Milwaukee Rep Announces Casting for I LEFT MY HEART, VENUS IN FUR, FOREVER PLAID and NOISES OFF

Milwaukee Repertory Theater announced casting today for I Left My Heart: A Salute to the Music of Tony Bennett, the first production to open The Rep's 60th Anniversary 2013/14 Season, Venus in Fur, coming to the Stiemke Studio in late September, Forever Plaid, opening at the end of October in the Stackner Cabaret and Noises Off, the second production in the Quadracci Powerhouse this season.

I Left My Heart: A Salute to the Music of Tony Bennett will be directed by Todd Olson, Producing Artistic Director, American Stage Theatre Company and one of the co-creators of the production. The three-person cast includes Eric Jon Mahlum, Andrew M. McMath and Rob Tucker, all making their Rep debuts. They will be accompanied by Skylight Music Theatre's Principal Conductor Richard Carsey as Music Director and pianist. I Left My Heart: A Salute to the Music of Tony Bennett runs in the Stackner Cabaret from August 23 - October 20, 2013 and opens on Sunday, August 25.

"Tony Bennett is one of those extraordinary artists who are constantly being rediscovered by new generations - and a terrific testament to the fact that wonderful songs sung by wonderful artists truly do stand the test of time," says Artistic Director Mark Clements. "I Left My Heart is a fantastic vehicle to experience the fun and intimacy of the Stackner Cabaret for those who already love Tony Bennett, and for those who will come to love him!"

The cast for I Left My Heart: A Salute to the Music of Tony Bennett:

Eric Jon Mahlum - Tenor #3

Andrew M. McMath - Tenor #1

Rob Tucker - Tenor #2

Richard Carsey - Pianist

Eric Jon Mahlum (Tenor #3) has appeared on Broadway in the musical Wicked. National tours have included Young Frankenstein and Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat. Other credits include Goodspeed Opera House, Riverside Theatre and The Fireside Theatre, amongst others. Andrew M. McMath (Tenor #1) is a graduate of Hartt School with a BFA in Musical Theatre. Credits include: A Christmas Carol (Hartford Stage); LES MISERABLES, The Fantasticks, La Cage Aux Folles and Brigadoon (Mac-Haydn Theatre) and Hairspray, Dames at Sea, Man of La Mancha and Imaginary Invalid (Monomoy Theatre). Rob Tucker (Tenor #2) holds a BFA in Musical Theatre from the University of the Arts (Philadelphia, PA) and an MA in Classical Acting from the Royal Central School of Speech and Drama (London, UK). Favorite roles include: Nero (Britannicus), Time (A Winter's Tale), Othello (Othello), Charley Kringas (Merrily We Roll Along), Ensemble/Beadle (Sweeney Todd), Man 1 (Songs for a New World), Nick (Baby), Schroeder (You're a Good Man, Charlie Brown), Observer/Priest/Kanagawa Girl (Pacific Overtures), and Martin/Cookie/Ensemble (Anyone Can Whistle). Offstage, Rob works as a musical director, pianist and educator. Richard Carsey (Pianist) returns to The Rep after last appearing at the Stackner Cabaret in 2 Pianos, 4 Hands(2003/04 Season). Currently the principal conductor with Skylight Music Theatre, he been music director for over 40 productions and was also Artistic Director from 1997 - 2005. Most recently at Skylight, he music directed the productions Sound of Music and Pump Boys at Dinettes. Additional credits there include: Ballymore, The Mikado,Sweeney Todd, The Marriage of Figaro, White Christmas, The Spitfire Grill and Eugene Onegin.

Venus in Fur will be the first production in The Rep's Stiemke Studio of the 2013/14 Season and will be directed by Rep Associate Artist Laura Gordon, whose other recent Rep directing credits include Gutenberg! The Musical!, In the Next Room (or the vibrator play) and Laurel and Hardy. The cast features Associate Artist Reese Madigan and former Rep Acting Intern Greta Wohlrabe. Venus is Fur runs in the Stiemke Studio from September 25 - November 3 and opens on Friday, September 27.

"Sexy, thrilling, comic, mysterious and a great vehicle for two extraordinary actors, Venus in Fur immediately captivated me on the page when I first read it - and then had me truly spellbound when I saw it on Broadway," says Mark Clements. "I love that the play encourages audience members to use their imaginations a bit, and I think it will be an absolutely electric evening in the Stiemke!"

