Shakespeare, Comedy, Music and Youth: July in Milwaukee Theatre

The Summer kicks-into full gear this month with a couple of musicals, a little Shakespeare and a little sketch and improv and a whole lot more. Wrap things up with an interesting one-weekend show from the company with all the money and we’ll call it July. Here’s a look at some of what’s ahead:

Shakespeare Raw: A Midsummer Night's Dream
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Boozy Bard continues to explore a fun, informal Shakespeare with this classic comedy at mid-month. Actors choose characters out of a hat, grab their scripts and props and perform a vastly unprepared iteration of the classic tale of lovers and fairies. The show runs July 11th - 13th at The Best Place Tavern on 901 W. Juneau Ave. All shows start at 7pm. For more information, visit the event’s page on Facebook.

Newsies
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The Sunset Playhouse launches its summer musical. Tommy Lueck directs a big main stage production of a musical labor strike in New York in 1899. Lueck is a talented director and Sunset always does a really good job with the bigger musicals, so this one should be good. July 14- August 7 at the Furlan Auditorium on 700 Wall Street in Elm Grove. For more information, visit Sunset online.

A Midsummer Night’s Dream

​Outdoor Shakespeare continues with director Dustin J. Martin’s staging of A Midsummer Night’s Dream at SummerStage of Delafield. Day turns to night in a dreamy Lapham Peak State Park. Brandon Haut and Brittany Haut star as Oberon and Titania in a production that also features the talented Michelle White as Puck. July 14-3o. For more information, visit SummerStage Online.

Sketch 22 #29
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The now unmistakable logo image of a tiny Harold Lloyd on a giant minute hand can only mean one thing. Patrick Schmitz’s long-running 24-hour sketch comedy show takes to the stage for a 29th time. Milwaukee comedy writers and performers meet on a Friday night to write a sketch. The following day, writers choose scripts and actors from a hat and go to work developing a sketch comedy show that will be presented July 16 at 7 pm at ComedySportz on 420 S. First St. Writers this year include Beth Lewinski, Doug Jarecki, Joel Kopischke, Broadminded, Mandi Veeder, Andrea Roedel-Schroeder and more.  Actors include Matt Konkel, Becky Cofta, Kellie Wambold and more.  For more information, visit the show’s Facebook page.

No Dice
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On the same night as Sketch 22 just a little further South James Boland presents his improv role playing game comedy show. Improv comedy types including Jessie Frankie Kanter, David Ryan Lane and more play a classic paper-and-dice RPG without paper...or dice. Brian Bein provides musical accompaniment. No Dice: Improv RPG returns July 16th to Sugar Maple on 441 E. Lincoln Ave.  For more information, visit the event’s Facebook page.

Mary Poppins
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Greendale Community Theatre closes-out the month of openings with a production of the beloved musical based in the book by P. L. Travers. July 28th - August 6th at Greendale High School Auditorium on 6801 Southway in Greendale.

The Compass
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At month’s end, The Milwaukee Rep presents one of the more interesting shows on the month. Michael Rohd’s The Compass is a one-weekend-only show staged by the Rep’s Professional Training Institute that involves students from various local high schools. It’s an interactive production in which the audience plays the jury who will decide the fate of a defendant. Originally written and staged back in 2016 with Chicago’s Steppenwolf Theatre, the sci-fi story has updated echoes on Murray Leinster’s classic short story A Logic Named Joe. The defendant used the AI algorithm from an app to make a life-altering decision. That decision has landed her in court. The show runs July 28-31 at the Stiemke Studio. Tickets are $10.