Milwaukee, WI

16 music and theater performances to see in Milwaukee in January 2026

Published

4 months ago

December 24, 2025

16 music and theater performances to see in Milwaukee in January 2026

During the performing arts season, arts editor Jim Higgins recommends promising music, dance and theater productions to see in the coming month. Look for these stories in the newspaper the final Sunday of the month. They post online the preceding week at jsonline.com/entertainment/arts.

In Milwaukee’s performing arts scene, the first month of 2026 brings the return of the 21st century’s revolutionary musical, plus a new stage work about Wisconsin artist Mary Nohl.

Also, it’s a good month for Mozart, both in the concert hall and on stage.

Here are 16 theater, music and dance performances you can enjoy in the Milwaukee area in January. I would never tell you that these are the only shows worth seeing here during that time period.

‘The Godfather,’ Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra

Associate conductor Ryan Tani leads the MSO in performing Nino Rota’s Oscar-nominated score live to screenings of Francis Ford Coppola’s classic American film. 7:30 p.m. Jan. 2-3. Bradley Symphony Center, 212 W. Wisconsin Ave. Visit mso.org or call (414) 291-7605.

‘Cardboard Piano,” Renaissance Theaterworks

Hansol Jung’s drama, which opens in war-ravaged Uganda in 1999, takes on compelling conflicts about faith and homophobia. Jan. 9-Feb. 1, 255 S. Water St. Visit rtwmke.org or call (414) 278-0765.

‘The Fisherman’s Daughters,’ Milwaukee Repertory Theater

In singer-songwriter Katie Dahl’s musical, set in Door County, two sisters fight the state of Wisconsin’s attempt to take their land by eminent domain. Milwaukee Rep says this show is recommended for people 10 years and older. Jan. 9-March 1, Stackner Cabaret, 108 E. Wells St. Visit milwaukeerep.com or call (414) 224-9490.

‘Celtic Throne II – Psalter of Ireland,” Marcus Performing Arts Center

This all-ages Irish dance, music and theater show is built around the story of the mythological lawgiver Ollav Fola. 7 p.m. Jan. 15, Marcus Performing Arts Center, 929 N. Water St. Visit marcuscenter.org or call (414) 273-7206.

‘The Lehman Trilogy,’ Milwaukee Repertory Theater

The Rep’s second fully staged production in the upgraded Checota Powerhouse Theater is an epic story of immigration, economic ascension and financial collapse, running an estimated 3 hours and 40 minutes with two intermissions. It’s coming to Milwaukee from Minnesota’s Guthrie Theater. Jan. 13-Feb. 8, Checota Powerhouse Theater, 108 E. Wells St. Visit milwaukeerep.com or call (414) 224-9490.

‘Maybe We’ll Fly,” Milwaukee Opera Theatre

Milwaukee Opera Theatre is presenting staged readings of a new play by Wisconsin playwright Marie Kohler with music by composer Josh Schmidt. Subject: the life and passion to create of Mary Nohl (1914-2001), who transformed her Fox Point cottage and yard into an artistic environment. 6:30 p.m. Jan. 16, 1:30 and 4:30 p.m. Jan. 17, Florentine Leuders Opera Center, 926 E. Burleigh St. Visit milwaukeeoperatheatre.org.

‘Folk Songs,’ Trio Mediæval

Early Music Now presents this Norway-based vocal ensemble, in a concert of Norwegian and Scandinavian songs, including lullabies and tales of courtly love. 5 p.m. Jan. 17, St. Joseph Chapel, 1515 S. Layton Blvd. Visit earlymusicnow.org or (414) 225-3113.

‘Hamilton,’ Marcus Performing Arts Center

The 21st century’s most popular musical returns for its third visit to Milwaukee; it was last here in 2021, when Lin-Manuel Miranda’s hip-hop-infused look at the Founding Fathers reopened the Marcus Performing Arts Center following the pandemic lockdown year. Sixteen performances are scheduled for Jan. 20-Feb. 1 at MPAC, 929 N. Water St. Visit marcuscenter.org or call (414) 273-7206.

‘Amadeus,’ Skylight Opera Theatre

Peter Shaffer’s play pits Mozart, genius composer but vulgar human being, against his more ordinary rival Salieri. Skylight’s production will include a live chamber orchestra. Matt Daniels, Milwaukee Rep’s Scrooge, takes on the key role of Salieri. Jan. 23-Feb. 8, Broadway Theatre Center, 158 N. Broadway. Visit skylightmusictheatre.org or call (414) 291-7800.

Kerson Leong and Bernard Labadie, Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra

Soloist Leong performs Beethoven’s Violin Concerto, one of the peaks of violin repertoire. Guest conductor Labadie leads the orchestra in Hadyn’s Symphony No. 103 (“Drumroll”). 7:30 p.m. Jan. 23-24, Bradley Symphony Center. Visit mso.org or call (414) 291-7605.

