Renaissance Theaterworks presents THE WOLVES

First Stage’s Young Company Cast as ‘The Wolves’ in Renaissance Theaterworks’ production of THE WOLVES by Sarah DeLappe. Photo by Ross Zentner.

By Mary Boyle

Renaissance Theaterworks in Milwaukee was not only founded and run by women, they have dedicated themselves to promoting the work of women, as well.  I’m certain that made choosing American playwright Sarah DeLappe’s 2016 play an easy choice for their 31st season.  A finalist for the 2017 Pulitzer Prize for Drama, the play was not only written by a woman, the entire cast is made up of women.  Young women, mostly.  High schoolers, to be exact.  Due to the nature of the work, the play is often cast by adult actors but, luckily, Milwaukee has a perfect resource for professionally-trained high school-aged actors in the First Stage Young Company and, in this brilliant collaboration between theatre companies, an exemplary work was created.  This is THE WOLVES.

Directed by Elyse Edelman, who is a First Stage Young Company alumna herself and who makes her RTW directorial debut with this production, The Wolves follows a group of nine high school girls on an indoor soccer team somewhere in suburban America over a course of several winter Saturdays in 2018.  While the audience watches them warm up and practice throughout the production, the play has very little to do with soccer and everything to do with the lives of the average teenage girl in our country.

DeLappe’s play was inspired by an art exhibit she visited as a young woman at the New Museum in New York, featuring works from several Arab countries that portrayed the oppressive conditions and war-torn environments faced by the artists, Edelman explained.  “...each scene portrays the young women preparing for a unique kind of battle on and off of the soccer field.  We witness not the game itself, but the pivotal moments preceding it – the anticipation, the rigorous physical training, the empowering pep talks.  It’s about positioning ourselves both on the field for victory and off the field for success in various pursuits.”

The cast of young performers are not known by their names but by their numbers and positions on the field: #11 Midfield, Maya Thomure; #25 Defense and Captain, Alice Rivera; #13 Midfield, Josie Van Slyke; #46 Bench, Reiley Fitzsimmons; #2 Defense, Madison Jones; #7 Striker, Ryan Bennett; #14 Midfield, Lorelei Wesselowski; #8 Defense, Natalie Ottman; and #00 Goalie, Elena Marking.  As the mother of a recent teenage girl athlete, myself, I can tell you that this play is a brutally realistic representation, which is exactly why it is not for young audiences.  The characters do not hesitate to swear–profusely–or tackle the very real topics that teenage girls need to handle, from personal issues such as dating, menstruation, school, and their future to the issues going on in the larger bubble of their community, country, and world.  This is a view seldom seen by anyone but the girls growing up in it, which is precisely why this play has been the most talked about off-Broadway production since it first hit the stage.

The Young Company cast, as a whole, is breathtaking in their ability to bring their individual characters to life.  I’ve often said that YC is the best kept theatre secret in Milwaukee, but RTW has let the cat out of the bag.  Marcella Kearns, a frequent YC teacher and collaborator, gives a stunning performance as “Soccer Mom,”  the lone adult member of the cast.  The scenic design by Doug Dion is cleverly imagined and constructed by Tony Lyons and Timothy Linn, and the costume design by Jason Orlenko lends to the credibility of the story.  Funny, intense, heartbreaking, and shockingly real, The Wolves is a profound production and RTW does it full justice.  See it if you can.

THE WOLVES runs through February 11th at the Theater on 255 S. Water Street in Milwaukee’s Harbor District. Tickets are available at r-t-w.com 24 hours-a-day, by phone at 414-278-0765 or in person at the box office, 255 S. Water St., from 12:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m. daily and 2 hours before performances.

About Renaissance Theaterworks
RTW is Milwaukee’s first professional theater company founded and led by women and the nation’s second-oldest professional theater devoted to gender equality. RTW is a resident company at 255 South Water St. in Milwaukee’s Harbor District, with increased capacity and improved accessibility.