Herbert L. Williams Theatre to Host Free Public Reading of ‘Menominee River: Armistice’
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: August 1, 2024
Marinette, WI — The Herbert L. Williams Theatre, located on the UW-Green Bay, Marinette Campus, will host a free staged reading of a new play, “Menominee River: Armistice,” written by local playwrights John Thornberry and Tony LaMalfa, on August 25, 2024, at 4 p.m.
The story centers around the Beckers, a German farm family in Menominee, Michigan. In the summer of 1917, America commits itself to defeat Kaiser Wilhelm’s German armies in the trenches of Europe. At home in Menominee, Michigan, the War Loyalty Board ramps up its campaign to collect war bond funds through Liberty Loan drives. The Beckers struggle to navigate anti-German prejudice while keeping food on the table. And although Reverend Fritz Leonhardt opposes the war, most of his German congregation at Christ Lutheran Church supports it. Battle lines are drawn, driving wedges between families and friendships. An armistice can end a war, but it can’t heal deep divisions or broken relationships. Can anything unite a community in the middle of local and global conflict? And after peace is finally won, who still has the right to call themselves a “real American?”
Discussing the process of putting “Armistice” to paper, LaMalfa says, “John and I have had the space in our lives to craft an authentic tale based on newspaper accounts, historical articles, and unbelievable anecdotes about actual local events that transpired in Marinette and Menominee during World War I.”
Those accounts and anecdotes revealed contemporary parallels. “Combine the themes of political extremism, prejudice toward a cultural minority, and a global pandemic—the Spanish Influenza—and you get unmistakable parallels to today,” said LaMalfa. “Local German-Americans endured familiar abuse, coercion, and mockery for just being themselves. We have worked hard to faithfully preserve local history while telling a good story.”
Getting the history right has been vital to both playwrights, who relied on local research, including photographs from historical archives. “Tony and I were looking through research, and a particular photo caught my eye,” said Thornberry. “It was a high angle long shot from 1918. Hundreds of people gathered around a courtyard in Menominee, back at the height of American involvement in the First World War. And they were burning books … printed in German. I saw this photo, and my first reaction to it was, “Where’s that story? Why is nobody telling that story?” Armistice comes straight out of that photograph.”
Additionally, a “Meet the Artist” reception will be held August 25, 2024 from 3-4 p.m. before the staged reading of “Menominee River Armistice”. The Fine Arts Gallery is free and open to the public Monday-Thursday 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. For further information about the “Art in Bloom” exhibit and the Fine Arts Gallery, persons may contact co-Volunteer Gallery Manager James LaMalfa, Professor of Art Emeritus at lamalfaj@uwgb.edu.
About UW-Green Bay
The University of Wisconsin-Green Bay is a school of resilient problem solvers who dare to reach higher with the power of education that ignites growth and answers the biggest challenges. Serving 10,300 undergraduate, graduate, and doctoral students as well as 67,500 continuing education learners annually, UW-Green Bay offers 200 academic degrees, programs, and certificates. With four campus locations in Northeast Wisconsin, the University’s access mission welcomes all students who want to learn, from every corner of the world. Championing bold thinking since opening its doors in 1965, it is a university on the rise – Wisconsin’s fastest growing UW. For more information, visit www.uwgb.edu.
–75-24–
