The Battle for Lincoln Park
The turnout for the Milwaukee County Public Art Committee meeting at Lincoln Park on March 7th was surprisingly low. For a moment, I thought that I’d gone to the wrong place. It was a particularly dismal day, and as the rain made soup of the lush green landscape, it was hard to keep the cold out of the dated clubhouse we met in. Japanese sculptor Takashi Soga was there to present his proposal for a permanent art piece in Glendale’s Lincoln Park. It’s possible that Soga does not realize the buzz that his proposed project has created, or that some members of the art community feel slighted and shut out of this pricey decision. Against such a gloomy backdrop, you had to feel for him as he addressed a room of skeptics, trying to articulate his artistic vision in broken English. So what’s the big deal? In September 2008, the MCPAC sent out a call to artists for the Lincoln Park site- over 3,000 emails, roughly- and received over 100 applications. A selection committee was formed and they chose a short list of artists, based on their concepts for the space. According to the committee’s RFP, artists on the short list would then have the opportunity to interview with the committee and preview their concept to the public. In this case, the selection committee initially made a short list of five applicants, but later decided to short list Soga alone because they felt that his piece was the most significant out of the group. Soga was the only artist invited to present, implying to some that this was, in essence, a done deal. There’s also the issue of funding. The total public art budget for Lincoln Park is about $250,000, however Soga’s proposals will need an additional $100,000 from the city. In a press release from IN: SITE, a resource for temporary public art in Milwaukee, IN: SITE Chair and MCPAC member Pegi Taylor outlines the additional costs: $100,000 design $40,000 materials $60,000 fabrication $20,000 foundation $20,000 installation and transportation $10,000 insurance Taylor also argues that the piece proposed by Soga is similar to sculptures that he’s installed in other cities, and says that the pieces are “cookie cutter.” Local artist and co-owner of The Green Gallery John Riepenhoff also voiced his concerns at the public meeting. Riepenhoff, along with artists Cat Pham and Sarah Luther also submitted a proposal for the site and made it into the top five selections, but were not invited to present their ideas to the public. “I feel like a few elements of [MCPAC’s] criteria that they set up for the selection aren’t met by Soga’s proposal,” Riepenhoff says, “ and he showed a lack of service to Milwaukee and the community.” On the other hand, artist and selection committee member Richard Taylor released this statement in response to opponents of the piece: “The committee considered many applications for this project, and came to a unanimous or near-unanimous conclusion. One proposal […]
Mar 12th, 2009 by Erin Petersen
The Surprisingly Difficult Art of the Roller Derby Playlist
I don’t often put myself into an article. I would rather let the story tell itself. But in this case, a little back story is warranted. Back in September of 2008, I volunteered to help referee the Brewcity Bruisers Roller Derby league. It had been at least ten years since I put on skates and the prospect of joining a close-knit group of refs and rollergirls was a scary one. The learning curve was sharp and continues to be – but I’m still glad I found the courage to do it. One night before a practice, the new stereo system had only a jack for an mp3 player and I was the only one with a working unit. It was an honor and privilege to share my music. No, wait, it was a nightmare. My Zune contains over 4,800 songs. Putting it on shuffle would result in Beastie Boys one minute and Nick Drake the next. There is also an album of accordion classics in there. Embarassed that I had no playlist proper for a warehouse full of women about to knock each other around on wheels, I set the player to Fatboy Slim and hoped for the best. Like Scarlett O’Hara pulling a root from the ground and vowing never to go hungry again, I decided over the next few months to put together some good music for derbying. It became a bit of an obsession. What is produced here illuminates some realizations about the difficult of making a list and choosing the songs within it. A typical playlist – if being used strictly in the course of a bout – would have to last 40 minutes to an hour for two halves of a match between just two teams. If it was a BCB match, there are four teams facing off in two 20-minute jams. So now you are up to 80 minutes. Now factor in warm-up