The cast for Venus in Fur:

Reese Madigan - Thomas

Greta Wohlrabe - Vanda

Reese Madigan returns to The Rep after last appearing as Michael Cassio in Othello (2011/12 Season). Other recent Rep credits include Paul Hornung in Lombardi, Biff inDeath of a Salesman and Hannay in The 39 Steps. He has worked at Lincoln Center and The Circle in The Square, Manhattan Theatre Club and The Public Theatre and with many major regional companies. Greta Wohlrabe was seen at The Rep last season in Clybourne Park. She has also performed at American Players Theatre in The Taming of the Shrew, The Critic, The Tempest, Maria in Twelfth Night, Cassandra in Troilus and Cressida and Kyra in Skylight and at Renaissance Theaterworks as Claudia in their production Honour. Wohlrabe was a member of The Rep's Artistic Intern Ensemble during the 2010/11 Season.

Forever Plaid will be directed by Rep Artistic Associate JC Clementz. The cast for Forever Plaid will feature Rep newcomers Nate Lewellyn and Anand Nagraj as well as Adam Estes and Paul Helm, both who have previously appeared at the Stackner. Forever Plaid runs in the Stackner Cabaret October 25 - December 29, 2013 and opens onSunday, October 27.

"Forever Plaid is a show that might as well have been written for the Stackner Cabaret - it's the kind of thing that we do best in that wonderfully close space," says Mark Clements. "It's entertaining, it's funny, it's moving and with its great songs in the style of the male harmony groups of the 1950s, it's the perfect holiday season family outing to enjoy after dinner and over a cocktail!"

The cast for Forever Plaid:

Adam Estes - Sparky

Paul Helm - Jinx

Nate Lewellyn - Frankie

Anand Nagraj - Smudge

Jamie Johns - Pianist

Adam Estes (Sparky) returns to The Rep's Stackner Cabaret after appearing in Route 66 (2009/10) and The Andrews Brothers (2005/06). Other credits include: Turn of the Century (Goodman Theatre); A Minister's Wife (Writers' Theatre); A Grand Night for Singing (Skylight Opera Theatre) and A Chorus Line (Marriott Lincolnshire). Paul Helm(Jinx) returns to the Stackner Cabaret after having been seen in last season's delightful comedy Gutenberg! The Musical! Other recent Rep credits include Always . . . Patsy Cline and Laurel and Hardy. Paul has also performed, directed and music directed with Skylight Music Theatre, First Stage Children's Theater, Florentine Opera Company, Marcus Center for the Performing Arts and American Folklore Theatre. Nate Lewellyn (Frankie) is a Chicago-based actor whose credits there include: Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat (Marriott Theatre for Young Audiences); Follies (Chicago Shakespeare Theater), Merrily We Roll Along (The Music Theatre Company) andHot Mikado (Drury Lane Theatre). Anand Nagraj (Smudge) was recently seen playing the role of Horatio in Hamlet at Utah Shakespeare Festival. Other USF credits include George Page in The Merry Wives of Windsor and Bishop of Digne/Montparnasse in LES MISERABLES. Other credits include: Private Lives, Our Town and The Homecoming (The University of Delaware Resident Ensemble Players); The Two Gentlemen of Verona (Text Shakespeare Festival) and Firorello! (Timeline Theatre Company). Jamie Johns(Pianist) is a freelance musician, pianist/conductor and has been the Director of Opera and Musical Theatre at the University of Wisconsin - Milwaukee, Resident Music Director at Skylight Opera Theatre and the Education Director at Orlando Opera. Conducting highlights include The Marriage of Figaro, Carmen, Romeo and Juliet, The Coronation of Poppea and La Traviata. He has music directed No, No, Nanette, The Last Five Years, Little Shop of Horrors, Cabaret, Archy and Mehitabel, Jacques Brel Is Alive and Well and Living In Paris, Rent and The World Goes Round.

Noises Off will be directed by KJ Sanchez who returns to The Rep after directing last year's uplifting and beautifully staged production of The Diary of Anne Frank in the Quadracci Powerhouse. The cast of Noises Off features Rep Associate Artists Jonathan Gillard Daly, Laura Gordon, Gerard Neugent and Deborah Staples, guest actor Kelley Faulkner and Aaron Christensen, making his Rep debut. Noises Off runs in The Rep's Quadracci November 19 - December 22, 2013 and opens on Friday, November 22.

