Thank you for a great season!!!
MOT extends a huge THANK YOU to everyone who helped make our
2021-2022 Season a reality! You are all our heroes!
2021-2022 Season a reality! You are all our heroes!
Home Cooked Heroes
Music by Ms. Lotus Fankh | Libretto by Brit Nicole | Videography by Samer Ghani
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In October 2021, we partnered with Milwaukee's northside pay-what-you-can Tricklebee Café
to premiere our spoken word opera on film, Home Cooked Heroes, as part of our latest project with our friends at the Decameron Opera Coalition. We followed that up with a free concert at Tricklebee on October 17, 2021, featuring performances by Home Cooked Heroes cast members and a
screening of the film we made together. "A celebration of the idealism of a restaurant
that uses fresh, healthy, locally-grown ingredients to bring meals and people together." ~Russ Bickerstaff, The Small Stage |
Learn more about Home Cooked Heroes here!
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Photo Credits: Mark Frohna
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Home Cooked Heroes Artwork: Julio Nieves
Graphic Design: Andrea Klohn |
Read Cast and Creative Team Bios here!
The Aria Project
Featuring the music of Leoncavallo, Massenet, Mozart, Puccini, Donizetti, Handel, Lehár, and Meyerbeer
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Over the course of October 2021 to May 2022, we challenged eight local artists to choose a classic aria and record it in a way that reflected their
personal pandemic experiences. Director Catie O'Donnell and local singers
Adam Qutaishat, Allison Hull, Nicole McCarty, Alexandra Kassouf, Cecilia Davis, Austin Bare, and Colleen Brooks accepted the challenge, and all eight installments are available now to watch for free! "I LOVED The Aria Project! They're pint-sized performances that were readily accessible to those who aren't classical aficionados!"
~MOT Artist Becky Cofta |
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Watch all eight installments of The Aria Project here!
Aria Project Artwork: Andrea Klohn
Read Cast and Creative Team Bios here!
Preludes
Music, Book, and Lyrics by Dave Malloy
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April 1-9, 2022 at the Woman's Club of Wisconsin, we joyously returned to live performance with our long-awaited production of Dave Malloy's Preludes! We were so stoked to (finally!) present this deep dive into the hypnotized mind of Sergei Rachmaninoff
after having to cancel in March 2020. Preludes featured some of Milwaukee's favorite
music theater performers, including Joe Picchetti, Jenny Wanasek, Natalie Ford, Gage Patterson, and Joel Kopischke, with the transcendent Ruben Piirainen music directing and playing some of Rachmaninoff's most virtuosic piano music. "That was probably my favorite show I've seen
in Milwaukee, and I've seen a lot." ~Mallory, Preludes Audience Member |
Learn more about Preludes here!
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Photo Credits: Mark Frohna
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Preludes Artwork: Andrea Klohn
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Read Cast and Creative Team Biographies here!
L'Orfeo
Music by Claudio Monteverdi | Libretto by Alessandro Striggio
English Translation by Daniel Brylow and Joseph Krohlow
English Translation by Daniel Brylow and Joseph Krohlow
Produced in collaboration with Aperi Animam
Sponsored by Jan Serr and John Shannon
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And June 9-12, 2022, we closed our season with a fully-staged, live production of Monteverdi's L'Orfeo in a new English translation. We were beyond jazzed to reunite with our previous collaborative partners at early music vocal ensemble Aperi Animam to present this once-in-a-lifetime project at Calvary Presbtyerian Church in downtown Milwaukee.
Featuring a cast of sixteen dedicated singers and an orchestral ensemble of six early musicians playing on period instruments, L'Orfeo just might be the most ambitious project we've ever undertaken!
"An original and conceptually daring work;
a pure aesthetic experience unsullied by the demands of commercial entertainment." ~Jeff Grygny, PlayOnMke.com |
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Learn more about L'Orfeo here!
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Photo Credits: Mark Frohna
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L'Orfeo Artwork: Andrea Klohn
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Read Cast, Orchestra, and Creative Team Biographies here!
Plus we also produced 12 Virtual Voice Labs, 2 live Voice Labs,
and our annual Script & Score education initiative!
and our annual Script & Score education initiative!
If you've enjoyed our season, please consider making a tax-deductible donation in any amount.
Your support is greatly appreciated!
Stay tuned for info about our
2022-2023 Season, coming soon!
2022-2023 Season, coming soon!
Our season was supported in part by a grant from the Wisconsin Arts Board
with funds from the State of Wisconsin and the National Endowment for the Arts.
with funds from the State of Wisconsin and the National Endowment for the Arts.
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Our Mission
We are Milwaukee’s micro-brewery for opera, proudly producing small batches of high quality, local lyric theatre.
We tell stories through music...unconventionally.
We tell stories through music...unconventionally.
Milwaukee Opera Theatre is a registered 501(c)(3) organization.