Joe Hanreddy Looks Ahead to his Final Rep Season

A year ago I announced my desire to make The Rep’s 2009/10 season my last as Artistic Director after many gloriously fulfilling years working with the extraordinary community of artists, artisans, administrators, technicians and audience members that make up The Rep family. I am immensely grateful for the support, dedication and goodwill that so many people have contributed to the success that Milwaukee Rep has enjoyed during my years here. The heart and soul of my artistic work at The Rep has always been inspired by the collective talent and energy of the Resident Acting Company. For the plays that I will be directing this year, I wanted to focus on projects that would highlight the inspirational company of actors with whom I’ve spent so much time planning, rehearsing and performing, and shared so many exciting adventures and experiences.

In that spirit, our first Quadracci Powerhouse production will be Nikolai Gogol’s THE GOVERNMENT INSPECTOR, a classic satire of small town governmental corruption and ineptitude, with an additional measure of lust added in to spice things up. As rewritten specifically for The Rep ensemble by our longtime colleague, Jeffrey Hatcher, (ARMADALE, WORK SONG, TAMING OF THE SCREW), THE GOVERNMENT INSPECTOR is a glove fit for the comedic gifts of the company; it features uproarious farce as well as an on-the-money insight into the chain reaction effect of moral bankruptcy that is at the heart of so many of our contemporary woes. Gerry Neugent and Torrey Hanson will lead the cast as the strangers whose unexpected visit to a small town incites terror at city hall.

We’re thrilled to have secured the rights to Lucinda Coxon’s HAPPY NOW?, a contemporary play that was a recent hit at London’s National Theatre. HAPPY NOW? is a pre-season ‘actor favorite’ and the company’s enthusiasm for the play is sure to lead to inspired performances. Deborah Staples will head the cast that includes Brian Vaughn, Gerry Neugent, Torrey Hanson, Rose Pickering and Lee Ernst. We’re thrilled to have one of the American theater’s preeminent and accomplished directors, Jon Jory, make his Rep debut with this production.
The intimate Stiemke Theater is the ideal venue for THE YEAR OF MAGICAL THINKING, Joan Didion’s inspirational and deeply personal attempt to make sense of the unimaginable loss of the two people most important to her. Elizabeth Norment, a brilliant actress who has given Rep audiences memorable performances in WIT and, most recently, in THE NIGHT IS A CHILD, will return to The Rep to confront the role. This event promises to be a singularly exceptional night in the theater.

I first worked with writer and director Kevin Ramsey during my ‘freshman year’ as The Rep’s Artistic Director in 1993 when he created IF THESE SHOES COULD TALK, featuring the legendary performer Harold Nicholas. Since then, Kevin has been a regular contributor to the Stackner, creating many brilliantly conceived and performed pieces, including last season’s FIRE ON THE BAYOU, the sensational GRAFTON CITY BLUES and FROM MY HOMETOWN. His newest creation, SOULTIME AT THE APOLLO, will launch the Stackner season with a family musical experience celebrating the rich musical legacy of the world famous Apollo Theater. SOULTIME will feature the music and tales of such artists as Ella Fitzgerald, Billie Holiday, Nat King Cole, The Drifters, James Brown, Aretha Franklin, The Temptations, Diana Ross & The Supremes and Gladys Knight & The Pips, as well as the performances of old-time vaudeville favorites.

Thanks again to all of you for your embrace of the Milwaukee Rep during my watch. I hope I’ll have the opportunity to thank as many of you as possible in person during the course of the season.

Joseph Hanreddy, Artistic Director