Category Archives: Random Acts of Entertainment
PIX Flix Spotlight On The Board: Dead Poets Society
“O Captain! My Captain! rise up and hear the bells;
Rise up—for you the flag is flung—for you the bugle trills” ~ Walt Whitman
Dead Poets Society is our third PIX Flix in our 61st season! Robin Williams called this one of his favorite performances of all time: “it had some sort of amazing… there’s something in that movie that affected people beyond just a movie.” Join us as we help celebrate his legacy! Get inspired by joining us for this extraordinary film on September 25th at 6:30 pm! Tickets are $5 for everyone – you won’t find a better deal than that!
As in all his roles, Robin Williams lent a certain genius to this film. Playing a new English teacher, John Keating, he sets out to encourage his students to cast aside normality and chart their own course through life. Learning of his colorful past, his students resurrect the unsanctioned Dead Poets Society, and sneak off to explore their own individuality. What follows is a foray you won’t want to miss!
“The poem by Henry David Thoreau that is featured on the front page of the poetry book Neil receives is not an original poem by Thoreau. Rather, it is a rearrangement of sentences from his work “Where I Lived,” Chapter Two from his seminal work, Walden.” ~IMDb
“I went to the woods because I wished to live deliberately, to front only the essential facts of life, and see if I could not learn what it had to teach, and not, when I came to die, discover that I had not lived. I did not wish to live what was not life, living is so dear; nor did I wish to practice resignation, unless it was quite necessary. I wanted to live deep and suck out all the marrow of life, to live so sturdily and Spartan-like as to put to rout all that was not life, …” ~Henry David Thoreau
Dead Poets Society won the Academy Award for Best Original Screenplay (Tom Schulman). Peter Weir received a nomination for Best Director and the film itself was nominated for Best Picture of 1989. Robin Williams received his second Best Actor in a Leading Role nomination and it has since been widely recognized as one of the actor/comedian’s best roles. It also won the BAFTA Award for Best Film.
For only $5, join us on September 25th to celebrate the legacy of Robin Williams, Tom Schulman, poetic inspiration, and our 61st season all at once! See you at the PIX!
Jonathan Danner
WCT Board Secretary
“Carpe. Carpe diem. Seize the day, boys. Make your lives extraordinary.”
~John Keating
PIX Flix Spotlight On The Staff: Disney’s 101 Dalmatians
6,469,952 spots. 101 Dalmatians. 1 highest grossing movie of 1961. Walt Disney’s 101 Dalmatians has adventure, romance, and a feel-good family narrative that appeals to everyone. Join us at the PIX for this iconic Disney film on Monday, August 14th at 6:30 pm! Tickets are $5 for everyone – unless you bring a group of 10, in which case you’ll only pay $4 a ticket! Quality entertainment doesn’t get much more affordable than that.
Growing up, I always wanted a dog. My kids want a dog. My husband had a dog. Not everyone is a dog person , it’s true, but most of us can appreciate pets and the special place they hold in humans’ hearts and homes. The makers of Walt Disney’s 101 Dalmatians deliberately cast dogs with deeper voices than their human owners so they had more power. They have the power over our imaginations and, ultimately, over the villains in this film.
These 101 purloined puppies also had the power over the visual style of Disney animation for more than a decade. To save on production costs, the filmmakers used photocopying technology (Xerography) for the first time in a Disney feature film. This technique made the visual complexity of the film possible and also set the tone of Disney animation until 1977. It also allowed the animators to have a little fun – there’s a hidden Mickey on almost all the Dalmatians!
I’ll be at the PIX on Monday, August 14th, hunting for hidden Mickeys and cheering on Pongo, Perdita, and their intrepid pups along with my family. We’d love to see you and yours there!
