2008-12 Vital Source Mag – December 2008

• Roses in December

  Dec 30th, 2008 by Russ Bickerstaff

  Artistic Director Mark Bucher is quite proud of the fact the Boulevard Theatre consistently produces plays that are premieres in Milwaukee. The most recent premiere produced by the Boulevard is Roses in December, by Victor L. Cahn. A play composed entirely of letters with no true interaction between characters can be daunting for both the […]

• Dale Gutzman’s Holiday Punch Green

  Dec 22nd, 2008 by Peggy Sue Dunigan

  Spiked with humor and a generous spritz of decadence, Dale Gutzman’s Holiday Punch Green lightly focuses on environmental issues. Together with this politically correct “green” emphasis, the two-hour performance also spoofs Gutzmans’s longevity as the company’s artistic director. In these 28 loosely related sketches, the twelve cast members (including Gutzman who appears on stage to […]

• John McGivern’s Winter Tales

  Dec 22nd, 2008 by Vital Archives

  By Christina Sajdak Lucchesi   Actor, comedian and master storyteller John McGivern performed his much anticipated one-man show, Winter Tales (presented by Next Act Theatre) to a sold-out house this past Thursday.  At oncehilarious and heartwarming, the production delivers on all counts as it invites us to gaze into McGivern’s personal scrapbook of holiday memories […]

• Michael Pink’s The Nutcracker

  Dec 17th, 2008 by Peggy Sue Dunigan

  What a night for the Tannenbaum children! The toymaker Drosselmeyer fashions not only toys, but also an evening of magic for Marie, Fritz, and Clara (and the audience) in the Milwaukee Ballet’s presentation of Michael Pink’s The Nutcracker. This Milwaukee holiday tradition opened December 12 at the Marcus Center for the Performing Arts. Pink’s version […]

• A Christmas Carol

  Dec 16th, 2008 by Vital Archives

  By Christina Sajdak Lucchesi   Once again, the Milwaukee Repertory Theater served up a heaping helping of holiday cheer with its annual production of Charles Dickens’ A Christmas Carol, and a lovelier, more penetrating version of this story one would be hard-pressed to find.  In no other adaptation does the marriage of music, dance, movement […]

• The HOLLASKATE bout

  Dec 12th, 2008 by Tea Krulos

  The derby was fast and furious on this frigid December night. I was joined by the Vital Source magazine crew as we filmed our first VS Derby vodcast. We had a blast talking to some skaters and got some great footage. What a night! NINJAS STRIKE IN SUDDEN DEATH OVERTIME DEFEAT! CRAZY 8’S, 75 win […]

• It’s A Wonderful Life

  Dec 9th, 2008 by Vital Archives

  By Christina Sajdak Lucchesi The Sunset Playhouse in Elm Grove was host to a rather sedate house Saturday night as it presented James W. Rodgers’ adaptation of the Frank Capra film It’s a Wonderful Life. Theater-goers braved the cold this opening weekend, but a story notorious for its warmth, did not, in this rendition, inspire enough to […]

• The Show

  Dec 8th, 2008 by Peggy Sue Dunigan

  Reminding Milwaukee once again that the “Yuletide has a dark side,” In Tandem Theatre Company reintroduces parodies and sketch comedy in The Show. The fourteen sketches, written and performed by local actors Karen Estrada, Matthew Huebsch, Doug Jarecki, Andrea Moser and Jason Powell, combine new and old material that provide a counterpoint to the sentimental […]

• HOLIDAY SPECIAL

  New Year’s Day Hangover Remedies

  Dec 2nd, 2008 by Vital Archives

  By Bridget Brave, Tom Ganos, Ryan Findley, Noah Therrien and Amy Elliott This month in Eat This we featured a fresh, frilly New Year’s Eve menu from Dan Smith at McCormick’s and Schmick, perfect for entertaining and celebrating in style. But what do you eat on the morning (or more likely, afternoon) after? I asked […]

• The Producers

  Dec 2nd, 2008 by Ryan Findley

  Broadway comes to Milwaukee, and not in the usual sense of a touring production. No, in this instance, the Skylight Opera Theater has acquired the rights to produce Mel Brooks’ The Producers, and they are the first regional theater in the country to do so. If you think that a full-on Broadway musical would be […]

• Remembering Republicans (if you must)

  Dec 1st, 2008 by Matt Wild

  2008 will be remembered for many things: the nationwide financial crisis, skyrocketing gas prices, the rebooting of Beverly Hills 90210. But most of all, it will be forever remembered as the year Republicans – those strange, awful creatures who specialize in helping those who can already help themselves – had their collective asses handed to […]

• Various artists

  Dec 1st, 2008 by Jon Gilbertson

  A few years ago, after attending a Christmas-charity show featuring several metal-styled acts, I posited a reasonable question: are rock ‘n’ roll and Yuletide cheer compatible? After all, this is the season of comfortable sweaters, chestnut visions, and a jolly old fat man who apparently helps remind us of the birth of Jesus Christ — […]