time, introductions, halftime, timeouts – a typical bout can last well over two hours. In that scenario, I leave the expertise up to someone like professional DJ Mike Shank who handles the monthly BCB gigs with aplomb. I consulted him on the idea and took some songs that have been played at the bouts. Even if just for a practice or scrimmage, a good roller derby playlist tends to evoke memories of a Saturday night at the rink just skating around with friends. It almost seems sometimes as if the right balance of tempo and attitude for roller skating was founded in the late 1970s to mid-80s. The best songs are ones to which you could mouth the words while carving the big oval. A few of the rollergirls have said they just need a good thumping beat to go with their workout. Most can’t agree on one format but they appreciate a variety of hip hop, funk, hard rock, electronica, and rockabilly. Folk, Jazz, Bluegrass, and most modern Country doesn’t seem to work. Occasionally new stuff culled from reading SPIN magazine or cribbing off the […]
Mar 12th, 2009 by Brian Jacobson
Meanwhile … at the Alchemist …
When improv group Meanwhile started last November, it was a simple way for six local comedians to do what they love best: make people laugh with original, unrehearsed material. But before long, the group was selling out Bayview’s Alchemist Theater twice a month. ThirdCoast Digest sat down with Vince Figueroa, Beth Lewinski and Lee Rowley, three of Meanwhile’s six members, for a brief chat and a cup of coffee that turned out to be a bit too trying for one comedian. TCD: How would you describe Meanwhile to someone who has never seen the show before? Lee Rowley: I would describe it as an improv show that tends to be funny and is in a longer format than something like Comedy Sportz. Beth Lewinski: There are six of us. We generally have a guest host who does a monologue, and then we do improv based off of those monologues. We usually have a more open second half, but we could change the format at any time. Lee: … And Vince is in it. Vince Figueroa: … Yeah. I Show up and don’t contribute. TCD: Who are some of the guest hosts you guys have had? Lee: On Friday we had the wonderful Bo Johnson who was one of the founding members of the Dead Alewives, another sketch and improv group from the early ‘90s. I feel like they are probably the most famous group of improvisers to come out of Milwaukee Vince: Not too long ago we had Dave Bogan, who’s a pretty big deal over at Comedy Sportz and is also responsible for teaching us improv. Beth: Yeah, for most of us he was our first teacher in improv, so that was cool. Then we had Kevin Gerrity. He’s a high school student who does short and long-form improv around the area. That was really cool, to get a high school perspective on stuff Lee: In two weeks we have Stephanie Graham, who is a producer at TMJ4. She actually won an Emmy. Vince: So this is going to be beneath her. TCD: What role does crowd participation play in a Meanwhile performance? Beth: There is crowd participation, but we don’t have audience volunteers. We have the person who is doing the monologue. We try to get people who have different backgrounds, and then the subject matter we get varies from show to show. The host bases their monologue off of questions from the audience. Vince: That style of game is called an Armando Diaz, after the guy who made it. Lee: We try to get relatively deep questions. Our first show we had someone from the audience ask “boxers or briefs?” Other than that we’ve had some really good questions. Beth: On Friday it was “Why did you get into comedy?” and “What is your favorite thing about comedy?” Lee: We try to get deeper questions, because the more realistic the monologue is, the better we do. Vince: It’s a great dynamic for the audience too, because they […]
Mar 12th, 2009 by Nick Schurk
Stonewalled
John Riepenhoff of Green Gallery fame, kindly send me a folder of jpeg images for a proposal he and his collaborators submitted for the Lincoln Park space. Here is an exact quote from Mr. Riepenhoff: “Attached is our proposal, they didn’t ask for budget and had limited space for description and slides on the first round of submissions, but they were supposed to invite several artists back to give a proposal talk that Soga gave so the committee could decide from the more in depth interview process who they like best, but somehow Soga was the only one the subcommittee allowed to speak.” If you’ve been following the controversy (led my Pegi Taylor of In Site), Ripenhoff’s contribution is one more piece of the puzzle. In the above quote, he says “but somehow,” and now you may ask, “but how some (Soga) and not others?”
