Best Detroit Live Theatre Experiences You Probably Haven't Tried
Detroit Repertory Theatre
13103 Woodrow Wilson St
Detroit, Mich. 48238-3686
(313) 868-1347
www.detroitreptheatre.com
The Detroit Repertory Theatre is the oldest alternative professional theater in Michigan. It produces 4 major productions each year at its 194-seat venue. Each production runs approximately eight weeks and is performed six times per week. That comes out to 180 or more performances a year. This company seeks to remain on the theatrical vanguard by staunchly advocating interracial casting, creating novel audience development techniques and stressing theatrical relevancy. The group also conducts a number of outreach and charitable services.
Performance Network Theatre
120 East Huron St.,
Ann Arbor, Mich. 48104
(734) 663-0681
http://performancenetwork.org
Performance Network offers a seven-show professional season with Broadway-quality performances in an intimate 139 seat theater. Offerings include a wide variety of musicals, comedies and dramas including Pulitzer Prize and Tony award winners. Also offered are a twice-a-year festival featuring local and national new works, a series of shows for children and various educational programs.
Planet Ant Theatre
2357 Caniff Ave.
Hamtramck Mich. 48212.
www.planetant.com
Planet Ant describes itself as "an organization founded on the principle of artistic freedom and artistic experimentation.' That pretty well sums up what you will find there. It's avant-garde, innovative and often improvisational. In addition to its plays and improv performances, Planet Ant offers educational programs.
PuppetART / Detroit Puppet Theater
25 E. Grand River
Detroit, Mich. 48226
(313)961-7777
www.puppetart.org
Founded in 1998 by a group of puppeteers and artists trained in the former Soviet Union, all members of the PuppetART troupe are masters of puppetry art theater. PuppetART offers a repertoire of eight productions, including one created for adult audiences. PuppetART Center is located in Detroit's Theater District, just a few blocks from the Michigan Opera Theater, Music Hall and the Gem and Century Theaters. The Center includes an intimate 70-person theater, a museum that accommodates a growing collection of puppets and a studio featuring various workshops.
Plowshares Theatre Company
2870 East Grand Blvd
Detroit, Mich. 48202
(313) 872-0279
www.plowshares.org
Its mission statement says Plowshares "exists to produce plays and programs that affirm, exhibit, and inspire African American life." And it does, Plowshares is an urban theater dedicated to "breaking new ground" by nurturing emerging talent, providing exciting opportunities to artists and audiences alike to experience great plays.