Katie Danner
Box Office Supervisor
Marketing Director
PIX Flix Spotlight On The Board: West Side Story
Come join us on Monday, July 31st at 6:30 pm for the classic movie-musical, West Side Story! Set against a backdrop of two warring teenage gangs on the streets of New York City in the 1950s, this musical re-telling of William Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet opened on Broadway on September 26, 1957. Racial tensions against a growing immigrant population from Puerto Rico fuel the feud between the Sharks, a gang of Puerto Rican immigrants, and the Jets, a gang of Americans. Caught in the crossfire are the star-crossed lovers: Tony and Maria. While at a school dance, Tony and Maria meet, falling in love at first sight. However, their love is ill-fated as Tony is a former Jet and Maria is the sister of the Sharks’ leader, Bernardo.
The story unfolds as told through the dialogue by author Arthur Laurents, music by Leonard Bernstein, and lyrics by Stephen Sondheim. Together, the team created some of the most beautiful and recognizable songs in Broadway history, including, “Something’s Coming,” “Maria”, “Tonight,” “America,” and “I Feel Pretty.”
That season, the musical was nominated for six Tony Awards including Best Musical. Jerome Robbins won the Tony Award for his iconic choreography.
A film adaptation of the musical was released in 1961, starring Natalie Wood as Maria and Rita Moreno as Anita. West Side Story went on to win 10 Academy Awards, including Best Picture, Best Actor, Best Actress, and Best Musical Score. Jerome Robbins received a special Academy Award for his choreography.
To this day, West Side Story remains a favorite in the theatre community. What better way to celebrate the 60th anniversary of West Side Story than to see the film at the Waukesha Civic Theatre on Monday, July 31st at 6:30 pm? Tickets are only $5!
Peter Kao
Board Director
Take One: The ACAP PlayMakers On Film!
The ACAP PlayMakers have been part of the Waukesha Civic Theatre family since 2006 starting with a meeting with John Cramer to discuss how people with disabilities could get involved in some way with the Theatre.
“We have our PlayMakers program that no one is currently operating since the two creators of that program retired. Why don’t you start with that.”
Us run a theatre program? Nevertheless, John put his faith in us (and a lot of moral and professional support) and here we are 20 shows later.
As people have heard about our adaptive theatre work, many more people have joined our troupe. Starting out with 8 people, we now have over 30 people regularly involved in the program (and that’s not including the many community actors that play supporting roles in the cast). As we continue to grow, we are running out of space on stage!
That’s where our idea for a film production came from: looking for a way to include more people, given the limited space available at the Theatre. We figured, if we could create and capture smaller groupings of people on film, and string them all together in a larger story, we would achieve that end.
So we are currently learning from scratch the ins and outs of movie making. Join us on Saturday, July 15th to see the final product – Oh, Henry: A Double Feature! Here’s hoping that 20 productions from now, we will be as successful as the ACAP PlayMakers venture has been!
~Mark Cage
PIX Flix Spotlight On The Board: Citizen Kane
What would possess a left-leaning 24 year old from Kenosha, WI to co-write, direct, produce and star in a motion picture intended to skewer the oligarchs who controlled the American media in the 1930’s? In Orson Welles’ own words, “Ignorance.” Having already achieved critical acclaim as a theater actor, playwright and director, perhaps it is this audacity of scope combined with the fresh technological innovations of the silver screen that led Welles to create what is now almost universally agreed to be one of the greatest films ever made.
Citizen Kane, a fictional biopic of the newspaper magnate Charles Kane, is Welles’ first film and employs numerous experimental techniques developed for this movie. Many of these contributions to style and cinematography have entered the movie making lexicon. Today these remain as fresh and important to the story as when Citizen Kane was released in 1941.
Charles Kane, played by the young Orson Welles, is transparent in life and mysterious in death. Welles and his co-writer, Herman Mankiewicz, ask the viewer to share in the detective work of newsreel reporter Jerry Thompson, played by William Alland, to discover Kane’s deepest secrets by investigating the mundane meaning of the final utterance on his deathbed: “Rosebud.” This thinly veiled misdirection provides the audience the opportunity to approach and receive the film on numerous levels. Today, the parallels to our culture remain as strong as they did 76 years ago with just as much opportunity to be challenged and entertained.