Mar 12th, 2009 by Stella Cretek
UW-Milwaukee Should Expand in “Our Backyard”
Normally people oppose projects because it is in their backyard,
Mar 11th, 2009 by Dave Reid
An Artist’s Statement (How to Write One)
I was just a little kid when I picked up my first ever crayola and made a mark on paper. Oh, it was exciting to realize I too could be an artist. In kindergarten I won an award for the best drawing of a single line. My family was very poor and so we had only one crayon (a red one!). I’ve been using one color (red) ever since those days. I owe it all to my mother who used one red crayon. My grandma was a big help. Her hair was red. She was a huge influence, though it left a wide scar on my psyche when she died the day before her roots were retouched. It’s moments like that that shape artists and set them on their way. I’m often asked what my paintings “mean.” I dunno. Art is in the eye of the beholder isn’t it? Leastwise, that’s what I hear. People who demand to understand art are off-track, which maybe is why I bombed out during my art education years. My professor told me that I must move on from making a single red line. That seemed unfair and, in many ways, elitist. Stardom isn’t important to me, though sometimes I do feel a bit of envy when I notice art that is made with, say, two lines in green; but then again, we all have our special talents, and one line in red is mine. God works in strange ways. Did I mention that in third grade I won a prize for filling the most sheets of expensive paper with my single red line? The teacher hung it in the room as an example of flat-line thinking. My advice to aspiring artists? Oh dear, well, I guess I’d say stick to your guns and don’t be swayed by choices now that you (perhaps) have an entire box of dazzling Crayolas. After all, it’s up to viewers to decide what my single red line means. It could be a deer peeking out from a forest, or maybe a sunset in the Rockies. Next year I’ve been invited to exhibit my one million drawings, which actually are Xeroxed copies of the piece I did in kindergarten so many years ago. Other artists have begun to steal my ideas, and I say More Power To Them. That said, I like to think I am the one and only original which is why I sign my name (Hortense “Honey” Swartzburger) in big black marker across the front of each piece. Snobs tell me that no respected artist scrawls her names on the front of her work, but that’s their problem. My work is in various collections throughout the globe: SockitTumi Shoe Laces in Hiroshima, Bees & Babes Poster Shoppe in Hackensack (New Jersey), and even in the permanent collection at MOMA (Museum of Maligned Art) in Swampyville, Georgia. Each and every day is spent Xeroxing my mark. It’s a lonely life but I’m not complaining. It’s what I do.
Mar 11th, 2009 by Stella Cretek
Historic Preservation Commission
The Milwaukee Historic Preservation Commission (HPC) administers Milwaukee’s historic preservation ordinance, adopted in 1981, which provides certain kinds of legal protection for buildings or sites that have been declared historic by the Common Council. The HPC is responsible for designating historic landmarks and historic districts and for approving Certificates of Appropriateness (COAs) for permission to alter historic buildings. The HPC meets monthly on Mondays in City Hall, Room 301A, 200 E. Wells Street at 3:00 P.M. unless otherwise indicated. Agenda
Mar 11th, 2009 by Dave Reid
In the Dick of Time
This whole media flap about the ‘Tosa mom who objects to (among other things) MAM’s “Standing Woman” sculpture, weighs in too heavily on the side of tits and ass, i.e. the bodacious breasts and the lusty bottom on the woman standing tall. Odd isn’t it, that no mention has been made of the penises, of which there are a few standing proud in the Folk Art Collection at MAM. I guess you could call them “woodies” as they actually are to be found in carvings from wood. Take your time trying to spot them. Picking on Standing Woman is out and out sexist. Give the dame a break. The outcry from the uber-right reminds me of an incident that occurred when former Milwaukee artist, Carrie Scoczek, had the nerve to display some sculptures of male nudes in a storefront in Walkers Point. Shortly after they were installed, she strolled by the store/gallery and noticed each penis had been covered with band-aids, a twist on the old fig leaf thing. The gallery owner said he covered them because they were offensive. Have we lost our collective memories? I remember when performance artist Karen Findley stripped to the buff at a Walker’s Point gallery, much to the delight of the crowd. I think she then busied herself by slathering on syrup and feathers. Maybe I’m imagining this, but I’m almost sure that in MAM’s heady performance art days, a guy buck naked hung by his ankles in the east wing. And then there was actor John Schneider in the altogether at a Theater-X performance….
