Milwaukee Public Theatre – The Next 40 Years

Milwaukee Public Theatre (MPT) recently celebrated 40 years of ground-breaking, life-changing theatre programming. Never to rest upon well-earned laurels, Barbara Leigh asked herself, “What’s Next? There is still exciting and vital work to be done!”

To help the leap forward into the next 40 years, MPT is taking some bold steps. The Board of Directors is pleased to officially announce the addition of Ron Scot Fry as Associate Artistic Director and Susan Scot Fry as Managing Director to the MPTeam. In addition to their ongoing work with Optimist Theatre and Shakespeare in the Park, Ron and Susan are diving into MPT programming full steam. Ron’s creative talents and Susan’s organizational skills are already at work.

“We are so very pleased to have Susan and Ron onboard!” said Dr. Barbara Leigh, MPT co-founder and artistic/producing director. “Ron and Susan began collaborating with us in the first All-City People’s Parade in 2009. Their personal commitment to high quality artistic endeavors combined with an impressive record of business acumen make them the ‘perfect storm’ to help take MPT into the next forty!”

“This is an exciting time of change on multiple fronts in the Milwaukee arts community,” said Dr. Tess Kenney, president of MPT’s board of directors. “And while some might consider these challenging times unmanageable, I am confident with the expertise and resourcefulness of both Susan and Ron Scot Fry, our theatre troupe will not only grow but, stay relevant well into the 21rst century.”

Susan Scot Fry has over twenty-three years of entrepreneurial arts management experience and sixteen years of award-winning corporate management experience. She is also the Managing Director of Optimist Theatre, produced Milwaukee’s first-ever free Shakespeare in the Park, and is the driving force behind their development programs.

Ron Scot Fry is also the Artistic Director for Optimist Theatre, which Milwaukee Journal Sentinel critic Mike Fischer calls “visionary”. He was on the Theatre Faculty of Carthage College for six years and has also taught at Alverno College. His one-man performance/workshop “To Be! Shakespeare Here and Now” has involved more than 80,000 students and community members nationally and internationally. He now dedicates his life to helping people discover and explore their highest creative selves.

Milwaukee Public Theatre’s programs are partially funded by the MPS Partnership for the Arts and Humanities, the Helen Bader Foundation, the Greater Milwaukee Foundation Abert Fund, the United Performing Arts Fund, CAMPAC Milwaukee County, and the City of Milwaukee Arts Board and the Wisconsin Arts Board with funds from the State of Wisconsin and the National Endowment for the Arts, along with other foundations, corporations and individuals.

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.