NEXT ACT THEATRE INC
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Mission Statement
A contemporary, professional theatre company specializing in plays that focus on relevant topics and relevant issues and challenges. Exciting, local productions created by Milwaukee's best resident theatre artists.
About This Cause
Organization Information and Background Next Act Theatre is a professional theater company in Milwaukee, specializing in contemporary, issue-oriented plays and powerful, engaging performances. Next Act Theatre was founded in 1990 and has become an important contributor to the cultural life of the state of Wisconsin. We are proud to present our subscription season of contemporary drama in our brand new theater space on the border between Milwaukee’s Third and Fifth Ward neighborhoods. Next Act continues to attract audiences through thoughtful play selections produced in an intimate setting. We keep scenic and costume budgets low, relying heavily upon the passion, innovation, talent and dedication of our artists to tell the author’s story. We also take great care to give each of our patrons the best, most attentive service possible. MISSION Next Act engages the hearts and minds of its audience with compelling and intimate theatre productions intended to stimulate thought, foster the exchange of ideas and to promote the development of new perspectives and understanding. PHILOSOPHY Our artists, Board members and staff believe strongly in the power of art and its essential contribution to the rich and fully-realized lives of our citizens. The nature of theatre is ancient and cross-cultural. The need to hear and share stories in a communal setting is ingrained in the human psyche. We meet this need by producing plays that bring social, cultural and political issues to the center of the community debate. By so doing, we hope to provide an experience that stimulates questions, dialog, investigation and understand-ing, and reinforces the best instincts and choices of our fellow human beings. ISSUES Next Act uses theater to spark important community-wide conversations about relevant social issues. We have staged plays dealing with racism, capital punishment, mental and physical disabilities, family issues, terminal illness and care-giving, troubled youth, international perspectives and conflicts, and responsibility owed to the community at large. Each season, we strive to provide the same intimate, powerful and high quality theater that our patrons have come to expect. EDUCATION: Next Act provides pre and post workshops for high school students who see or will see a student matinee. Discovery Guides are provided to teachers for better understanding of a plays' issues and to deepen discussion with students. Next Act offers a five week immersive program called Next Actors: Summer Theatre for Teens. Students from a number of high schools, mostly MPS, come together to devise a play by journaling, discussing, role playing, engaging in theatre games and creative writing. They present their play on a one-week tour to senior and community centers, culminating in one public performance at Next Act. Lunches and snacks are provided to summer students and bus passes are available to those with transportation issues. COMMUNITY DIALOGUE AND SUPPORT: Next Act performs for a supportive subscriber base of approximately 800 households and draws from a single-ticket constituency of nearly 15,000 from southeastern Wisconsin and northern Illinois. Each play is expressly intended to engage the minds and hearts of our audience on an immediate, intimate level. Personal previews and post-show talk-backs are held throughout each production, with moderators chosen for their expertise in the show’s subject matter. These help generate an active dialog of ideas, empathy and emotion with our audience. FISCAL RESPONSIBILITY Next Act maintains steady control on its annual budget, providing for necessary growth or reductions from year to year. The theatre’s annual operation is debt-free; Next Act has accumulated a modest cash reserve through conservative fiscal management over the years.