FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE CONTACT: Cindy Moran, Public Relations Director, 414-224-1761 February 20, 2007 AFRICAN-AMERICAN CAST BRINGS FRESH PERSPECTIVE TO CLASSIC AMERICAN PLAY Directed by Jacqueline Moscou Stiemke Theater A grown man takes us on a gentle and heart-wrenching journey into his family memories: an absent father, a fragile, loving sister and an obsessively nostalgic mother. An African-American cast brings a fresh and engaging perspective to one of the most beloved American plays. Tickets can be purchased in person at The Rep Ticket Office at 108 East Wells Street, or by telephone at 414-224-9490. Tickets can also be purchased online 24/7 at milwaukeerep.com. Set in 1937 in St. Louis, THE GLASS MENAGERIE relives the memory of a small and broken family where the audience is given “the truth in the pleasant disguise of illusion.” Tom Wingfield, the narrator and main character of this memory play, aspires to be much more than an underpaid warehouse worker. His mother unintentionally proves to be his antagonist, constantly pestering him about his whereabouts and suspected vices. Expected to replace the family’s long-gone father both financially and dutifully, Tom can’t help but think of his life away from this immobile life he is being forced to lead. Laura, Tom’s socially inept and innocent older sister, Laura, struggles with her own emotional vices and only has her collection of fragile glass animals to keep her occupied. Her limp puts a handicap on not only her agility, but also the confidence to make an independent life for herself. The mother, Amanda Wingfield, wishes happiness for her children but her over-bearing nature shows to be destructive. She reminisces constantly about life in the South before she married her husband, Mr. Wingfield. His jovial picture is prominently displayed in the family’s main living area and serves as a constant reminder of his desertion. Amanda, always having had numerous gentlemen callers in her younger years, is disturbed by Laura’s inability to attract any men to the house. When Tom reluctantly agrees to bring home a friend from the warehouse for dinner, a premature glimpse of hope is momentarily flashed in both Amanda and Laura’s eyes and all is set into downward motion as Tom poetically recalls this memory. Tennessee Williams was a major and influential American playwright in the twentieth century, producing a myriad of plays, screenplays, short stories, novels, poetry and an autobiography. Williams was awarded the distinguished Pulitzer Prize for Drama for A STREETCAR NAMED DESIRE in 1948 and again in 1955 for CAT ON A HOT TIN ROOF. In 1945, Williams completed and opened on Broadway THE GLASS MENAGERIE. In the same year, his play won the New York Critics Circle, Donaldson and Sidney Howard Memorial Awards. Over the course of his career, Williams collected four New York Drama Critics Awards, three Donaldson Awards, a Tony Award for his 1951 screenplay THE ROSE TATTOO, and a New York Film Critics Award for 1953 screenplay A STREETCAR NAMED DESIRE. His works have been translated into at least 27 languages and have been staged all around the world – proof of the universality and popularity Williams and his plays possess. Tennessee Williams’ troubled family and his experiences with them served as inspiration for his award-winning plays. Characters in his plays are often interpreted as being direct representations of his family. Director Jacqueline Moscou has enjoyed success both as a playwright and actress, but has primarily focused on directing over the last 15 years. Her most recent credits include the annual holiday production of Langston Hughes’ BLACK NATIVITY: A GOSPEL SONG PLAY, A RAISIN IN THE SUN by Larraine Hansberry and Lynn Nottage’s CRUMBS FROM THE TABLE OF JOY. Other credits include the long-running production of A . . . MY NAME IS STILL ALICE at the Seattle Group Theatre, SPUNK and TAKUNDA at Seattle Repertory Theatre and BLUES FOR AN ALABAMA SKY at A Contemporary Theatre. Moscou was appointed Langston Hughes Performing Arts Center’s first Artistic Director in May 2002, after a long association at Intiman Theatre, where she directed several productions and still serves as Artistic Associate. Recent productions at the Langston Hughes Performing Arts Center by Ms. Moscou include Arthur Miller’s Pulitzer Prize-winning play DEATH OF A SALESMAN, featuring an all African-American cast, and Kim Yvonne Euell’s DIVA DAUGHTERS DUPREE. In reflecting on THE GLASS MENAGERIE Ms. Moscou recently said, “As I read the play again, what resonated with me is the deeply personal nature of this very dysfunctional family. This situation transcends cultural group – no matter who you are, we