By ALAN SMASON, WYES-TV Theatre Critic (“Steppin’ Out“)
One of the most eagerly awaited new musicals in the country bowed recently in Milwaukee, not a typical launching place for such productions. But having the world premiere of Run Bambi Run, open at the Milwaukee Rep made perfect sense; it is, after all, based on a local legend and is full of colorful and historic figures culled from previous decades.
The brainchild of executive director Mark Clements (who also served as the vehicle’s director) and book writer Eric Simonson (Lombardi), Run Bambi Run tells the improbable tale of Lawrencia “Bambi” Bembenek, a striking beauty who hailed from the hard-working Polish community living in Milwaukee.
Much has been made of this often maligned figure, who was a former Milwaukee police officer and a one-time Playboy bunny among her several different occupations. While the Playboy gig and her stint as a police officer both lasted less than a month each, the imagery of those very different uniforms captured the public’s imagination, especially after Bembenek was arrested and convicted of murdering the first wife of her police officer husband, Fred Schultz.
Even though she professed her innocence throughout her trial, “Bambi,” as the press branded her, was convicted through circumstantial evidence against her compiled by the Milwaukee Police Department, the very same office she was suing for wrongful termination and which was later accused of widespread corruption and malfeacence.
In fact, Bambi’s case would probably have been relegated to the dusty pages of history had she and a prison lover not escaped and they found a new life for a few months while living in Canada. The escape and eventual manhunt for the two escapees reignited public interest in her story and brought about the intercession of Canadian authorities. In exchange for her freedom, Bembenek was allowed to plead no contest and allowed to return to the United States.
Simonson painted a fairly sympathetic portrait of “Bambi,” suggesting she was the hapless victim of members of her former department, but more specifically her plotting husband’s plot to get his children back and to rid himself of having to make egregious alimony and child support payments to his former wife. Throughout the piece, though, there are many who still posit she was guilty, pointing to her pleading.
The compelling story aside, a musical requires a great many moving parts and this musical had many, all executed extremely well. While Run Bambi Run did not enjoy a large cast, the roles of several figures were played by individual members and almost everyone actively played a musical instrument similar to the staging of Broadway’s Once and John Doyle’s unusual staging of Sweeney Todd.
The music and lyrics were rendered by Gordon Gano, the leader of The Violent Femmes, the post punk band whose members have claimed Milwaukee as their home for decades. Legend has it they were discovered busking on a theater street corner by The Pretenders’ John Honeyman-Scott in 1981 and were then invited by singer Chrissie Hynde to play an acoustic set of songs after the opening act for their show.
Simonson felt strongly that a Milwaukee storyline required a Milwaukee soundtrack and he convinced Clements that Gano possessed the musical talented and versatility to properly tell Bembenek’s story. Indeed, Gano’s musical score and biting lyrics were a perfect complement to the story.
Gano’s background as a rock and punk enthusiast marked the score that was carefully researched and developed through readings and workshops since 2017. Gano resisted the temptation to retread Violent Femmes music into the score. Instead, he wove many different kinds of music over the course of the two-act, three-hour long musical. While there were several hard edged rock anthems, there were also lilting ballads and event polkas representative of Bembenek’s parents and Polish neighborhood.
Making her Milwaukee Rep debut in the title role of “Laurie” was Erika Olson, an impressive actor with a powerful and soulful voice. Her credits as an independent singer and songwriter served her very well in interpreting Gano’s music and her performance was fortified by her previous experience with several Broadway (The Life at NY Center Encores) and Off-Broadway (Cyrano) shows and a national tour (Beautiful: The Carole King Musical). Olson’s abilities as a skilled guitarist enabled her to take the lead in many of the songs in which she was front and center and belting into a microphone.
As is the case with rock anthems, Gano’s lyrics were oftentimes repetitive. In one song, for example, Olson alluded to her working class background. “I am you and you are me. I am you and you are me,” she chanted.
In another song, shortly after graduating from the police academy, Gano had Laurie naively singing that she wanted to a be “a force on the force.” Later, when the dark forces that came to bear upon her life tried to silence her, Olson as Laurie warned: “The deeper you bury me, the louder I’ll shout!”
Playing the heavy, Fred Schultz, was Armando Guiterrez, who oiled his way around the stage as any sleazy and manipulative police officer might do. At times charming, but always on his game, Gutierrez made his Milwaukee Rep debut memorable as he made Laurie’s life a hot mess on stage. The scenes where he displayed his disco moves were both hilarious and enchanting. The probable conclusion of Simonson’s script is that Schultz had framed Laurie for the killing of his first wife Christine (Sarah Gliko).
Gliko also portrayed Gale, an accusatory reporter who is swept up in the media frenzy surrounding Laurie’s case. In the second act, though, she becomes a more sympathetic confidante as she seeks to vindicate Laurie from the wrongful conviction she had suffered.
Ian Littleworth also did double duty portraying Laurie’s cellmate’s brother Nick Gugliatto and Christine’s boyfriend Stu Honeck, Schultz’s former partner. As Nick, Littleworth had his biggest scenes opposite Laurie as they executed their escape plans and led authorities on a merry chase. The title song “Run Bambi Run” resonated throughout the Quadracci Powerhouse Theater with flashing lights, neon signs and a chorus that rose above the instruments in the background.
As Milwaukee Police Chief Harold Brier, Matt Daniels was also noteworthy, using several occasions to break slightly while still in character in order to play the ukelele, an instrument of which he is reported to be an acclaimed master. His comedic portrayal aside, the real Harold Brier was an authoritarian and polarizing figure in Milwaukee politics. Charges of racism and corruption swirled around the department during the 20 years he was in charge. It was under his watch that officers like Schultz were able to operate outside of the law with virtual impunity.
Jess Kantorwitz portrayed Judy Zess, a woman whose questionable lifestyle and drug use led to Bembenek’s dismissal from the police force when she allegedly altered a police report dealing with Judy’s arrest for possession of marijuana. According to Simonson’s book, the two had been longtime friends while growing up in the same neighborhood and Zess pressed Bembenek to do her the favor.
John Carlin played opposite Megan Loomis as Joe and Virginia “Ginnie” Bembenek, Lauren’s supportive parents. Carlin also played a larger-than-life lawyeer, while Loomis, who was the dance captain on Run Bambi Run, also portrayed Fred and Christine Schultz’s son Sean, who was the only eye witnessed on the night of the murder.
Other colorful characters on stage were played by Douglas Goodhart in the roles of private investigator Ira Robins and flamboyant attorney Don Eisenberg as well as Lucas Papaelias as a mysterious local figure Frederick Horenberger. Ken Allen Neely also performed well as Detective Peterson, the chief investigator on Bembenek’s case and a close friend of Officer Schultz.
Dan Kazemi handled the music directing on the project and was on stage for every performance playing keyboards along with Patrick Morrow on drums and percussion.
The choreography was turned in by Jenn Rose, while sceni designs were executied by Scott Davis. One of the unsung heroes of the production was Mieka van der Ploeg, who designed costumes that covered a range of nearly a half century.
The lighting design was very special as it requred the stage be lit dark during many of the prison scenes and especially during the prison break sequence of “Run Bambi Run.” Videos and projetions added to the authenticity of the historical narrative and were careated by Mike Tutaj.
Directed by Mark Clements, the world premiere of Run Bambi Run played in the Quardraggi Theatre of the Milwaukee Repertory from September 13 through October 22, 2023.
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