Alverno Presents & Marquette Theatre Present Fiasco Theatre’s Cymbeline

Alverno Presents is partnering with Marquette Theatre to bring Fiasco Theater’s celebrated production of Shakespeare’s Cymbeline to Milwaukee. The daring production has a cast of only six actors, and relatively few props including a sheet and a trunk.

Legend has it the word “fiasco” was first used to describe a commedia dell’arte performance that went horribly (and hilariously) wrong. While Fiasco Theater hopes to avoid on-stage disasters, they believe that only when artists are brave enough to risk a fiasco can they create the possibility of something special. Their name is a reminder to themselves that in order to achieve huge rewards, they need to take commensurately huge leaps. In the short time since the Company was founded in 2007 by graduates of the Brown University/Trinity Rep M.F.A. acting program, Fiasco has, indeed been taking huge risks and reaping equally huge rewards.

The mission of Fiasco Theater is to create dynamic, joyful, actor-driven productions of classic and new plays, and to offer conservatory-level theatrical training through classes and workshops. Past shows include Twelfth Night and a workshop production of The Two Gentlemen of Verona. In 2008, they began offering the Free Training Initiative—a three-week, conservatory-level classical acting intensive for professional actors, completely free of charge to students. Fiasco has been in residence with Duke University, the Orchard Project, the Shakespeare Society, and NYU-Gallatin, and has led master classes at Brown University and NYU. In the spring of 2013 Fiasco will present a production of Stephen Sondheim and James Lapine's Into the Woods at the McCarter Theatre Center.

Performances are Friday, October 12th at 8p.m. and Saturday, October 13th at 2 p.m. and 8 p.m. at Marquette University’s intimate Helfaer Theatre. Single tickets are $30. Tickets may be purchased through the Marquette University Box Office at 414-288-7504 Monday-Friday 1-5 p.m. or online at http://marquettetheatre.showclix.com.

Alverno Presents
Alverno Presents, the performing arts series of Alverno College, is celebrating its 53rd year. The series has innovated beyond our history as the longest running, continuous arts presenter in the city, to our niche of presenting contemporary dance, world music and jazz and an array of performance events. Alverno Presents shares the school’s mission by ensuring broad access to and participation in learning, experiencing and developing the arts for the learning community of Alverno, and our community as a whole. For more information on Alverno Presents, special projects, media reviews and more, visit alvernopresents.alverno.edu, contact Alverno Presents Director David Ravel at 414-382-6150, or e-mail david.ravel@alverno.edu.