can relate to the perspective of getting older and looking at the world differently than how we looked at it when we were younger. What we once thought was so horrible and unbearable to us when we were young, now when we look back, we can see the human foibles and frailties of people who are just very, very damaged. That’s a universal condition. In other words, if THE GLASS MENAGERIE really is an American classic, it has to be challenged whether what it explores can universally include other races.” Included in the cast of THE GLASS MENAGERIE is Resident Acting Company Member Lanise Antoine Shelley (Laura Wingfield). In addition, joining the cast are Guest Actors: Wayne T. Carr (Jim Connor), Timothy McCuen Piggee (Tom Wingfield) and Brenda Thomas (Amanda Wingfield). (To learn more about our Resident Acting Company, Guest Actors, or our Intern Company, please visit milwaukeerep.com). The production/design team for THE GLASS MENAGERIE includes Geoffrey M. Curley (Scenic Designer), Alex Tecoma (Costume Designer), Jason Fassal (Lighting Designer), Michael Keck (Composer), Mark S. Sahba (Stage Manager) and Paula Bennett (Assistant Director). Tickets to THE GLASS MENAGERIE are $22.50 and $32.50 on weekdays and Sundays and $32.50 and $42.50 on Fridays and Saturdays. Students and senior citizens may purchase half-price RUSH TICKETS with proper identification 60 minutes before curtain time for all Stiemke Theater performances at The Rep Ticket Office. For more information or to charge tickets, call 414-224-9490. Tickets can be purchased online 24/7 at milwaukeerep.com. For group sales of 20 or more, call The Rep Ticket Office at 414-224-9490. Special Events for THE GLASS MENAGERIE
For production shots, please go to this link: For more information about The Rep’s Access Services, please contact The Rep’s Ticket Office at 414-224-9490. AFRICAN-AMERICAN CAST BRINGS FRESH PERSPECTIVE TO CLASSIC AMERICAN PLAY Directed by Jacqueline Moscou FACT SHEET THEATER: Stiemke Theater DATES: March 2 - April 1, 2007 DESCRIPTION: A grown man takes us on a gentle and heart-wrenching journey into his family memories: an absent father, a fragile, loving sister and an obsessively nostalgic mother. An African-American cast brings a fresh and engaging perspective to one of the most beloved American plays. PERFORMANCES: Tuesday 3/13/07 - 6:30 p.m. Tuesday 3/20/07 - 7:30 p.m. Tuesday 3/27/07 - 7:30 p.m. TICKET OFFICE LOCATION: TICKET PRICES: TICKETS/INFORMATION: 414-224-9490 or buy tickets online at milwaukeerep.com NEW TICKET OFFICE HOURS: ### Open to the public before and after all evening performances, Milwaukee Repertory Theater’s newly-remodeled Stackner Cabaret, located on the second floor of the Milwaukee Center, is our own full-service bar and restaurant. Featuring delicious dinners, as well as late night cocktails, coffee, and desserts, the Cabaret is the ideal meeting place for patrons attending Rep performances. For dinner reservations, call 414-224-9490. The Stackner Cabaret is now smoke-free. Milwaukee Repertory Theater is a nationally recognized theater company that presents a critically-acclaimed selection of compelling dramas, powerful classics, award-winning contemporary works and lively Cabaret shows on three stages from September through May. The Rep also produces an annual production of A CHRISTMAS CAROL. The Rep’s home, the Patty and Jay Baker Theater Complex, contains the Quadracci Powerhouse Theater, the Stiemke Theater and the Stackner Cabaret. The Rep is also “home” to a Resident Acting Company of 11 actors who perform with The Rep throughout the season. The Rep is proud to be a cornerstone member of the United Performing Arts Fund (UPAF), which provides major annual financial support. The Rep is a member of the League of Resident Theatres (LORT), a management association of some of the nation’s largest non-profit professional theaters that collectively bargains with the unions that represent the actors, directors and designers that work at The Rep; a constituent of Theatre Communications Group (TCG), the national organization for the nonprofit professional theater; and a member of Theatre Wisconsin, the statewide association of non-profit professional theaters. This theater operates under an agreement between the League of Resident Theatres and Actors' Equity Association, the union of professional actors and stage managers in the United States. The set, costume and lighting designers are members of United Scenic Artists, a national labor union. This theater is an equal opportunity employer. Except in plays where race itself is an issue, casting is decided based on ability, not race. Milwaukee Repertory Theater |
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