such enthusiasm months before. Instead, the vast majority of theater companies played it safe, programming chestnuts and feel-good shows to give audiences a respite from political turmoil instead of dealing with it head-on. Then I saw the announcement that Strollers Theatre was including Eugene Ionesco’s play Rhinoceros (Nov. 3-18 at the Bartell Theatre) in its 2017-18 season. A brilliant absurdist piece, it was written in the 1950s to illustrate the dangers of communism and fascism. I can’t wait to see how the everyday people in the play turn into enormous gray beasts overnight — and ponder the take-aways for the present day.

Speaking of the present day, Lauren Gunderson is really having a moment right now. According to American Theater Magazine, she is one of the most frequently produced living playwrights in the United States, with six separate titles on regional theater rosters. Gunderson has a knack for inventive storytelling, riffing on Shakespeare’s plays, and unearthing stories of forgotten women, artists, scientists and inventors. Last season, Forward Theater produced Silent Sky, her play about a female astronomer at the beginning of the 20th century. This November, the company will present Gunderson’s I and You (Nov. 2-19), about the relationship that develops between two teens as they work on a school project about Walt Whitman’s Leaves of Grass. (Incidentally, in Milwaukee you can see Silent Sky and I and You at Next Act Theatre this season.)

“Violent.” “Scathing.” “Raw.” “Destructive.” These are words critics have used to describe recent productions of August Strindberg’s dark psychological drama Creditors (Nov. 2-19). The play will close out American Players Theatre’s season in the Touchstone. The story starts out innocently enough — a married couple and a friend visit a Swedish resort together. But the friend has the darkest of ulterior motives, planting doubts about the marriage and wreaking havoc on the lives of the husband and wife like a modern-day Iago. I look forward to seeing APT veterans Tracy Michelle Arnold, Jim DeVita and Marcus Truschinski tackle this harrowing story of jealousy and revenge.

Dance for all seasons

By Katie Reiser

It’s always fun to find out what longtime local dance companies have to offer in their new seasons, but I’m especially curious about Magnum Opus, a new ballet troupe whose mission is to share and celebrate its members’ Christian faith. Artistic director Abigail Henninger, the founder of the small company, has danced with Madison Ballet, Missouri Ballet Theatre and Sarasota Ballet. Magnum Opus’ premiere performance, Aloft (Oct 6), is at Sauk Prairie’s River Arts Center. According to Henninger, the company is comprised of six female professional ballet dancers who became disenchanted with some of the “dark” content and direction of dance productions. She says they aim to create movement that will be positive and uplifting for audiences and dancers. In December they’ll present Full Light at several venues including Oakwood Village, City Church and the Stoughton Village Players Theater.

UW-Madison’s dance department celebrated its 90th anniversary last season with a number of satisfying performances by talented students, professors, alums and guest artists. Their new season of concerts at Lathrop Hall’s Margaret H’ Doubler Performance Space promises to be equally compelling. First up is UW dance prof Chris Walker’s A Dancehall Ting (Oct. 19-21) The Jamaican native’s choreography is socially relevant and wise, and the passion his dancers evoke gets audiences cheering — and thinking. Next is Page 20 (Nov. 16-18), a concert from another UW professor, Jin-Wen Yu, who is originally from Taiwan. Yu’s work is infused with strength, beauty and grace. The annual Dance Department Faculty Concert (Feb. 8-10 and 15-17) is your best chance to get a glimpse of what’s happening in the entire department. You’ll see the talented dance majors performing in varied works from faculty members.

Overture Center is presenting some intriguing dance offerings this season. Cas Public, a contemporary dance company founded in 1989 in Quebec, is touring with Symphonie Dramatique (Oct. 20), an exploration of Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet that blends ballet, contemporary dance and hip-hop. It’s performed by eight of the company’s dancers in multiple roles and is geared for young audiences (10 and up).

Madison Ballet’s season opens at the Bartell Theatre with Push (Oct. 20-21). Push includes classical ballet pas de deux from Swan Lake, Giselle and Le Spectre de la Rose and a new work from General McArthur Hambrick, who has choreographed several pieces for the company. Kanopy Dance Company kicks off its season at Overture’s Promenade Hall with Beautiful Isolation (Nov. 10-12). In recent years Kanopy has been gifting audiences with meticulous reconstructions of key early modern dance works. And this show is no exception: Beautiful Isolation includes Anna Sokolow’s Lyric Suite and Escape (an excerpt from Rooms, which is still fresh and provocative 62 years after its creation). Also on the bill are works from Kanopy co-artistic directors Robert E. Cleary (This is Not America, his best choreographic offering) and Lisa Thurrell (Partita & Chorales).

