Milwaukee Chamber Theatre Announces Legacy Night performance of THE MOUNTAINTOP on March 22

MILWAUKEE, WI – February 26, 2024 – Milwaukee Chamber Theatre (MCT) invites Black and African American community members to join them for Legacy Night on March 22 at 7:30 pm, a special performance of THE MOUNTAINTOP by Katori Hall hosted by CopyWrite Magazine dedicated to and celebrating the Black community.

The intention of Legacy Night is to purposefully create an environment in which a Black audience can experience and discuss this play about a Black leader, created and performed by Black artists, in a space that honors Black culture, and that centers their perspectives.

Legacy Night is inspired by a similar event created in 2019 by actor and playwright Jeremy O. Harris, where for the first time ever, every seat in Broadway’s Golden Theatre was occupied by Black audience members. MCT is calling this special performance Legacy Night not only because legacy is one of the major themes within THE MOUNTAINTOP but also to honor and celebrate the legacy that the Black and African American community has and continues to create here in Milwaukee.

Legacy Night Tickets are $20 (plus sales tax and box office fees) and can be purchased online at www.milwaukeechambertheatre.org/legacy-night using the code LEGACY or by calling the box office at 414-291-7800. When purchasing online, the code LEGACY must be entered into the “Promo Code” box at the top right corner of the Broadway Theatre Center ticketing page and submitted before selecting the March 22 performance date. The Legacy Night performance will not show up as a performance date option until the code LEGACY is submitted.

MCT encourages non-Black audience members to join them in honoring this initiative by choosing to experience the play on another performance date. THE MOUNTAINTOP will be onstage at the Broadway Theatre Center March 8-24.

ABOUT THE MOUNTAINTOP

On April 3rd, 1968, after delivering one of his most memorable speeches, an exhausted Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. retires to his room at the Lorraine Motel while a storm rages outside. When a mysterious stranger arrives with surprising news, King is forced to confront his destiny and his legacy. A must-see classic of the modern theater, THE MOUNTAINTOP humanizes Dr. King to suggest that we all have within us the power to be the change we wish to see in the world and explores questions of leadership, legacy, and responsibility through a stunningly theatrical experience.

THE MOUNTAINTOP will be directed by acclaimed Milwaukee theater artist Dimonte Henning, who has been seen on the MCT stage in THE ISLAND and DEATHTRAP, among others. MCT welcomes Bryant Bentley in the role of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. and Milwaukee’s own N’Jameh Russell-Camara in the role of Camae. Both actors will make their MCT debuts in this production.

In partnership with America’s Black Holocaust Museum, CopyWrite Magazine, the Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Community Center, and Zao MKE Church, MCT will highlight Black excellence in Milwaukee during the entire run of THE MOUNTAINTOP through the Mountaintop Legacy Award. At each MOUNTAINTOP performance, MCT will recognize one or more Milwaukee difference-maker who exemplifies the ideals of unity, equity, and locally led movements highlighted by Dr. King in his final speech, commonly referred to as “The Mountaintop Speech.”

Mountaintop Legacy Award recipients were selected by a panel of MCT artists and community partners from nominations by the public of Black or African American leaders who best exemplify Dr. King’s ideals across sectors, including but not limited to politics, nonprofits, business, education, art, and tech. A full list of Legacy Award recipients will soon be available at www.milwaukeechambertheatre.org/mountaintoplegacyaward.

Milwaukee Chamber Theatre’s production of THE MOUNTAINTOP is sponsored by: Executive Producers Jackie Herd-Barber and Michael Barber, Robert and Susan Lueger, and Debbie and Jamshed Patel; Producers Max and Marni Seigle; and Associate Producers Kristy Nielson and William Lorber and the We Energies Foundation.

Original Broadway production of THE MOUNTAINTOP produced by Jean Doumanian, Sonia Friedman Productions, Ambassador Theater Group, Raise the Roof 7, Ted Snowdon, Alhadeff Productions/Lauren Doll, B Square + 4 Productions/Broadway Across America, Jacki Barlia Florin/Cooper Federman, Ronnie Planalp/Moellenberg Taylor and Marla Rubin Productions/Blumenthal Performing Arts, in Association with Scott Delman.

THE MOUNTAINTOP by Katori Hall runs March 8-24 at the Studio Theatre inside the Broadway Theatre Center, 158 N. Broadway, Milwaukee, WI 53202. Tickets can be purchased by phone at 414-291-7800 (M-F, 12-6 pm) or online at www.milwaukeechambertheatre.org/mountaintop.

IMAGES
Promotional images and artist headshots are available to download here:  MCT THE MOUNTAINTOP Press Images

ABOUT MILWAUKEE CHAMBER THEATRE
Founded in 1975 by Montgomery Davis and Ruth Schudson, guided until 2020 by Michael Wright and Kirsten Finn, and now led by Brent Hazelton and Megwyn Sanders-Andrews, Ph.D., Milwaukee Chamber Theatre (MCT) partners with other arts organizations, community-based organizations, and universities to produce thought-provoking productions and innovative outreach programs on an intimate, human scale. As part of its five-decade commitment to strengthening Milwaukee and Wisconsin’s local artist community, MCT provides regular employment and a stable artistic home to professional artists through a five-play subscription series, the Young Playwrights Festival (YPF), and the Montgomery Davis Play Development Series (MDPDS).

MCT performs at the Broadway Theatre Center (BTC) in Milwaukee’s Historic Third Ward and is a proud Member Group of the United Performing Arts Fund. For more information, to purchase tickets, or to make a donation please visit milwaukeechambertheatre.org.

MCT is also a member of the Milwaukee Theater District. Launched in 2022, the Milwaukee Theater District represents a group of venues and civic promoters who seek to drive increased awareness of the community’s world-class performing arts and live entertainment offerings. With no formal boundaries, the Milwaukee Theater District is a collaborative marketing effort that utilizes advocacy and cooperative marketing campaigns to drive visitation, stoke local pride, and enhance the city’s reputation as a top-tier arts and cultural destination. The Milwaukee Theater District includes nine founding venues, four founding performing arts organizations, and three founding support groups, representing a wide array of programming and venue experiences. With 15,000 theater seats across founding venues, the Milwaukee Theater District ranks No. 1 in the United States for the highest number of theater seats per capita. Learn more at mketheaterdistrict.com.

MCT recognizes that when we gather at the BTC, we do so on traditional homeland of the Kickapoo, Menominee, Peoria, Potawatomi, Miami, and Lakota people, and that we serve a community where members of Wisconsin’s sovereign Miami, Anishinabe, Ho-Chunk, Menominee, Oneida, and Mohican nations remain present.

MCT welcomes people of all races, all religions, all genders, all countries of origin, all sexual orientations, and all abilities. We stand with all those who feel unheard or silenced, and we will ensure this is a safe place for all who enter.

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.