Milwaukee Chamber Theatre presents: WHO'S AFRAID OF VIRGINIA WOOLF?

Laura Gordon, James Ridge, Kate Romond, and Casey Hoekstra in Milwaukee Chamber Theatre's production of WHO'S AFRAID OF VIRGINIA WOOLF? Photos by Michael Brosilow.

By Mary Boyle

The 1950’s are often referred to as the “Golden Age” of the United States.  The soldiers from WWII came home and built the solid middle class homes and families depicted in shows like Leave It to Beaver: healthy, happy families with two children living the American Dream.  Of course, it was mostly an illusion; a dream that was out of reach for many Americans but was sold as the norm.  The entire decade of the 1960’s was largely about destroying that illusion and, in theatre, the play that did it was Edward Albee’s WHO’S AFRAID OF VIRGINIA WOOLF, a sometimes hilarious and frequently shocking production that throws back the curtains on a marriage built on similar illusions to watch it implode, up close and personal, over the course of a couple of hours.  This season, the Milwaukee Chamber Theatre tells this groundbreaking story, in all its uncomfortable and arresting glory, for a new generation to witness.

Directed by Keira Fromm, Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf? was an instant success at its debut, winning the Tony Award and New York Drama Critic’s Circle Award for Best Play.  The story focuses mainly on George (James Ridge), a history professor at a New England college, and his wife Martha (Laura Gordon), the daughter of the college president, who have returned home from a faculty party.  They are soon joined by Nick (Casey Hoekstra) and Honey (Kate Romand), a new biology professor and his wife, who Martha invited over for drinks.  Martha and George take turns taking shots at one another and the fight turns increasingly nasty.  Although Nick and Honey are as embarrassed and uncomfortable as the audience, they cannot seem to tear themselves away from the proverbial train wreck that is George and Martha’s marriage and quickly become involved in the fray which, fueled by a constant supply of drinks, unveils the unstable underpinnings of both of their relationships.

This play is an intimate production with just 4 actors and MCT chose their actors wisely – there are perhaps no better candidates for George and Martha than Wisconsin’s own James Ridge, a core company member of the American Players Theatre, and Milwaukee’s Laura Gordon; both deliver splendid, riveting performances.  Casey Hoekstra and Kate Roman are also well cast and make their MCT debuts with truly impressive performances.  Moreover, this production is ideally suited to the cozy black box that is the Studio Theatre at the Broadway Theatre Center, located in Milwaukee’s Historic Third Ward, and Jason Fassl’s set design works wonderfully to transport the audience to the 1960’s home of an East Coast college history professor. Altogether, these details add up to an iconic production of an iconic play and is a credit to the Milwaukee theatre scene.

Just four years after the play’s debut it was made into a film starring Elizabeth Taylor as Martha and Richard Burton as George.  The film won Taylor an Oscar for Best Actress but the Academy struggled with the film, despite its popularity, because of the language used and the nature of the story was very controversial at the time.  Considered one of the great American plays, Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf? has become controversial in different ways as it’s aged.  On the one hand, the play is nearly three hours long, which in itself can be a difficult sell to modern audiences.  On the other hand, though the play was groundbreaking in its day, it doesn’t hit the same in our current times, where we have broader knowledge of generational trauma and a different view of what constitutes a healthy family and healthy marriage. 

For my own part, the play feels a bit elitist.  In fact, the title is actually an Ivy League joke – a play on the Disney ditty “Who’s Afraid of the Big Bad Wolf” and English author Virginia Woolf, who was the pioneer of using stream of consciousness as dialog and who is believed to have suffered from bipolar disorder (I feel that both of those attributes relate to the play, but I’m no expert).  In essence, I feel that the playwright was working way too hard to seem smart.  That being said, it’s worth seeing from a historical and cultural standpoint and, quite frankly, anytime you get to see James Ridge and Laura Gordon act, you should.
 
WHO’S AFRAID OF VIRGINIA WOOLF? runs through February 12th in the Studio Theatre at the Broadway Theatre Centre, located at 158 N. Broadway Street in Milwaukee’s Historic Third Ward.  Tickets may be purchased online at https://www.milwaukeechambertheatre.org/  or by calling the Box Office at (414) 291-7800.

Join Milwaukee Chamber Theatre for a very special Artist Appreciation Night and get exclusive access to our SIPSTUDIO which takes place on Saturday, January 28th from 7-7:50pm, prior to the 8pm performance. Mingle with staff, special guests, and other patrons in the 5th floor rehearsal hall for unlimited wine courtesy of our neighbors and season partner 2A Wine Merchants! All tickets are just $15, no codes needed.  Get Tickets!

MCT offers a special ASL Performance on Sunday, Feb 12th at 2 p.m.  Tickets HERE.
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There are TalkBacks after the performance on January 26, February 2, and February 9.
 
About Milwaukee Chamber Theatre
Founded in 1975 by Montgomery Davis and Ruth Schudson, guided until 2020 by Michael Wright and Kirsten Finn, and now led by Brent Hazelton, Milwaukee Chamber Theatre (MCT) partners with other arts organizations, community-based organizations and universities to produce thought-provoking productions and innovative outreach programs on an intimate, human scale.  As a leader in developing Milwaukee and Wisconsin’s theater community, MCT provides regular employment and a stable artistic home to local theatre professionals through a five-play subscription season, the Young Playwrights Festival (YPF), and the Montgomery Davis Play Development Series (MDPDS).  MCT performs at the Broadway Theatre Center in Milwaukee’s Historic Third Ward and is a proud Member Group of the United Performing Arts Fund.