Madison Ballet returns to the Bartell for She (Feb. 2-3). She celebrates the work of female choreographers, including Nikki Hefko, a Madison Ballet alum who has also performed with the Dance Theatre of Harlem. Other featured choreographers include Jacqueline Stewart and Stephanie Martinez, who will present a ballet originally created for Chicago’s Joffrey Ballet, Non e Normale.

Another promising show at Overture is Cactus Opus (Feb. 6) from MOMIX, a company comprised of dancers and illusionists created by Pilobolus co-founder Moses Pendleton. Cactus Opus is a celebration of the Southwestern desert originally conceived in 2001 as a short work for Ballet Arizona.

Later this season, Kanopy returns with Dark Tales (Feb. 9-11 and 16-18), another collaboration with internationally renowned corporeal mime artists from Theatre de l’Ange Fou, Corinne Soum and Steve Wasson, founders of the White Church Theatre Project in Spring Green. In Dark Tales they’ll present two somber works: Bluebeard Through the Looking Glass Darkly and The Melancholy of Angels.

Although it’s a Broadway musical, An American in Paris (Feb. 27-Mar. 4, Overture Hall) is really a ballet set to a lovely George and Ira Gershwin score. Christopher Wheeldon’s lush and romantic choreography will make your heart swell with joy, and the show is the perfect antidote to another potentially dreary and long Wisconsin winter.

Art is everywhere — if you know where to look

By John McLaughlin

One of the city’s longstanding traditions comes in the form of Gallery Night, put on twice yearly by the Madison Museum of Contemporary Art (MMoCA). This year’s fall event, which features a wide array of artwork sales and exhibitions at nearly 70 venues across the city (including the museum), is on Oct. 6, from 5-9 p.m. Highlights include Madison’s 5th annual Latino Art Fair at the Overture Center, which features the work of Latino artists from southern Wisconsin across a variety of media. And at Olbrich Botanical Gardens on the city’s east side, GLEAM is a vibrant and ethereal night-time show of light and color.

MMoCA has some must-see shows later this year, including Jaume Plensa: Talking Continents, Dec. 2-April 15 in the museum’s State Street Gallery. Known for his large-scale, interactive installation The Crown Fountain, a permanent feature in Chicago’s Millenium Park, Plensa explores ideas of community and personal interaction. Talking Continents suspends a series of 19 steel sculptures above the gallery floor. Each shape, made of letters from nine separate languages woven together, is adorned with human figures.

One of the Chazen Museum’s 2017 autumn highlights reaches back to work created more than a century ago. From Sept. 1-Nov. 5, the museum will display German Expressionist Prints: Barbara Mackey Kaerwer’s Legacy in its Leslie and Johanna Garfield Galleries. The Expressionist style, born out of a profound anxiety at the advent of World War I, sought to capture the often-harrowing energy of an increasingly destabilized world. The exhibit features woodcuts and colored lithographs, including Egon Schiele’s haunting Portrait of Paris von Gütersloth.

I’m also looking forward to the first full-gallery solo show at Atwood Avenue’s up-and-coming Arts + Literature Laboratory (ALL), which landed an exhibit from one of the country’s most celebrated photographers. Carl Corey’s Along the Yellowstone Trail (Nov. 4-Dec. 2) is Americana road-trip photography at its finest. Corey documented his 480-mile walk through Wisconsin’s stretch of the iconic Yellowstone Trail, the first cross-country highway in the northern United States, stretching from Seattle, Washington to Plymouth, Massachusetts. Corey’s images show the often-overlooked corners of small town Wisconsin — window displays at a diner, lawn decoration, a gas station mural falling into disrepair.

But you don’t even have to enter a gallery or museum to catch some impressive visual art displays — you just need to know where to look.

In September and October, the Madison Arts Commission (MAC) is collaborating with the Bubbler at the Madison Public Library to create a “mural alley” behind the Madison East Shopping Center, on East Washington Avenue, between Milwaukee and Oak streets. Although organizers haven’t nailed down exact dates, the program will pair five artists, local and international, with Madison-area youth to adorn the alleyway.