Mar 10th, 2009 by Stella Cretek
Same Time, Next Year
Romantic commitment tangles with social convention in a love story laced with humor. Same Time, Next Year, the latest selection from the Sunset Playhouse, continues to charm audiences with this complicated liaison that spans 25 years. The 1975 Drama Desk Award-winning play by Bernard Slade centers around two characters, Doris and George, who meet unexpectedly away from home and fall deeply and madly in love. Yet they are each married (to other people) and have children, a major inconvenience. The six scenes in two acts spans 1951-1975 revealing the growth that Doris and George experience as individuals and a couple while committing to meet once each year on the same weekend. Not only do they love each other, but each other’s families as well. This highly unconventional combination provides the framework that gives the production its heart. Even though this story decidedly resists social norms, this unlikely pair displays concern, dignity and humanity throughout the production. Sarah Laak Hughes and Cesar Gamino play Doris and George with all these essential qualities while imparting a genuine chemistry to their relationship, filled with sexual tension and affection, but appreciating each other as a man and woman. Although opening night provided a bit of nervousness in dialogue, the run will only become better. Several poignant scenes defy time, including those dealing with growing children, growing up and growing older, even struggling with death. Director Mark Salentine finds a balance between the humor and the guilt inherent in this obviously complicated situation that complements set and technical designer J. Michael Desper’s comfortable and pleasing guest cottage setting. Even new managing director Jonathan West appears to have touched the Sunset with his distinguished expertise as seen in the impressive quality of their last two productions. But ultimately, Hughes and Gamino discover the core of the script and believe throughout these many years that, “Life is saying yes… even when one’s life can be a mess.” Through each heartthrob and heartache, the positive energy of love and concern is demonstrated for all persons, including the spouses of the couple, Harry and Helen, which shines through the production and becomes applicable to any relationship. Kudos to Hughes and Gamino for giving Doris and George yet another 25 years on stage in Same Time, Next Year, however unconventional their romance might be. In life, everyone needs support and commitment from friends and others to get by in an often-heartless world, and this March at the Sunset Playhouse, love expresses itself in its own unique way. The Sunset Playhouse presents Same Time, Next Year until March 21. For information: 262.782.4430.
Mar 10th, 2009 by Peggy Sue Dunigan
The Elephant Child and Other African Tales
One of the only remaining auditoriums in the Milwaukee Public School System resounded with children’s voices last week. In Ivory Hall at Lincoln School for the Arts, Milwaukee Youth Theatre presented The Elephant Child and Other African Tales. Through the tradition of folklore, writer and editor Frederick KD Diggins reformatted stories from Rudyard Kiplings’s Just So Stories together with additional African legends to create this appealing children’s production. The ninety-minute performance included five folktales incorporating a beautiful borrowed set from Ko-Thi Dance Company that fills the stage with a massive tree hung with fiber sways resembling the jungle. This provided the perfect backdrop for the tropical printed skirts and knotted headpieces worn by the LCA African Dance Company. Skillfully choreographed by Shirley Gilbert, these dancers established a rhythmic and cultural link to the tales as well as serving to separate each scene from its predecessor. Accompanied by narration from an older actor, each tale revealed a moral or explained intriguing phenomena of the natural world, such as how the elephant acquired such a long nose (adapted from Rudyard Kipling). The actors spanned several age and experience ranges, portraying the tiniest mouse to a fierce crocodile in colorful and clever attire from Kim’s Costumes Limited. Several performers debuted on stage for the first time, while others demonstrated additional stage presence including Deonata Griffin and Daphne Cain. The overriding effect was entertainment. All children will appreciate the participation encouraged in the Swahili fable, The Three Tasks, which asked them to choose from several endings for each feat the Prince needed to complete in fulfilling a promise to his father. It’s disappointing MYT remains without sufficient microphones for all their actors to use because in the large theater the smallest voices lose their projection, taking away from the performance as a whole as well as robbing the performers of deserved recognition. Yet whether providing acting experience, technical skills or for pure enjoyment, this “theater by children, for children” inspires school programs that will develop future participants and supporters of the arts. This is clearly seen at the Lincoln MPS center where the timely vision of MYT continues on May 21 and 22 at 7:00 p.m. in the LCA Studio Theatre 208 with their next production Winnie The Pooh. Complete schedule and tickets for Milwaukee Youth Theatre performances are available online at Footlights.