With a handpicked cast, many of whom such as Agnes Moorehead and Joseph Cotten would go on to storied careers, Citizen Kane represents a high watermark in cinematic storytelling. Whether you are a fan of film, student of history, have interest in the media’s role in modern politics or simply want to share this experience with friends and family, the Waukesha Civic Theatre invites you to join us at 6:30 pm on Monday, June 5th to watch and celebrate this Hollywood masterwork.
Brian Goeller
Board Director
PIX Flix Spotlight On The Board: Vertigo
Vertigo is a classic Alfred Hitchcock film. It will make its Waukesha Civic Theatre debut on the big screen at 6:30 pm on May 1, 2017.
John “Scottie” Ferguson, played by James Stewart, is a retired San Francisco police detective with a case of acrophobia. Madelaine, played by Kim Novak, is the lady who leads him to high places.
Vertigo is a 1958 American crime film. It is a romantic story of obsession, manipulation, fear, suspense and mystery all wrapped around twisted human psychology. The versatility and genre befuddled audiences of 1958. “Dolly zoom,” zooming a zoom lens to adjust the angle of the view toward or away from the subject created a continuous perspective of distortion. It was a technique used to increase the drama in a scene.
Hitchcock actually pulled Vertigo out of circulation in 1973. It wasn’t until 1980 that audiences saw it again and grew to appreciate it more. A digital restoration of the film in 1996 further returned it to its original glory.
The film was shot on location in San Francisco, California and Paramount Studios in Hollywood. Scottie’s apartment is one block downhill from the “crookedest street in the world”. The Mission San Juan Bastista is a real place. Madelaine jumps into the sea at Fort Point, underneath the Golden Gate Bridge. The views of San Francisco and surrounding area are beautiful. The step back in time with the classic automobiles of the 1950’s is dramatic.
In 1989 Vertigo was recognized as a “culturally, historically and aesthetically significant” film by the United States Library of Congress and selected for preservation in the National Film Registry in the first year of the registry voting. As of 2016, on Rotten Tomatoes the film has a “certified fresh” rating of 97%.
What better place to watch this film, considered to be one of Hitchcock’s best, if not THE best, than the big screen at the Waukesha Civic Theatre?
Take a look for yourself and decide whether or not Vertigo is the greatest Hitchcock film of all time. Don’t leave yourself hanging in suspense (like poor Scottie).
Also, don’t forget, Hitchcock appears somewhere in all of his films. Will you spot him?
Hope to see you May 1st!
Mary Dembinski
Board Director
Cramer’s Corner: Spring Is In The Air!
As the days get longer and the temperature gets warmer, the smile that’s already on your face can just keep growing when you join us for our April offerings!
Our next ACAP PlayMakers show, Snow White And The Magnificent Seven, opens tomorrow and has seven performances through Sunday afternoon.
Our next PIX Flix movie of the season will be E.T. – The Extraterrestrial on April 10 at 6:30 pm. The cast of the movie includes Henry Thomas, Drew Barrymore, Dee Wallace, Peter Coyote, and more. All tickets are $5.00, and we have concessions available, including soda, water, beer, wine, cookies, beef sticks, and … wait for it … POPCORN!
If you would like to help us select the movies we present in our PIX Flix movie series next season, click here to complete our survey.
Our next A.C.T. production is Broadway Bound on Saturday, April 15, at 10:00 am.
We open our next Mainstage show, The Drowsy Chaperone, April 28 and continues through May 14. The show has three Pay What You Can performances on April 29 at 7:30 pm, May 7 at 7:30 pm, and May 13 at 2:00 pm.
Our current featured artist in the Waukesha State Bank Art Gallery in our lobby through April 9 is a group of students from Waukesha South High School. They were challenged to create art inspired by 33 Variations in only 33 days, and it is amazing! Our next artist will be Tom Buchs.
