“Waging Peace” at Acacia Theatre Company

MILWAUKEE (January 10, 2025) – “I’ve been thinking about Jimmy Carter’s mission of ‘waging peace,’” remarks director Elaine Wyler. “How do you pursue peace when you’re surrounded by aggression?”

Wyler is directing Acacia’s upcoming production, A Sleep of Prisoners by Christopher Fry. Four prisoners of war are locked in a church in enemy territory. Deprived of food, water, rest and distractions, each man is drawn more deeply to his own struggles and those of his cellmates. Reality dissolves into a dream where the men play figures from the Bible in a story of obedience, rebellion, violence and peace.

Despite the setting, Prisoners has, in the words of critic T.C. Worsley, “a sharp sense of the comic incongruity of things,” which Wyler confirms: “It’s surprising how funny it is—the actors have found the humor. And of course it’s more than that, it’s deep philosophy.”

Prisoners was published in 1951, and while “the playwright is expressing thoughts that came out of his post-war moment,” Wyler explains, “it’s truly our moment, right now. Ascribing blame for this moment we’re living in is an easy out; it distracts people from what they can personally do, in their neighborhood, household. I’ve been thinking about people working on themselves as a way of peacemaking—looking for what we hide from ourselves, what we hide from others—what we think is real and true and what actually is.”

There is an important speech in the play that Wyler wishes could be widely distributed, including the lines “Thank God our time is now when wrong / Comes up to face us everywhere, / Never to leave us till we take / The longest stride of soul we ever took.”

In keeping with Acacia’s commitment to make theatre more accessible, all tickets for A Sleep of Prisoners are pay what you can and may be purchased at www.acaciatheatre.com or by calling 414-744-5995. Performances will be given in The Norvell Commons at St. Christopher’s Church, located at 7845 North River Road, Milwaukee, WI 53217.

New Performance dates:
Fri., March 7th at 7:30 PM, Sat., March 8th at 4:00 PM, Sun., March 9th at 3:00 PM, Thu., March 13th at 7:30 PM, Fri., March 14th at 7:30 PM, Sat., March 15th at 4:00 PM, Sun., March 16th at 3:00 PM, Fri., March 21st at 7:30 PM, Sat., March 22nd at 7:30 PM, Sun., March 23rd at 3:00 PM

Ticket Information
All performances of A Sleep of Prisoners are pay what you can. Tickets can be purchased at www.acaciatheatre.com or by calling 414-744-5995.

About Acacia Theatre Company
Founded in 1980, Acacia Theatre Company is an independent, non-profit, interdenominational group of dramatic artists who share a common desire to integrate art and faith by presenting theatre from a Judeo-Christian worldview. Through uplifting, quality entertainment, Acacia provides occasion for thanksgiving, growth and enjoyment, and the opportunity for Christians and non-Christians to consider their lives in relation to God. More information is available at www.acaciatheatre.com.

NOTE: This press release was submitted to Urban Milwaukee and was not written by an Urban Milwaukee writer. While it is believed to be reliable, Urban Milwaukee does not guarantee its accuracy or completeness.