Mar 10th, 2009 by Peggy Sue Dunigan
Oedipus Rex
Oedipus Rex is one of the few surviving plays from ancient Greece. Written by Sophocles as the second of a trio of plays about King Oedipus and his family, Oedipus Rex is rife with the impact of following fate and choosing to exercise free will. The University of Wisconsin – Milwaukee’s theatre department takes an tale of ancient Greece and moves it to 300 years in the future where humans have reverted to being subject to the will of the gods. The city of Thebes is in turmoil because a horrible plague has descended upon it. King Oedipus vows to do whatever is needed to save the citizens. Word comes down from the gods that Thebes is dying because the murderer of the former King still resides in the city. When badgered into confessing, the blind seer, Tieresias, tells Oedipus himself murdered the former King. Oedipus will not believe it and thinks it is a conspiracy of his bother-in-law’s to usurp power. A series of stories from the gods reveal that Oedipus was told that he would murder his father and marry his mother, so he left his parents. Queen Jocasta reveals that she and the former King had a baby that the gods said would murder its father, so the former King banished the baby. Jocasta realizes first that everything the gods foretold has come to pass. Oedipus requires more persuasion and proof that he is his wife’s son. Director Tony Horne’s re-imagining of Oedipus Rex into the future puts the play into an interesting light. Disaster after disaster has moved people to revere Greek gods and visit the Oracle for guidance, instead of becoming more rational. Horne does not let this artistic choice impact the language of the play. It’s an affecting choice, although if the audience doesn’t read the program before hand they probably won’t notice the fast forward in time. The chorus provides commentary and also voices the inner thoughts that characters cannot say aloud. Choreographed by Shell M. Benjamin and orchestrated by Raeleen McMillion, the chorus is gorgeous and terrifying. Their movement and dance seem spontaneous and effortless. Andrew Edwin Voss shoulders an incredible responsibility as the title character. While adept and suitably heroic, one wishes he would express a few more emotions than just anger and impatience. Oedipus Rex is a classic play that UWM has made timeless. Its themes of fate versus free will present questions that may never be answered, which may be one of the reasons this particular play has become such an enduring dramatic work. UWM’s production certainly showcases the department’s talent and work ethic. Complete schedule and tickets for events in the Peck School of Arts can be found online at Footlights.
Mar 10th, 2009 by Russ Bickerstaff
The Neverending Story
The power of imagination overflows the Todd Wehr Theater when The Neverending Story arrived this weekend courtesy of First Stage Children’s Theater. The production crosses elements of fairy tale and science fiction while the story revolves around saving the land of Fantastica, which requires a chosen hero to be sent on a quest for the cure. The familiar novel by Michael Ende was adapted for the theater by David S. Craig and will recall for audience members several favorite movies, including one in 1984 directed by Wolfgang Peterson. Yet on this stage imagination demonstrates its power through every aspect of the production’s technical collaboration: scenic designer David Minkoff’s Zen-like circular steel stage with floor to ceiling silky curtains allows the audience to sink into Fantastica’s surreal nothingness with the cast. Lighting Designer Keith Parham creates larger than life creatures by shadowing the actors with white light against the black backdrop. Puppeteer/Props director Mark Hare together with costume designer Debbie Baer fashion mythical figures from the novel, both monstrous and miniature, with delight. All these technical supports give credence to Bastian’s fantasy that when reading, the mind transcends everyday life and sorrows. Bastian is struggling with the death of his mother, and Bastian’s alter ego, Atreyu, battles for the Child-Empress’s life to save Fantastica as Bastian battles real life bullies at school. The contrasting comedy and tragedy of the journey, including several incidents tinged with fright, sustain the tension to Atreyu’s great quest that Bastian eventually enters. Every adult actor expertly conveys several characters without a slip that adds to the performance’s seamless flow, which Director Jeff Frank moves at a pace with a clear crescendo. In the “Adventure Cast” for opening weekend, Mack Folkert imbues Atreyu with youthful wit and growing wisdom. Thomas Mazza captures Bastian visually as emotionally the lost boy gains confidence. While the production is recommended for children over six, adults will be attracted to the performance and ingenious theater elements, which portrays this magical world that emphasizes the pleasures of reading. Perhaps everyone will find appreciation for gnome Urgl’s remark, “Humans: most of all their youth have the power to see the truth.” What truth needs to be seen? That creativity inspires the answers to real life obstacles through wishing, dreams, fantasy, inventing and imagining, all acts of creating. Who first imagined the ipod, iphone or blackberry, this advanced means to communicate? Certainly never Franklin, Edison or Bell dreamed their now crude predecessors would reach such technological heights that might also detract from this formidable creative power. The enchanting production reminds the audience these key issues deserve consideration, because when each individual forgets to wish or imagine society will be swallowed by an empty void of reality, perhaps unable to find solutions to its burgeoning problems. This truth inhabits the extraordinary story of Bastian and Atreyu that First Stage retells, but also implies the 21st century’s neverending story. Complete schedule and tickets for this performance are available at Footlights online.
Mar 10th, 2009 by Peggy Sue Dunigan