"Patrons have requested a comedy in the Quadracci Powerhouse - not just a play with some laughs, but an outright hilarious evening in the theater," says Mark Clements. "Noises Off is one of the best comedies every written, a contemporary classic that has had people rolling in the aisles for three decades now, and I can't wait to share it with our audiences!"

The cast for Noises Off:

Aaron Christensen - Freddie

Jonathan Gillard Daly - Selsdon

Kelley Faulkner - Brooke

Laura Gordon - Dotty

Gerard Neugent - Garry

Deborah Staples - Belinda

TBD - Lloyd

TBD - Poppy

TBD - Tim

Aaron Christensen (Freddie) is a Chicago-based actor who has performed with Remy Bumppo, Smock Alley at the Chicago Theatre, First Folio, Steppenwolf Theatre Company, Apple Tree and The Goodman. Christensen is also a horror film/monster movie enthusiast with the Horror 101 with Dr. AC blog. An Associate Artist at Chicago Dramatists, he has participated in dozens of staged readings and is an active stage combatant/choreographer around Chicago. Jonathan Gillard Daly (Selsdon) returns to The Rep after appearing in last season's productions of Sense and Sensibility, The Diary of Anne Frank and Assassins. Other recent credits include To Kill a Mockingbird, Death of a Salesman and Cabaret. Daly is also a founding member of the Great River Shakespeare Festival in Winona, MN and is a 30-year veteran of regional theaters throughout the U.S. Kelley Faulkner (Brooke) was most recently seen at The Rep in The Diary of Anne Frank. Other recent credits include playing Patsy Cline in Always . . . Patsy Cline, Belle/Lucy in A Christmas Carol and Sally Bowles in the musical Cabaret. Other credits include: Proof (Theatrefest); Oliver! and State Fair (Walnut Street Theatre); Chicago(New Candlelight Theatre) and Give My Regards to Broadway (KimMel Center) and The Music Man and Street Scene (NYC Opera). Laura Gordon (Dotty) was most recently seen at The Rep in Sense and Sensibility and The Diary of Anne Frank. She has appeared in over 75 productions at The Rep and recent credits include Death of a Salesman,The Lady with All of the Answers, Pride and Prejudice and Enchanted April. Gordon also has an active directing career and will be directing Venus in Fur, the first production in the Stiemke Studio for the 2013/14 Season. Gerard Neugent (Garry) was most recently seen at The Rep in Clybourne Park, A Christmas Carol and Gutenberg! The Musical! Other recent credits include Othello, The Complete Works of William Shakespeare, Lombardi, Death of a Salesman, The 39 Steps and Laurel and Hardy. Deborah Staples (Belinda) returns to The Rep after most recently appearing at American Players Theatre this summer in Too Many Husbands, Hamlet and Rosencratz and Guilderstern Are Dead. Recent Rep credits include How the World Began, The Diary of Anne Frank, Othello and To Kill a Mockingbird. Other recent credits include the one-woman show The Blonde, The Brunette and The Vengeful Redhead at Writers' Theatre, for which she received a Jeff Award nomination.

Subscriptions for The Rep's 2013/14 Season are also now on sale. Subscription prices for the 2013/14 Season range from $70 - $490. Packages available are the Ultimate 11-play package which includes the entire season spanning all three of The Rep's performance spaces; Quadracci Powerhouse/Stackner 9-play package; Quadracci Powerhouse/Stiemke Studio 7-play package; Quadracci Powerhouse 5-play package; Stackner Cabaret 4-Play package as well as a Create Your Own Season package and Flex Passes. For additional information on subscription offerings, please contact Milwaukee Rep's Ticket Office at 414-224-9490 or visit www.MilwaukeeRep.com.

Milwaukee Repertory Theater is a nationally-recognized company that presents compelling dramas, powerful classics, award-winning contemporary works, full-scale musicals, housed in its three unique performance venues - the Quadracci Powerhouse, Stiemke Studio and Stackner Cabaret. The Rep also produces an annual production ofA Christmas Carol at the beautiful and historic Pabst Theater. Under the leadership of Artistic Director Mark Clements and Managing Director Chad Bauman, The Rep is committed to creating plays that are meaningful and relevant to the society we live in - plays that are challenging, visceral and engage the community through the issues they explore, demonstrating how a theater deeply rooted in its locality can also enjoy a richly influential and resonant national voice.

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