There’s always more to love in Milwaukee arts

Theater

This weekend, Milwaukee Chamber Theatre opens A Thousand Words, a world-premiere work that debuted in January as part of a collaboration with Madison’s Forward Theater. The plot focuses on a museum curator who stumbles across a young woman with a connection to some valuable photographs. Rare pictures aren’t your typical MacGuffin, but when they belong to Walker Evans, one of the most iconic photographers in U.S. history, it all makes sense. The show opens Friday, Feb. 17, and runs through March 11, with shows at 7:30 p.m. most weekdays, 8 p.m. Fridays, 4 and 8 p.m. Saturdays and 2 p.m. Sundays. Tickets are $31 to $36, and can be purchased at (414) 291-7800 or the MCT online box office.

Valentine’s Day not go so well? Give Miss Abigail’s Guide to Dating, Mating and Marriage a try. The show, running at the Marcus Center this weekend, centers on relationship expert Miss Abigail (an Emily Post/Dr. Ruth mashup), and her collection of “how-tos” for romance. The show runs Feb. 16 through 19, shows at 7:30 p.m. Thursday, 8 p.m. Friday, 4 and 8 p.m. Saturday and 2 p.m. Sunday. Tickets are $38 to $42, and can be ordered at (414) 273-7206 or the Marcus Center box office.

“Wittenberg” sets Hamlet, Prince of Denmark (Kyle Queenan, C) among phil prof John Faustus (David Flores, L) and theo prof Martin Luther (Robert W.C. Kennedy).

It isn’t often you get the chance to catch a “Protestant Reformation comedy,” but Windfall Theatre’s Wittenburg certainly fits the bill. The comedy packs Hamlet, Faust and Martin Luther into the same 16th century university and lets the theories — and humor — fly. Shows are Feb. 17 through March 3, all performances at 8 p.m. Tickets are $20; call (414) 332-3963.

Cedar Block’s “Sexy Results” is a variety show that blends science and art seamlessly. Photo courtesy Alverno Presents.

Okay, it’s not quite “theater,” but where else are you going to put a variety show by Cedar Block, one of Milwaukee’s more out-of-the-box creative organizations? The new show, Sexy Results, described simply as one science-lover’s quest to find the Higgs Boson particle. Blending science and art is something of a specialty for them, so expect a truly unique experience–regardless of how we qualify it here. Further mixing things up is their inclusion of Milwaukee’s own IfIHadAHiFi, who wrote six new songs special for Sexy Results, and various other guests. The show, part of Alverno Presents‘ season, begins at Turner Hall Ballroom on Saturday, Feb. 18 at 8 p.m. Tickets are $15; visit the online box office or call (414) 382-6044 to order.

The Milwaukee Ballet’s Winter Series includes three world premiere dances.

Dance

Three world premieres grace the Pabst Theater this weekend, part of the Milwaukee Ballet’s Winter Series. The three pieces come from company choreographer Petr Zahradnicek, the “acrobatic and daring” Brock Clawson and Mauro de Candia, the winner of the Milwaukee Ballet’s 2011 Genesis choreographic competition. Joining the Ballet for the Zahradnicek piece is the Florentine Studio Artists, fresh off their latest show with the Opera. Performances are Feb. 16 to 19, at 7:30 p.m. Thursday to Saturday with 1:30 p.m. matinees Saturday and Sunday. Tickets are $28.50 to $75; call (414) 902-2103 to order.

Music

The Milwaukee Choral Artists’ next concert, Southern Skies and Western Winds, might be something of a misnomer. Bringing in pieces from Haiti, Argentina and Africa might fulfill the southern portion of the equation, but their western music comes with a capital W, pulling in French chanson, Spanish canto and German lied. Then again, why complain about anything coming from MCA, when they typically sound like this? The concert begins Saturday, Feb. 18 at 7:30 p.m., and tickets are $25, $20 for seniors and $15 for students. Call (262) 628-5022 or visit the online box office to order.

Saturday, Early Music Now celebrates 14th century musical improv with guest artists Shira Kammen, Margriet Tindemans and Danny Mallon (replacing Peter Maund, who withdrew for personal reasons). The concert, titled “The Dawn of Joy” after an instrumental dance composed by minstrels of the Italian Trecento (pre-Renaissance period), starts Feb. 18 at 5 p.m. at the Cathedral of All Saints. Tickets are $25, $10 for students, or $40/$20 for premium seating, respectively; call (414) 225-3113 or visit the online box office to order.

Dean and Lisa Balkwill pay tribute to the Gershwin brothers at Wisconsin Lutheran College Tuesday night. Photo credit Alkahest Artists.

Wisconsin Lutheran College hosts two guest artists this weekend. The first, Embraceable You: The Music of George Gershwin, arrives tonight (Feb. 14). The show features Dean and Lisa Balkwill performing a tribute to George and Ira Gershwin in song and dance. The show begins at 7:30 p.m., with a pre-show dinner option at 6 p.m.; tickets are $34, $31 for seniors/donors and $12 for students, with an additional $21 for the dinner. Then, on Sunday, virtuoso Clive Driskill-Smith performs a variety of pieces for organ at 3 p.m., with a pre-concert talk at 1:30 p.m. Tickets are $12, $10 for seniors/donors and $6 for students. Call (414) 443-8802 or visit the college’s website to order for either show.

Visual Art

This weekend, Villa Terrace opens The Decorative Impulse, an exhibition of metalsmiths exploring the place of decorations in art. Inspirations for the show, a collaboration with UWM’s Peck School of the Arts, include Victorian jewelry, export porcelain and botanical prints. The exhibit runs Feb. 17 through May 20; museum admission is $5, $3 for seniors/military/students and free for members and children under 12. Visit the Villa Terrace website for hours or more information.

The Marcus Center hosts “An Evening with Bill Engvall” Saturday, Feb. 18 at 8 p.m.

Special Events

Bill Engvall comes to Milwaukee this week as part of the Marcus Center Presents series. The comic, famous for his Blue Collar Comedy Tour and TBS sitcom The Bill Engvall Show, brings his clean and wholesome breed of country comedy Saturday, Feb. 18, at 8 p.m. Tickets start at $40, and can be ordered at (414) 273-7206 or the Marcus Center online box office.

Fools for Tragedy: Waiting, through Feb. 18 at the Alchemist; Feb. 26 at Villa Terrace

Next Act Theatre: Vigil, through Feb. 26

Fireside Theater: Viva Vegas, through March 4

Milwaukee Rep: To Kill A Mockingbird, through March 11 (EXTENDED)

Milwaukee Rep: The Complete Works of William Shakespeare (abridged), through March 11

Last Chance

Broadminded: Broadminded Buffet, through Feb. 18

First Stage: A Wrinkle in Time, through Feb. 19

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