‘I Am My Own Wife,’ Milwaukee Chamber Theatre

Doug Wright’s one-actor play won both the Pulitzer Prize for Drama and a Tony Award for best play in 2004. In Milwaukee Chamber Theatre’s new production, Jonathan Riker will perform all the characters in this story of famed German transgender figure Charlotte von Mahlsdorf. Jan. 23-Feb. 8, Broadway Theatre Center, 158 N. Broadway. Visit milwaukeechambertheatre.org or call (414) 291-7800.

‘Baroque Unbound’ Frankly Music

Harpsichodist Paolo Bordignon and piccoloist Jennifer Bouton join violinist Frank Almond and other musicians to perform music of the Baroque era by Vivaldi, Bach and other composers. 7 p.m. Jan. 26, Wisconsin Lutheran College Schwan Concert Hall, 8815 W. Wisconsin Ave., Wauwatosa. Visit franklymusic.org.

‘Encore,’ Milwaukee Ballet

Milwaukee Ballet performs a program of classical and contemporary dance in its intimate We Energies Performance Studio, a 172-seat venue. Jan. 30-Feb. 8, Baumgartner Center for Dance, 128 N. Jackson St. Visit milwaukeeballet.org or call (414) 902-2103.

‘Hellenika,’ Marcus Performing Arts Center

Playwright-composer Kyle Thomas Hanneken has been working for seven years on this large-scale musical about the Greek philosopher Socrates, his teacher Aspasia and the fate of democracy in Athens. While these performances are billed as public readings rather than a fully staged production, this is a big show with 20 performers and 30 songs. 7 p.m. Jan. 30-31, Marcus Performing Arts Center, 929 N. Water St. Visit marcuscenter.org or call (414) 273-7206.

Stephen Hough, Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra

Pianist Hough, a MacArthur “genius grant” awardee who’s also a composer and a significant writer about music, visits the MSO to perform Mozart’s Piano Concerto No. 21, which movie buffs know from its use in “Elvira Madigan” (1967). Guest conductor Jean-Marie Zeitouni leads a program that includes Mozart’s “Prague” Symphony and works by Ligeti and Kodály. 7:30 p.m. Jan. 31-Feb. 1, Bradley Symphony Center. Visit mso.org or call (414) 291-7605.

Julian Lage, Wilson Center for the Arts

A former child prodigy, Lage is a leading contemporary jazz guitarist and composer. His performance was rescheduled to this date from a previously planned summer concert here. 7:30 p.m. Jan. 31, Wilson Center for the Arts, 3270 Mitchell Park Drive, Brookfield. Visit wilson-center.com or call (262) 781-9520.

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Milwaukee, WI

Milwaukee Brewers overpower Detroit Tigers to win 12-4

Published

3 hours ago

April 22, 2026

Press Room

Milwaukee Brewers overpower Detroit Tigers to win 12-4

Brice Turang drove in four runs and David Hamilton had four hits as the Milwaukee Brewers routed the Detroit Tigers 12-4 on Tuesday night.

Despite missing their top three hitters, the Brewers put 19 runners on base and scored in double digits for the second time this season. They have won five of six.

All nine Milwaukee starters reached base at least once, and Detroit catcher/knuckleballer Jake Rogers limited the damage by pitching a scoreless ninth inning.

Detroit lost its second straight after winning eight of nine.

Milwaukee used speed and small ball to take a 3-0 lead in the second inning. Garrett Mitchell led off with an infield single, took second on a walk and scored on Sal Frelick’s base hit. Hamilton beat out a bunt to load the bases.

After Blake Perkins struck out, Turang lined a two-run single to right. Turang, though, got caught in a rundown between first and second and the Tigers threw Hamilton out at the plate when he tried to score.

Detroit loaded the bases with no one out in the fourth, but Grant Anderson relieved Harrison and got Javier Báez to ground into a double play. That made it 3-1, but Anderson struck out pinch-hitter Kerry Carpenter to end the inning.

The Brewers made it 5-1 in the seventh on RBI singles by Turang and William Contreras.

Milwaukee added seven runs in an 11-batter eighth, an inning that included the fourth triple of Gary Sanchez’s 12-year MLB career.

Detroit scored three times in the ninth inning to cut the final margin to eight runs.

The teams continue the series on Wednesday night with the second of three games. Detroit RHP Casey Mize (1-1, 2.78) is scheduled to face RHP Chad Patrick (1-0, 0.95).

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Milwaukee, WI

Milwaukee County overdose deaths continue to fall, but challenges remain

Published

15 hours ago

April 21, 2026

Press Room

Milwaukee County overdose deaths continue to fall, but challenges remain

New data show 387 drug overdose deaths in Milwaukee County in 2025, down about 43% from their peak in 2022.
County officials credit efforts to increase access to Narcan, addiction treatment and drug testing strips.
Overdose deaths caused by multiple drugs are still a concern. The combination of cocaine and fentanyl was most prevalent in the county in 2025.
The county is spending $111 million over the next several years in opioid settlement funds.

The number of Milwaukee County residents who died from a drug overdose fell for a third year in 2025, which county officials say is a promising sign that more money spent on harm reduction, treatment and prevention efforts is working.

