Trio of theaters add summer getaway element

Looking for a theatrical diversion this summer? Just north of the Illinois border and a scenic car ride away are three professional theater companies whose seasons are about to raise the curtain and light the sky.

Popular among northern Illinoisans and surrounding area residents, Peninsula Players, American Players Theatre and Northern Sky Theater have found loyal returning audiences to Door County, Wisconsin, for years. And all have box offices currently open for business.

Spring Green’s American Players Theatre has two venues: its flagship, 1,089-cushioned-seat, outdoor Hill amphitheater and the indoor 201-seat Touchstone Theatre. This year, APT offers a nine-show season of contemporary, classical and Shakespeare plays that runs through mid-November.

On the Hill:

“Ring Round the Moon,” June 8-Sept. 20

“Much Ado About Nothing,” June 14-Sept. 29

August Wilson’s “Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom,” June 21-Sept. 7

“Dancing at Lughnasa,” Aug. 2-Sept. 27

“King Lear,” Aug. 9-Sept. 28

In the Touchstone:

“The Virgin Queen Entertains Her Fool,” June 14-Sept. 19

“Wolf at the Door,” June 25-Sept. 18

“Constellations,” Aug. 10-Sept. 28

“Nat Turner in Jerusalem,” Oct. 17-Nov. 10

APT draws an annual crowd of more than 100,000 people to its venues; you can walk the wooded path or take one of the shuttle buses to the Hill, and there are plenty of concession places to eat, drink and be merry.

APT canceled its 41st season due to the COVID pandemic in 2020, but it didn’t go away. It kept in touch with audiences via virtual play readings, interviews, stories and even a distance, poetic walking tour of APT’s grounds titled “If These Trees Could Talk.” APT’s season came back in 2022.

America’s oldest resident summer theater, Peninsula Players, began with “two planks and a passion.” Located in Fish Creek, it has a five-show season running through October. An all-weather pavilion in a 16-acre cedar forest overlooking the waters of Green Bay has movable side doors open during the performances to allow patrons to “enjoy the elements as well as the actors.” Its 89th season includes:

“I Ought To Be In Pictures,” June 18-July 7

“The Angel Next Door,” July 10-28

“Million Dollar Quartet,” July 31-Aug. 18

“Mary’s Wedding,” Aug. 21-Sept. 1

Agatha Christie’s “The Stranger,” Sept. 4-Oct. 20

Peninsula Players has been performing since it opened its first show, Noel Coward’s “Hay Fever,” on July 25, 1935, behind the Bonnie Brook Cottage Motel. Produced by novice theater producers – the brother-and-sister team of Richard and Caroline Fisher – it was a hit. In 1937, the Fishers realized they had outgrown the Bonnie Brook, and purchased the Wildwood Boys Camp, the current site of the theater. The original Peninsula Players stage was built with the help of Sam Wanamaker, the actor and director best known and most responsible for the modern re-creation of Shakespeare’s Globe Theatre in London.

Working in a resident company, there are about 50 people living and working together onsite: actors, interns, directors, designers, technicians, stage managers and administrators – all on the property, all involved in the Peninsula Players creative process.

The lesser-known Northern Sky Theater (“songs, stories, joy”) also is located in Fish Creek in Peninsula State Park, and has two separate venues: the indoor Gould Theater and the 700-seat, outdoor Peninsula State Park Amphitheater.

Northern Sky creates all-original musical shows, and its season runs through October. This year, there are six productions beginning in repertory June 12, based on the culture and heritage of the United States. In the summer, shows run six nights a week with two double-show nights on Monday and Thursday.

In the Amphitheater:

“The Fisherman’s Daughters”

“Belgians in Heaven” (30th anniversary production)

“Hell’s Belgians” (world-premiere prequel to “Belgians in Heaven”)

Indoor at the Gould:

“Girls on Sand” (premiere)

“Reality Trip” (premiere)

“And If Elected” (election tradition)

The brainchild of University of Wisconsin professor Dave Peterson, who taught a one-month course about the folklore of the Great Lakes, the theater company produces shows ranging in length from one to 1 1/2 hours, generally with no intermission. Formerly known as American Folklore Theatre, it changed its name to Northern Sky Theater in 2015. The ensemble is unique in that it produces original shows covering aspects of Midwest lore.

Obviously, we are fortunate to be in proximity to the many choices offered by Chicago theater, while closer to home, the Raue Center For The Arts, Woodstock Opera House, Paramount Theatre, Metropolis and Elgin Art Showcase offer superb entertainment. But if you enjoy the novelty of theater under a canopy of stars in fragrant woods, these three Wisconsin venues offer invitations to be serenaded and captivated in natural settings worthy of discovery.

• Regina Belt-Daniels is an ardent admirer of summer theater with nature as a backdrop and stars for a ceiling. Celebrating her 10th year of writing theater reviews for the Shaw Local News Network, when not attending live theater, she can be found happily teaching, acting, directing and traveling with her husband.

IF YOU GO

• WHAT: American Players Theatre

• WHERE: 5950 Golf Course Road, Spring Green, Wisconsin

• INFORMATION: americanplayers.org, 608-588-2361

• WHAT: Peninsula Players

• WHERE: 4351 Peninsula Players Road, Fish Creek, Wisconsin

• INFORMATION: peninsulaplayers.com, 920-868-3287

• WHAT: Northern Sky Theater

• WHERE: 10169 Shore Road (Amphitheater); 9058 County Road A (Gould Theater), Fish Creek, Wisconsin

• INFORMATION: northernskytheater.com, 920-854-6117