PRESS

July 22nd, 2008. Jaymee Sherman reviews Systems for Vital Source.

July 17th, 2008. Burt Wardall reviews Paint the Town for Vital Source.

July 15th, 2008. Russ Bickerstaff reviews Paint the Town for The Shepherd.

July 4th, 2008. Russ Bickerstaff blogs about Systems.

July 5th, 2008. Russ Bickerstaff interviews Rex Winsome.

July, 2008. Artsy Schmartzy previews Paint the Town.

June, 2008. Russ Bickerstaff previews Paint the Town.

June 18th, 2008. Artsy Schmartzy starts a debate!

May 20th, 2008. Unofficial PIAD 3 Review.

May 14th, 2008. Russ Bickerstaff reviews Play in a Day 3.

April 25, 2008. Russ Bickerstaff reviews Cracks in the Floor and 31.

April 24, 2008. MKE Magazine asks us to pitch our show.

April 16, 2008. Russ Bickertaff previews Cracks in the Floor and 31.

April 15, 2008. Russ Bickertaff interviews Wes Tank for Cracks in the Floor.

March 28, 2008. Bus Rickertaff runs into us, on the bus no less!

March, 2008. Jonathan West adapts Berzerk!!! script into short film.

March 27, 2008. Jonathan West interviews us for his Big Mouth Artsy Schmartsy Podcast.

March 2008. Russ Bickerstaff pre-views Ides of March Dance off on his blog.

March 2008. Rex Winsome quoted on Artsy Schmartzy

Jan 29 2008. Artsy Schmartzy muses about 8 1/2 x 11.

Jan 2008. Russ Bickerstaff discusses 8 1/2 x 11, on his Shepherd Express blog.

Jan 2008. Vital Source Online publishes this review of Berzerk!!!

Jan 10 2008. The Onion AV Club recommends Berzerk!!!

Jan 2008. Artsy Schmartzy participates in Berzerk!!!

Jan 10 2008. Russ Bickerstaff previews Berzerk!!! in the Shepherd Express.

Dec 13 2007. Russ Bickerstaff mentions Insurgent as a solution to stagnant local theatre.

Dec 6 2007. Russ Bickerstaff writes for 8 1/2 x 11.

Oct 18, 2007. MKE Magazine includes us in their cover article on Milwaukee Arts Collectives.

Oct, 2007. Artsy Schmartzy upstages us.

Sept 22nd, 2007. Rex Winsome rants against Shakespeare on the nightly news.

Aug 8, 2007. Artzy Schmartzy meets Lucky and Pozzo.

July 22, 2007. Vital Source Online reviews Play in a Day.

July 5, 2007. The Shepherd Express publishes a review of Made in the Mouth.

July 2007. Shepherd Express previews Made in the Mouth.

June 2007. MKE previews Made in the Mouth.

January 2007. Vital Source Online reviews Golden Apollo.

December, 2006. Vital Source Online reviews Gorilla Theatre: Berzerk.

October 14, 2006. Someone talks about Lucky and Pozzo in their blog.

September 23, 2006. VLAD!! Watch the slideshow, he's there!

August 24, 2006. Jonathan West (Bialystock and Bloom) tells MKE magazine that we want to take over the world.

June, 2006. OnMilwaukee says you should know us.

May 18, 2006. Mke Magazine publishes a profile of Ben and Tracy, regarding our efforts with INSURGENT THEATRE.

May 11, 2006. The Shepherd Express publishes a review of The Plight of the Ruling Class.

May 1, 2006. Vital Source Online publishes a review of The Plight of the Ruling Class.

April 27, 2006. The Shepherd Express publishes a preview of The Plight of the Ruling Class.

July 25, 2005. OnMilwaukee.com publishes an article about The Astor Theatre that includes an interview about None of These is Nothing.

January 2005. Riverwest Currents publishes a preview of Bring the War Home.

January 2005. The Shepherd Express publishes an interview about Bring the War Home.

January 19, 2005. OnMilwaukee.com publishes a piece on Bring the War Home.

September 1 2003. The Vital Source publishes a review of ReVerb.

May 14th, The Shepherd Express published this preview of Paint the Town.

Modern Revolutionaries

Theater Preview

  Given the current state of our union, it’s not difficult to imagine that some people would seriously consider revolution. Local playwright Rex Winsome speculates on the lives of modern revolutionaries in his new, feature-length production, Paint the Town, a drama running July 11-27at the Alchemist Theatre in Bay View.

  Insurgent Theatre, the local DIY outfit co-founded by Winsome, is producing the play, which follows Winsome and actress Kate Pleuss in the roles of contemporary revolutionaries at odds with the culture in which they live. He attempts to free her from that which binds her to society: her family.

  Winsome has been short on specifics, but the show’s advance press states that it’s a story of hardship, dedication and fratricide, of revolution and red paint. “Lots of red paint,” in fact. Winsome’s last feature-length play, Bring the War Home, was a serious anti-war, pro-violence piece produced during one of Insurgents’ first trips to the stage. Having gained plenty of experience since then, Insurgent is in excellent position to once again produce serious drama.

  After its initial run at the Alchemist, Paint the Town goes on tour at a number of venues on the East Coast, including New York, Philadelphia, Baltimore and “somewhere in Indiana.” Shows that are designed for travel tend to be limited in terms of set and costuming, all of which has to be easily transportable. While this is the case with Paint the Town, Winsome states, “This isn't one of those minimal shows with no set and actors wearing all black or something; that'd be too easy. There will be a full set, costumes and props. The play is set in a cardboard shack built in a subway.”

  Local small-time theater guru Kurt Hartwig is building a set that will fit a rather elaborate structure into the cozy confines of Insurgent’s touring van. Traveling on a tight budget and performing at out-of-the-way venues echoes the spirit of the DIY punk scene in the late ’70s and early ’80s. Winsome speaks of fixing any broken bits of the set with duct tape, and everything in the production is designed for ease of travel. “Costumes and other set pieces will double as our own sleeping gear and clothing,” Winsome says. Adding to the intrepid feeling of the production, Winsome is taking the plunge and quitting his day job prior to the show’s opening.