Discover the hidden gems of Detroit’s theater scene – the Detroit Repertory Theatre, Detroit Public Theatre, and Planet Ant Theatre.
Izaya Spencer and Shaunie Lewis in a production of Blues for an Alabama Sky at the Detroit Public Theatre. Credit: The Detroit Public Theatre
Big name venues downtown get credit for much of the theater scene in Detroit, but for residents the go-to sites are more entrenched in the community.
For years, the Detroit Repertory Theatre, Detroit Public Theatre (DPT) and Hamtramck’s Planet Ant Theatre have resonated with local talent and residents, connecting to their communities and offering programming in ways that venues with more seats haven’t.
For LaSalle Gardens resident Kathe Stevens, local productions are a source of pride and “give us connection to and insight into the communities in which we live.”
“Those are our people on stage, or at the ticket booth, or in the parking lot,” Stevens said.
The city’s smaller theaters, she said, “make us think about social issues” and “make us better people,” because they typically host productions that reflect the values of that community rather than catering to commercial crowds.
As a Detroit cultural institution, DPT is entering its 10th season this month and Producing Artistic Director Courtney Burkett said its roots are firmly here in the city. DPT shared the stage with the Detroit Symphony Orchestra before moving into a pre-war warehouse at 3960 Third Street, just south of Alexandrine, with capacity for about 250 people.
“We want to make sure that the people of this city feel seen and represented,” Burkett said.
Burkett said when she launched the company in 2015 with Sarah Clare Corporandy and Sarah Winkler the need was clear.
“We felt like there was a little bit of a hole in the cultural landscape,” said Burkett, noting the absence of an anchor institution to connect the national and local theater communities.
The focus is clear from DPT’s output. Dominique Morisseau, the company’s executive artistic producer, is a MacArthur fellow and Tony nominated playwright. The author of “Detroit ‘67,” has contributed greatly to grounding the work of DPT in Detroit, while lending it a robust voice nationally.
DPT’s new season continues with its commitment to urgent conversations in the arts with the Sept. 26 opening of Pulitzer Prize-winning “Fat Ham” By James Ijames.
“Detroit is a Black city,” Burkett said, “so we try to produce a lot of work by Black playwrights and Black stories, but not exclusively.”
Community values
Not far from DPT is the Detroit Repertory Theatre, or “The Rep,” a mainstay heading into its 68th season as the “oldest alternative professional theatre in Michigan.”
Founded as a touring company in 1957, the theatre’s ethos was established by founder and original artistic director Bruce Millan, who died in 2023. Millan came into the role without a theater background, but was the driving force behind the Rep and a mentor, said Leah Smith, the The Rep’s executive artistic director.
In its early years the acting company was largely devoted to regional theater, performing adapted fairy tales and fables for school children of all backgrounds with cast members that were uncharacteristically diverse for the time. This inclusivity was an extension of the values that Millan – a writer and sociologist – and others brought to their art, Smith noted.
“The company was employing and casting actors that were Black-and-white-mixed on stage … they were playing princesses, they were playing fishermen,” Smith said. “The goal was to show the common humanity of us, that the color of a person’s skin doesn’t change the fact that we’re all alike.”
By the sixties, the acting company ceased its traveling acting schedule, purchased the theatre on 13103 Woodrow Wilson, just west of Highland Park, and a couple of out buildings. Today, The Rep is the only visible business on the residential block surrounded by underutilized land.
The 194-seat venue was formerly a Finnish social club. The lobby looks it. The setup telegraphs its social club roots. On the nights and afternoons of performances the onsite kitchen offers light repast, there’s a 30-foot polished oak bar to grab a drink and upholstered wooden furniture.
The Rep’s new season begins in November with a new play called “Alamo Shoes” by noted Michigan-born playwright Steven Simoncic. The season continues with a modern classic: August Wilson’s “Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom.”
The willingness to take on new productions as well as more established favorites is a huge strength for the institution, said “Alamo Shoes” director Jeff Nahan.
“Ushering a new work to the stage is an incredibly dynamic experience. Serving a playwright’s new work with its first production is a rare opportunity that comes with both humbling and often fantastical choices at the same time,” Nahan said. “Alamo Shoes may start here at the Detroit Repertory Theatre, but it surely has legs and will go on to future productions.”
Long-time Boston Edison resident Colleen Dolan-Greene said small, community-centric theaters in Detroit are positioned to provide performances for neighbors in ways that the bigger spaces aren’t.
“Small venue theaters are often able to produce thought-provoking plays that you wouldn’t see here at the Fisher,” she said. “They can lead to enlightening discussions with our friends. Plays can deliver messages that are often difficult to deliver in person.”
‘Punk rock’ theater
In nearby Hamtramck, the work coming out of Planet Ant is, necessarily, a bit shaggier than works being produced by its colleagues across town.
“It’s like punk rock or DIY theater,” said Mike McGettigan, Planet Ant’s teacher and director of training. “I just love the idea of putting the power in the hands of the people that want to create stuff in the community.”
The nonprofit is celebrating 30 years of operations in its 50-seat, black box theater at 2357 Caniff. Across the street, at 2320 Caniff, is Ant Hall (120 seats), and The Independent Comedy Club (40 seats). Planet Ant is known for putting on plays, comedy, improv and events that defy concise description (think clown shows and/or burlesque).
While it offers programming designed to foster the creative energies of community members, Planet Ant’s year round classes – film, playwriting, sketch, improv, television and movie writing and more – are its bread and butter. McGettigan estimates about 1,000 class and workshop participants come through annually.
“We’re big believers in our mission statement, which is to provide this place for the community to help encourage people to grow as an artist,” McGettigan smiles. “And it’s kind of the reason we get up in the morning to do this.”
Sketch stars and actors like Keegan-Michael Key did early stage work at both The Rep and Planet Ant. Planet Ant, in fact, has seen a number of comedians and actors come out of their classes and staff, including the co-star of the cult favorite Comedy Central original “Detroiters,” Sam Richardson.
Actor and writer Will Street knows this first-hand. The 24-year-old, raised in Detroit, recently moved to Philadelphia to further pursue his acting career. Street got his first production credits at Planet Ant, going on to work and act in productions with The Rep and was cast to perform in the Public Theatre’s mounting of Dominique Morisseau’s “Confederates” this coming February.
Working at smaller venues “sharpens your sword,” he said.
“On stages that small there’s nowhere to hide and there’s very little distance between you and the audience. More often than not, the patrons will be straight up with you,” Street said. “As I look ahead, I hope to perform in bigger and bigger houses and I will always lean on the lessons I’ve learned and the mentors I’ve gained.”
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