And MAC is also working this fall to expand another of its public art programs — an initiative to beautify many of the city’s utility boxes. Last year, the city covered several utility boxes on the Capitol Square with aerial images of Madison taken by local photographer Craig Wilson — including full perspective shots of bikers, kayakers and concertgoers. The city put out a call for more artwork this summer, and hopes to expand the program to 20 boxes around the city.

So keep looking around: You never know where you might discover some fine art.

Classically speaking

By John Barker

My fall music calendar begins with the Madison Bach Musicians, who are planning an ambitious program Sept. 23 at the First Unitarian Society and Sept. 24 at Holy Wisdom Monastery in Middleton. With an appearance by acclaimed solo cellist Steuart Pincombe, the program will feature music for small ensembles by Baroque masters Bach and Vivaldi.

The Ancora Quartet will start its season with a concert of works by Haydn, Dvořák and Ravel on Sept. 30 at St. Andrew’s Church.

On Sept. 24, Farley’s House of Pianos presents its Salon Series, with a 4 p.m. concert by the husband-and-wife piano duo of Roberto Plano and Paola Del Negro. They will play Johannes Brahms’ Sonata for Two Pianos — an earlier form of the great Piano Quintet, Op. 34. That same evening, the Pro Arte Quartet takes the stage at Mills Hall, playing the Terzetto by Dvorak and the Mozart Clarinet Quintet, with guest clarinetist Alicia Lee and guest cellist Jean-Michel Fonteneau.

On Oct. 5 the Mead-Witter School of Music on the UW-Madison campus has scheduled a noon concert offering the distinguished violist Nobuko Imai (a guest here previously) with the Pro Arte Quartet.

University Opera’s autumn performance of A Kurt Weill Cabaret runs Oct. 27, 29 and 31.

The Madison Symphony Orchestra (MSO) will perform Oct. 20-22 with the highly acclaimed pianist Olga Kern, who will play Samuel Barber’s Piano Concerto. The opener is Maurice Ravel’s Mother Goose Suite, and the conclusion is Dvořák’s ever-popular Symphony No. 9, “From the New World.” The orchestra played this work a few years ago in the “Beyond the Score” series, but now it will have a chance to stand on its own.

November will open with the Madison Opera’s presentation of Georges Bizet’s enormously popular Carmen at Overture Hall, Nov. 3 and 5. And Nov. 17-19, the MSO will deliver its third program. The featured soloist will be guitarist Sharon Isbin, who will bring all her amplification gear to play the “Guitar Concerto” by Joaquín Rodrigo and a piece by U.S. composer Chris Brubeck. The orchestra will contribute two lively orchestral suites — from Manuel de Falla’s Three-Cornered Hat and Aaron Copland’s Billy the Kid.

Rounding out a busy 2017, the Madison Bach Musicians will offer their usual Baroque Holiday Concert on Dec. 9 at First Congregational Church. This concert will feature Bach’s Cantata No. 32, plus the “Winter” movement from Vivaldi’s Four Seasons. Overlapping that will be the Choral Union and UW Symphony Orchestra December 9-10, performing Mozart’s unfinished but glorious C-minor Mass.

And we have much to look forward to in 2018 as well. The MSO has long sought the violinist Gil Shaham, who will appear Jan. 19-21 playing Tchaikovsky’s Violin Concerto. A Suite by Prokofiev and Rachmaninoff’s Third Symphony will complete that event. On Jan. 26, the Wisconsin Chamber Orchestra (WCO) opens its season with a concert that includes the Double Concerto by Brahms. The month’s offerings end on Jan. 29 with the delightful Schubertiade devised for the UW’s music school by Martha Fischer and Bill Lutes.

On Feb. 9 and 11, the Madison Opera will present Mozart’s frothy work, The Abduction from the Seraglio. On the weekend of Feb.16-18, the MSO presents William Walton’s Cello Concerto with the long-awaited Brahms First Symphony. And on Feb. 23 the WCO offers Prokofiev’s Violin Concerto No. 2, plus works by Gounod and Tchaikovsky. The same weekend, University Opera presents Puccini’s beloved La Bohème on Feb. 23-25.

Editor's note: Katie Reiser's dance preview was edited to reflect an error in the print edition. The production of She on Feb. 2-3 is a Madison Ballet production, not a Kanopy Dance show.