Author: Lee Matz

From ‘on location’ to public ‘screening’ with “Around the Corner”

The preview party for the Whitefish Bay episode of “Around the Corner with John McGivern” was held in a packed auditorium at the Whitefish Bay High School on January 24. The highly rated Milwaukee PBS series began filming its sixth season in the spring of 2016. The Milwaukee Independent spent a full day traveling with the crew of “Around the Corner with John McGivern” on June 9, while filming the Whitefish Bay episode. The Milwaukee PBS program has a staff of 14 who work full-time to produce each show. In the series, Emmy Award-winning actor John McGivern explores what...

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Photo Essay: ZIP MKE Exhibit

ZIP MKE, which has collected almost 900 photographs of all 28 zip codes in Milwaukee since the end of September 2016, presented an exhibition of selected images their online gallery at the Milwaukee Public Library’s Central Branch. The kick-off celebration featured guest speakers, food, jazz, feature photographers, and neighborly conversation. The mission of ZIP MKE has been to break down the geographical and social barriers that divide us in the city of Milwaukee, by helping us to see each other and the places we inhabit. This formal exhibit was the first public step in that effort. As the online...

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Photo Essay: Grace Weber’s Music Lab

“The most amazing thing to feel as a young person, is to be noticed and to be recognized for who you authentically are.” – Grace Weber Beginning March 31, the Music Lab will hold once a month sessions at the performing space of 88Nine Radio Milwaukee. The curriculum will consist of educational modules, focused on the creation, performance, technical, legal, and business aspects of the music industry. The partnership between 88Nine Radio Milwaukee, Big Mouth Records, and creative artist Grace Weber will serve as a talent incubator for Milwaukee area high school youth. An additional goal of the music...

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Dr. Steven Moffic: How climate change impacts viоIеncе in Milwaukee

The “First 100 Hours Vigil” kicked off at City Hall on January 19 with leaders from Milwaukee’s interfaith and environmental communities. The day before the Inauguration of President-Elect Trump, and concurrent with sixty similar vigils across the nation, Wisconsin Interfaith Power & Light (WIPL) launched a statewide effort for its environmental awareness campaign. The “First 100 Hours” gathering in Milwaukee sought to raise a moral voice about protecting natural resources and reverse the damage from global warming. “For those of us who grew up in Milwaukee in the 1950s and 1960s, a winter like this year was not what...

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Photo Essay: Opera night at Historical Society

One of Wisconsin’s oldest professional performing arts centers celebrated Milwaukee’s music legacy at one of the city’s oldest institutions. The Milwaukee County Historical Society kicked-off the programming for its 2017 feature exhibit, Melodies and Memories: 200 Years of Milwaukee Music with a live music event on January 19. The free concert was a collaboration with the Florentine Opera, to offer a performance of popular arias from operas performed throughout the Florentine’s history. The Florentine is the sixth-oldest opera company in the United States. The company performs at the Marcus Center in downtown Milwaukee, and continues to present ‘new opera’...

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