Of Mice and Men, the award-winning play by John Steinbeck, is coming to the West Bend stage. Again.

It was first produced at UW-Washington County last year for a very short run, as part of the Fine Arts Series. The production received several award nominations and one win, and audiences loved it. So this year, it’s being brought back for a longer run, in partnership with Musical Masquers.

Director Paul Steinbach plays the part of George, and he relishes the chance to revisit the role. “This is the third time I’ve reprised a part, and I told the cast not to think of the process as boring. It’s actually liberating,” he says. “Characterization improves organically, and the storytelling can only get better the more familiar the actors are with the story.”

At the end of last year’s two-show run, Steinbach and the cast realized they weren’t done with the show. And neither was the community. “The reaction to last year’s show was incredibly positive,” Steinbach says. One person posted on Facebook the next day, “I’m a better person for having seen this.”

Knowing how committed the actors were to their roles, Steinbach had to determine what their schedules would allow in terms of the revival’s longer run. To his surprise delight, nearly the whole cast was able to be part of this year’s production.

The one new face is actress Susan Martin, who plays Curley’s wife. Although she’s new to the show, she’s not new to the West Bend theater scene. Audiences have seen her in the Musical Masquers’ productions Chicago and Oklahoma!, and In the Time of Old Age at the new Kettle Moraine Playhouse.

Although she might have been worried about fitting into an established cast, she didn’t need to be. At the first read-through in May, the other cast members were blown away by her reading. “Susan brings an emotional element to the role, which is not an easy one to play,” Steinbach said. “The character comes across as a flirt or a vamp, but in fact, she’s a tragic victim. She’s made one bad mistake in her life, marrying a man she didn’t love, and the consequences are devastating.”

Martin is thrilled to be part of the show. “The first reading was so beautiful and powerful that it actually brought me to tears. The story and actors were that good!”

That’s not hyperbole. For his portrayal of mentally challenged drifter Lennie Small, Nicholas Callan Haubner won the Broadway World Milwaukee award for Best Actor in a Play, and a nomination for a Footlights People’s Choice Award for Outstanding Lead Performer in a Play. The play itself has also earned Tony Award nominations, and a New York Drama Critics’ Circle award.

The show is emotionally powerful, and not just because of its realistic portrayal of the Great Depression. “It’s about the struggle to find a human connection, and when you find it, knowing if you can trust it,” Martin observed. Steinbach added, “The themes of isolation and longing in the context of societal prejudice and the pursuit of the American Dream are as relevant today as they were in 1937.”

The set will look familiar to those who saw the show last year. One of the advantages of reprising the show is that they didn’t have to start from scratch. The set had been completely dismantled at the end of the last run, however. Cast member Peter Gibeau jokes that this year, “It’s like having an IKEA version of the set, with 1000 pieces that we have to try to assemble.”

Of Mice and Men is presented by Seventh Row Center, in partnership with Musical Masquers. The show will be performed at UW-Washington County on August 10, 11, 12 and 17, 18, 19 at 7:30pm on Fridays and Saturdays, and at 2pm on Sundays.

Of Mice and Men
UW-Washington County
400 S. University Dr.
West Bend
August 10, 11, 12 & 17, 18, 19
Tickets available online: www.musicalmasquers.org