New data released April 21 show 387 overdose deaths across the county last year, down about 43% from their peak in 2022.

“The work is paying off,” Dr. Ben Weston, Milwaukee County’s chief health policy adviser, said at a news conference, touting the county’s vending machines stocked with Narcan and drug testing strips, as well as a state-sponsored data collection system that helps local health departments understand when and where overdoses occur.

Still, the hundreds of county residents who lost their lives last year to a drug overdose means that work isn’t close to done, officials say – especially as the drug landscape continues to change, presenting new challenges.

“We can’t let our foot off the gas quite yet,” said Milwaukee County Executive David Crowley.

Drug mixing continues to drive lethal outcomes

Milwaukee County’s decline in overdose deaths is a trend mirrored across the state and the country, following years of climbing fatalities that were deemed a public health crisis.

The county will spend $111 million in opioid settlement funds over the next several years and is already putting what it has received to use, focusing on “reaching residents where they are,” said Jeremy Triblett, prevention integration manager with the Milwaukee County Department of Health and Human Services.

That includes initiatives like the harm reduction vending machines and also knocking on doors, providing county EMS workers with Narcan and seeking the opinions of people who use drugs to shape the county’s strategy.

But officials say they still see a concerning trend of combinations of drugs leading to overdose, particularly fentanyl being cut with stimulants such as cocaine. These mixes of drugs make it harder to reverse an overdose, said Dr. Wieslawa Tlomak, Milwaukee County’s chief medical examiner.

Nearly a third of all autopsies the medical examiner’s office conducted in 2025 were deaths by drug overdose, Tlomak said, and the majority involved multiple drugs. Data show the most common combinations were fentanyl and cocaine, cocaine and alcohol, and opoids and fentanyl.

Methamphetamines are also involved in more overdose deaths than a few years ago, Tlomak said.

For drug users, not knowing exactly what’s in the drug they are getting is one of the most dangerous elements of the current drug landscape, she said.

Fatal drug overdoses were most common among American Indian and Alaska Native residents in 2025, the data show, followed by Black residents. About two-thirds of fatal overdoses were in men, and the median age of death from an overdose was 49, a number that’s been climbing steadily since 2018.

Triblett said the county is focusing on how substances interact with cultural norms in different communities and that a community advisory board is convening to develop harm reduction messaging for specific populations. His team will also host a door-knocking event June 12 to reach new people across the county with prevention and treatment resources.

Madeline Heim covers health and the environment for the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. Contact her at 920-996-7266 or mheim@usatodayco.com.

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Milwaukee, WI

What to know about Michael Lock as police execute warrant on his former home

Published

1 day ago

April 21, 2026

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What to know about Michael Lock as police execute warrant on his former home

Milwaukee police on Monday, April 20, began digging up a home once owned by notorious Milwaukee drug dealer Michael Lock.

The dig marks another chapter in Lock’s long criminal history in Milwaukee, which has included convictions for homicide, drug dealing, kidnapping, torture and running a prostitution ring.

As of 6 p.m., April 20, police had partially dug up the concrete driveway and yard in Lock’s former home. Lock has been convicted of murders of other drug dealers whose bodies were found under concrete slabs at a different home he owned.

As the dig continues, here’s what to know about Lock:

Who is Michael Lock?

Lock was the head of a murderous criminal organization known as the “Body Snatchers” and one of the leading criminal operators in Milwaukee until his 2007 arrest.

Over the course of a decade, Lock’s organization sold large volumes of cocaine, tortured and killed other dealers, prostituted women across the Midwest and ran a mortgage fraud scheme.

A jury convicted Lock in July 2008 in the homicides of two drug dealers in 1999 and 2000, whose remains were found in 2005 under concrete slabs in the backyard of a home once owned by Lock at 4900 W. Fiebrantz Ave. He has also been found guilty of running a prostitution ring, various kidnapping and drug dealing charges and mortgage fraud.

Where is Michael Lock now?

Lock is is serving multiple terms of life in prison at Waupun Correctional Institution without the chance of parole.

Where are Milwaukee police digging on April 20?

Milwaukee police confirmed they are executing a search warrant at the home on 4343 N. 15th St. in Milwaukee’s north side. City tax records show the property is owned by Shalanda Roberts, formerly Shalanda Lock, Michael Lock’s former wife.

Why are police digging up the yard of Lock’s former home?

There has long been suspicion on the part of law enforcement that there are additional bodies buried under the yard. In 2011, police dug another Milwaukee yard looking for remains.

In that warrant 15 years ago, investigators said at least four victims are buried somewhere in Milwaukee. Before that, police had dug a half-dozen other yards. Police have found no remains in the other digs.

Who lives at the property now?

It is unclear if anyone currently lives at the North 15th Street property. Shalanda Roberts told the Journal Sentinel she owns the property where police are digging, but it is a rental and she lives out of state now.

She said she has no information on the dig and has not spoken to her former husband in years.