BEEHIVE: THE 60s MUSICAL with The Rep

Milwaukee Repertory Theater presents BEEHIVE: THE 60s MUSICAL in the Stackner Cabaret November 11, 2022 – January 15, 2023. Photo by Michael Brosilow.

By Mary Boyle

The music of the 1960's is a fascinating cultural study.  In the beginning of the era, there's the innocent and happy doo wop that carried over from America’s Golden Age in the 1950's; but then, with each of the decade’s tragedies – the assassination of JFK in 1963, the war in Vietnam, the assassination of Martin Luther King Jr. – the music, begins to change and mature, along with a generation of people.  One thing is for sure: it is an era when women really began to make their mark on the music scene, from The Angels and The Supremes to Dusty Springfield and Janis Joplin, and this is the theme of the Milwaukee Repertory Theater’s latest production at the Stackner Cabaret: BEEHIVE: THE 60s MUSICAL.

Created by Larry Gallagher and directed by Laura Braza, The Rep’s Associate Artistic Director, Beehive includes a cast of six young ladies who reflect on their formative years in the 1960’s and the music of women that highlighted the soundtrack of their youth, while performing it from a vintage music studio.  Two members of the cast are local actors returning to The Rep: Jackey Boelkow as Alison, who was recently a swing in Titanic The Musical, and Jamie Mercado as Wanda, who appeared most recently in Dad’s Season Tickets at the Stackner.  The remainder of the cast includes Sarah Lynn Marion as Laura, Tess Marshall as Pattie, Desireé Tolodziecki as Jasmine, and Amaya White as Gina.

This production is, for people who lived through the era, a lovely walk down memory lane, but every song, except for a couple created for the show, was familiar to this Gen Xer.  The trouble with the production is the tendency to compare the songs to the originals and, while the cast is quite talented, there are few who can really do Diana Ross or Tina Turner justice, particularly when there is no live band performing with them.  That being said, Sarah Lynn Marion may have sung Janis Joplin’s songs better than Janis Joplin did, and her Grace Slick was every bit as impressive as the real deal.  For those who remember where they were on Friday, November 22, 1963, the performance of “Abraham, Martin, and John” may bring a momentary tear to the eye but, in all, Beehive is a perfectly fun way to spend an evening enjoying the food, drinks, and desserts at the Stackner – I dare you not to sing along!
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BEEHIVE: THE 60s MUSICAL runs through January 15th at the Stackner Cabaret, located within the Patty and Jay Baker Theater Complex, at 108 E. Wells Street in downtown Milwaukee. Tickets may be purchased online at www.MilwaukeeRep.com, by calling the Ticket Office at 414-224-9490, or in-person at the Theater Complex. Group tickets are available for parties 10+ by calling 414-290-5340.  
 
About Milwaukee Repertory Theater
Milwaukee Rep is the largest performing arts organization in Wisconsin with three unique performance venues in the Patty & Jay Baker Theater Complex– the Quadracci Powerhouse, Stiemke Studio and Stackner Cabaret. For over six decades, Milwaukee Rep has been a centerpiece of Milwaukee’s vibrant arts and cultural scene with productions ranging from Broadway musicals to Shakespeare to American Classics and New Works that are entertaining, inclusive, and impactful. Under the leadership of Artistic Director Mark Clements and Executive Director Chad Bauman, Milwaukee Repertory Theater ignites positive change in the cultural, social, and economic vitality of its community by creating world-class theater experiences that entertain, provoke, and inspire meaningful dialogue among an audience representative of Milwaukee’s rich diversity.