If you are looking for a theatre experience outside of Wisconsin, consider joining us for our NYC Theatre Adventure October 12-15, 2017, or for our trip to Chicago to see Hamilton January 3, 2018. Contact John Cramer by email or phone (262-547-4911 ext. 13) if you would like more information about either trip.
Our 60th Season is on sale now. Subscription packages for the Mainstage shows, and individual tickets for everything can be purchased now. Please join us for the second half of our current great season of entertainment!
Registration is open for our A.C.T. spring and summer sessions, including our summer ACT production The Lion King JR.
Just in case you missed it last month, our 61st season will include:
Sex Please We’re Sixty
(directed by Peter Kao)
The Hunchback Of Notre Dame
(an area premier directed by Mark E. Schuster!)
The House Without A Christmas Tree
(an original adaptation by our own Doug Jarecki directed by moi)
The Complete Works Of William Shakespeare (abridged)
(directed by Dustin J. Martin)
Clue: The Musical
(directed by Ken Williams)
Wait Until Dark
(directed by Kelly Goeller)
Father Knows Best
(directed by Rhonda Schmidt)
Season Tickets will go on sale in May 2017.
Thank you to all of the generous donors that have supported us so far this season. If you would like to donate, you can choose from any number of ways you could help us not only maintain, but thrive, as Waukesha’s Cultural Cornerstone.
Please Consider Giving …
* A gift to our Operating Fund
* A gift to our Spotlight On The Future Capital Campaign
* A matching gift through local sponsoring business employers
* A gift that will last a lifetime through your Will or Estate Planning
* A gift by donation to CARS
* A gift by shopping through Amazon Smile
* A gift by purchasing something on our Amazon Wish List
* Choose WCT as your Thrivent Choice charitable organization
* Become a Sponsor of outstanding performances and educational programs
Happy Easter! I’ll see you at the Theatre!
John Cramer
Managing Artistic Director
jcramer@waukeshacivictheatre.org
262-547-4911 ext. 13
PIX Flix Spotlight On The Board: E.T. The Extra-Terrestrial
No movie may be more nostalgic of the 80’s than E.T. The Extra-Terrestrial. I’d like to welcome you to enjoy our presentation of the April PIX Flix feature on Monday, April 10th. This was one of my favorite movies growing up. What could be more intriguing to kids both young and old than the mystery of a young boy befriending an alien from another planet?
From the moment this movie starts, it captures your imagination and relates it all to a young boy with an older know-it-all brother and talkative younger sister. This younger sister was the breakout performance to none other than Drew Barrymore.
A set around the fall season and Halloween adds to this timeless adventure. The whole story is pulled together by the continued breathtaking music compilations by John Williams. John Williams has been nominated for 50 academy awards and won 5 for iconic movies like Star Wars and Jaws, including one for this very movie.
This movie has everything a good family movie should have. There are emotional ups and downs along the way, but it remains one of the most touching family friendly movies of all time. So please join us with your whole family for E.T. The Extra-Terrestrial on Monday, April 10th, and don’t forget the popcorn!
Rich Johnson
Treasurer
Cramer’s Corner: We Are Marching Along With Another Great Month Of Entertainment!
Everyone marches to the beat of a different drummer but, lucky for you, we have something for everyone at WCT during the month of March.
We open our next Mainstage show, 33 Variations, next week. This innovative and inspiring show focuses on a modern music scholar facing the end of her life as she studies the mysteries of Beethoven and the 33 variations of a simple melody he composed while facing the end of his. The show runs March 10-26 with two Pay What You Can performances on March 11 at 7:30 pm and March 25 at 2:00 pm. We will also have two talk backs with ALS specialists joining the cast and crew immediately after the performances on March 12 at 2:00 pm and March 19 at 2:00 pm. And we will be selling raffle tickets for several amazing items including the always popular Discount Liquor Basket.
We have two auditions coming up this month. Barefoot In The Park auditions will be held on Monday, March 13, and Tuesday, March 14, starting at 6:30 pm both nights. Kelly Goeller is directing. And Miscast auditions will be held on March 27 starting at 6:30 pm. Meghan Hopper is directing.
