Milwaukee Rep Sets Opening Date For Renovated Studio Theater

Herro-Franke Studio Theater Rendering. Rendering courtesy of the Milwaukee Repertory Theater.

The Milwaukee Repertory Theater‘s game of musical chairs is coming to an end.

The arts organization is ready to open the Herro-Franke Studio Theater, completing the final phase of construction at the Associated Bank Theater Center and expanding the organization’s capability to host intimate productions.

The Herro-Franke Studio will officially debut with the Midwest premiere of McNeal, the newest play by Pulitzer Prize–winning playwright Ayad Akhtar. The production runs Feb. 10 through March 22 and marks the fifth Akhtar work staged by Milwaukee Rep in the past 10 years. A Brookfield native and a member of Milwaukee Rep’s board of trustees, Akhtar has become one of the most prominent American playwrights of his generation.

McNeal is described as a darkly comic examination of art, ego and originality in the age of artificial intelligence. The play centers on Jacob McNeal, a celebrated and dangerously self-assured novelist whose pursuit of creative dominance forces him to confront questions about authorship and truth in a rapidly shifting technological landscape. The Rep’s production is directed by Artistic Director Mark Clements and incorporates large-scale projections and special effects designed specifically for the upgraded studio space.

The renovated studio theater, designed as Milwaukee Rep’s venue for experimental and close-up storytelling, now features modular platforms, flexible seating and expanded production capabilities. Depending on the configuration, the space can accommodate between 182 and 224 patrons. The upgrades also enable larger casts and more sophisticated staging than was previously possible in the studio.

Its February opening follows the October opening of the main theater, the Ellen & Joe Checota Powerhouse Theater. Other upgrades in the $80 million project include expanded lobby and gathering spaces, overhauled offices, a new education center, improved accessibility and upgraded technical infrastructure throughout the complex.

Come From Away, the opening show in the main theater, was the best-selling show in Milwaukee Rep history.

The cast of McNeal includes Peter Bradbury in the title role, alongside Jessica Ko, Tony nominee Jeanne Paulsen, Ty Fanning, N’Jameh Carama, Bridget Ann White and Milwaukee Rep emerging professional resident Sara Sadjadi. Designers include Emily Lotz on sets, Mieka van der Ploeg on costumes, Jason Fassl on lighting, Dan Kazemi on sound and original music and Timothy Kelly on projections.

The studio theater is named for philanthropists David Herro and Jay Franke, whose $5 million gift helped fund the renovation. Its opening completes the long-planned redevelopment of Milwaukee Rep’s downtown home at 108 E. Wells St., a project that transformed the 1980s theater center. Earlier phases of the redevelopment included the debut of the Ellen & Joe Checota Powerhouse Theater, expanded lobby and gathering spaces, improved accessibility and upgraded technical infrastructure throughout the complex.

The studio theater project was deliberately offset from the main theater overhaul to allow the organization to avoid needing to relocate multiple production schedules at the same time.

According to figures from a June tour, the construction aspect of the project was expected to cost $63 million. The project is part of the organization’s larger Powering Milwaukee campaign, which has raised at least $80 million to develop the theater complex and sustain its operations. The Wisconsin State Building Commission contributed $1.9 million in public funding in late 2024.

The Milwaukee Rep worked with Eppstein Uhen Architects, Hunzinger Construction, theater design consultant Fisher Dachs Associates and construction management and advisory firm Chamberlin LLC on the complex’s development.

Tickets for McNeal and additional productions in the Herro-Franke Studio are available through the theater’s ticket office or its website.

A public block party is planned for summer 2026 to allow visitors to tour the entire complex without a ticket.