Our next PIX Flix movie of the season will be Mr. Holland’s Opus on March 20 at 6:30 pm. The cast of the movie includes Richard Dreyfuss, Glenne Headley, Jay Thomas, Olympia Dukakis, William H. Macy, Alicia Witt, and more. All tickets are $5.00, and we have concessions available, including soda, water, beer, wine, cookies, beef sticks, and … wait for it … POPCORN!
Our spring fundraiser gala, Festival Of Fools, will be held at Westmoor Country Club on Saturday, April 1st. We are thrilled to announce that our King And Queen of the festival will be Joel and Rebecca Kleefisch, and our emcee will be Vince Vitrano. This will be an event you don’t want to miss, so get your tickets NOW!
Our current featured artist in the Waukesha State Bank Art Gallery in our lobby is a group of students from Waukesha South High School. They were challenged to create art inspired by 33 Variations in only 33 days, and it is amazing!
Our 60th Season is on sale now. Subscription packages for the Mainstage shows, and individual tickets for everything can be purchased now. Please join us for the second half of our current great season of entertainment!
Registration is open for our A.C.T. spring and summer sessions, including our summer ACT production Disney’s The Lion King JR.
Just in case you missed it last month, our 61st season will include:
Sex Please We’re Sixty (directed by Peter Kao)
The Hunchback Of Notre Dame (an area premier directed by Mark E. Schuster!)
The House Without A Christmas Tree (an original adaptation by our own Doug Jarecki directed by moi)
The Complete Works Of William Shakespeare (abridged) (directed by Dustin J. Martin)
Clue: The Musical (directed by Ken Williams)
Wait Until Dark (directed by Kelly Goeller)
Father Knows Best (directed by Rhonda Schmidt)
Amazing, right? Season Tickets will go on sale in May 2017.
Thank you to all of the generous donors that have supported us so far this season. If you would like to donate, you can choose from any number of ways you could help us not only maintain, but thrive, as Waukesha’s Cultural Cornerstone.
Please Consider Giving …
* A gift to our Operating Fund* A gift to our Spotlight On The Future Capital Campaign
* A matching gift through local sponsoring business employers
* A gift that will last a lifetime through your Will or Estate Planning
* A gift by donation to CARS
* A gift by shopping through Amazon Smile
* A gift by purchasing something on our Amazon Wish List
* Choose WCT as your Thrivent Choice charitable organization
* Become a Sponsor of outstanding performances and educational programs
On a personal note – my daughter, Elena Cramer, will be playing Annie Sullivan in The Miracle Worker at the University of Wisconsin Stevens Point March 3-5 and 9-11. My son, Jude Cramer, will be playing Gomez Addams in The Addams Family at Waukesha South High School March 9-11.
I’ll see you at the theatre!
John Cramer
Managing Artistic Director
jcramer@waukeshacivictheatre.org
PIX Flix Spotlight On The Board: Mr. Holland’s Opus
Next month, on Monday, March 20th, we bring Mr. Holland’s Opus back to the big screen. Friends, bring tissues.
Glenn Holland is a composer who wants to write the great American symphony. Instead he grinds out a career teaching high school music for decades to children of widely varying attitude and aptitude, while fighting his administration for funding and appreciation.
At home he’d love nothing more than to share his love of music with his only child, but tragedy strikes and his son is born deaf. Along with this heartbreak, Holland’s stubbornness causes him to estrange himself from the boy for years.
Michael Kamen was so moved by his experience composing for this movie that afterward he founded the Mr. Holland’s Opus Foundation (www.mhopus.org) to “[keep] music alive in our schools by donating musical instruments to under-funded music programs nationwide.”
Richard Dreyfuss gives us yet another Oscar and Golden Globe nominated performance in this modern family classic, with an ending evocative of It’s a Wonderful Life.
Please join me on Monday, March 20th for the feel-good movie of 1995. I’m not crying – you are!
Angela Penzkover
Board President
